1 COURSE INFORMATION PHYS:1701 PHYSICS I FALL 2016 INSTRUCTOR Professor Robert Merlino OFFICE 405 VAN PHONE (319) 335-1756 EMAIL robert-merlino@uiowa.edu (the best way to contact me) OFFICE HOURS Tuesday and Thursday 9:30 A 11:00 A. I will do my best to be available during these times, but if you are not free during these hours, email me to set up a time that works. DEPARTMENT Main Office: 203 VAN, (319) 335-1686 DEO: Professor Fred Skiff, 207 VAN Phone: (319) 335-1689, email: frederick-skiff@uiowa.edu Assoc. DEO: Professor Craig Pryor, 402 VAN Phone: (319) 335-0099, email: craig-pryor@uiowa.edu LECTURES DISCUSSION LABS PHYS:1701:000A MWF 12:30 P 1:20 P 70 VAN PHYS:1701:0001 TH 12:30 P 1:20 P W55 CB (Chemistry Building) PHYS:1701:0017 M 7:00 P 9:50 P 362 VAN PHYS:1701:0021 Tu 8:00 A 10:50 A 362 VAN PHYS:1701:0023 Tu 11:30 A 2:20 P 362 VAN PHYS:1701:0025 Tu 3:30 P 6:20 P 362 VAN COURSE WEBAGE All course information will be posted on the course webpage: http://www.physics.uiowa.edu/~rmerlino/1701_f_16 REQUIRED TEXTS Lecture: Fundamentals of Physics, 10 th Edition, Volume One, Halliday Resnick, and Walker, J. Wiley publisher. ISBN 978-1-118-23376-4 Lab: Experiments in Mechanics, Wave Motion, and Heat, John Goree and Anthony Moeller, available at the Iowa Hawk Shop in the IMU
2 OVERVIEW OF THE INTRODUCTORY PHYSICS SEQUENCE Physics I (PHYS:1701) is the first of a four semester sequence of introductory physics courses intended mainly for Physics and Astronomy majors. Physics I, II, and III, (PHYS:1701, PHYS:1702, PHYS:2703) cover classical physics (the physics developed before about 1900), including: mechanics, fluids, waves, thermodynamics, electricity and magnetism, and optics. Physics IV (PHYS:2704) covers modern physics (the physics developed after about 1900), including: special relativity, quantum mechanics, atomic and molecular physics, condensed matter physics, nuclear physics, and elementary particle physics. PHYSICS I CONTENT AND GOALS Physics I covers classical mechanics the dynamics of point particles and extended objects (rigid bodies). The main physical principles presented in Physics I are Newton s Laws of Motion and the Law of Universal Gravitation. This material is contained in the first 13 chapters of Fundamentals of Physics 10 th Edition, by Halliday, Resnick, and Walker. The major goal of Physics I is to allow you to acquire a thorough understanding of the basic principles of classical mechanics, and to develop your ability to apply these principles to solve problems. The principles of physics are the result of observation and experimentation, and the lab component of the course is designed to accomplish two major goals: (i) to allow you to observe some of the basic phenomena of mechanics; and (ii) to learn the proper techniques of experimental physics, including making measurements, acquiring and analyzing data, evaluating errors, and drawing prudent conclusions. COURSE COREQUISITE (MATH:1850) It is assumed that you have already learned basic algebra, geometry, and trigonometry in high school. It is not required that you have taken a course in calculus. It is required that you are taking Calculus I (MATH:1850) concurrently with this course, if you have not taken it previously. We will use differential and integral calculus in this course, and actually develop, from the point of view of a physicist as opposed to a mathematician, some of the basic concepts such as limits, derivatives, and area under a curve (integrals). COURSE WORK EXPECTATIONS Physics I is a 4 semester-hour (4 cr) course with a Lab. College (CLAS) guidelines are that students should spend 2 hours/week per semester hour on study outside of class. This means 8 hours/week on reading, problem solving, and lab preparation for this course.
3 COURSE EXAMINATIONS There will be 3 (50 minute) exams given during the regular class period, and a final exam. All exams will be closed-book exams. A study guide specifying the material covered in the exams, and the exam format and procedures will be announced in class and posted on the class webpage, one week before the exam is scheduled. The 50 minute exams are tentatively scheduled as: Exam 1: Friday September 16 Exam 2: Friday October 14 Exam 3: Friday November 18 The 3 exams are scheduled on Fridays, so that we can review the material and go over problems during the Thursday discussion session before the exam. Final Exam: A two-hour (120 minute) final exam will be given during the week of December 12-16. The date, time, and location will be announced shortly. Students should not make any travel plans until the schedule of all final exams is announced. Students are required to take all of the exams at the scheduled times. Makeup exams will only be given for absence due to authorized/sanctioned University activities, or documented illness. You must inform the instructor (by email) as soon as possible before the scheduled exam date if you will be absent for an exam. GRADING Your grade in this course will be based on your exam scores, lab scores, and homework scores, according to the following percentages: Exams (3): 45 % (15% each) Final Exam: 25 % Homework: 10 % Lab: 20 % Semester grades will be assigned according to the CLAS guidelines for an introductory level course: A 15%, B 34%, C 40%, D 8%, F 3%. Plusses and minuses will be used; A+ s will only be given for exceptional performance.
4 SUGGESTED PROBLEMS AND ASSIGNMENTS Going over the lecture presentations, reading the corresponding text material, and doing problems is essential to achieving success in this course. It is important to realize that although I am teaching this class, I cannot do the learning for you you must do the learning yourselves. Part of the learning process involves struggling to understand complex concepts and ideas, and testing your apprehension of these concepts by attempting to work problems. Suggested problems. Some of the chapters in the text have over 100 problems. I will post a small subset of suggested problems of various levels of difficulty, chosen to best illustrate the concepts, and allow you to apply your knowledge. You should attempt to do as many of the suggested problems as possible. We may go over some of these problems in lectures or in the discussion sessions, and the solutions will be posted on the course webpage. Assignments. Some of the suggested problems will be posted as an assignment that will be collected on a specified due date, graded by a TA, and returned to you. Your solutions should be written out carefully and neatly and in complete detail, and handed in at the beginning of the class of the due date. Your assignments must be handed in on paper, not emailed to me. Solutions to the assigned problems will be posted on the class webpage on the due date, so no late assignments will be accepted. Remember, that although only a few of the suggested problems will be collected and graded as an assignment, you should attempt to solve all of the suggested problems. LECTURES, DISCUSSION, AND LABS Lectures. There will be 3, 50 minute lectures/week (MWF, 12:30 P -1:20 P in 70 VAN), and a 50 minute discussion session (Th, 12:30 P -1:20 P, in W268 CB). The lectures and discussion will be given by the course instructor. The lecture schedule will follow very closely the order of topics in the textbook from Chapter 1 through Chapter 13. The daily schedule for all course activities is posted on the class webpage. Labs. The labs will be supervised by a TA, under the direction of the course instructor and Dr. Anthony Moeller, the Departmental Laboratory Coordinator. You are required to perform all 8 scheduled lab experiments. The lab schedule was designed to coordinate with the lectures. There will not be labs every week: there are NO LABS scheduled for the first week of classes (week of Aug. 22), and weeks 3 (week of Sep. 5), 6 (week of Sep. 26), 8 (week of Oct. 10), 10 (week of Oct. 24), 12 (week of Nov. 7), and 16 (week of Dec. 5).
5 The lab component of this course is not intended to be overly burdensome. You should read over the lab write-up before coming to lab, so that you are generally familiar with what you will be doing. Formal lab reports are not required, and all results, calculations, questions, etc. must be handed in to the TA at the end of the lab period. The names and contact information for the TAs will be posted on the class webpage as soon as they are announced. Discussion. The discussion session on Thursday, will be conducted by the instructor, and will consist mainly of problem solving. In the discussion session, the instructor will go over solutions to assigned problems and answer any questions you might have about the problems or the course material. It will be most beneficial to you if you have attempted to solve the problems before attending the discussion session. The discussion sessions will be informal, allowing you the opportunity to ask questions and participate voluntarily by sharing your ideas on problem solutions. CLASS ATTENDANCE Lab attendance is required it is not possible to make up labs. If you know that you must miss a lab session for an authorized absence, please let me and your TA know as early as possible, since you may be able to do the lab in another session during the same week. I highly recommend that you attend the lectures and the discussion session, but I will not be taking attendance. The lectures will be given in the traditional manner using the blackboard (as opposed to using PowerPoint slides). Lecture demonstrations will be an important part of this course, and you have to be there to see the demos. Occasionally, it will be convenient to use supplementary electronically presented material that will be posted on the class webpage as notes. For example, I may post diagrams or plots to illustrate the lecture materials, and solutions to problems. The bottom line is that there is really no substitute for coming to class, listening to the lecture, observing the demonstrations, and taking notes for later study. The daily schedule posted on the class webpage will indicate the material that will be covered on a particular day. IMPORTANT DATES October 31: November 14: Last day for undergraduate students to drop individual semester-length courses. Last day for undergraduate students to withdraw entire registration.