PHYSICS 211-05,06 GENERAL PHYSICS I WITH LAB

Fall 2001 Syllabus


GENERAL INFORMATION


INSTRUCTOR:

Dr.Shamanthi Fernando
Office:Natural Science 445
Phone:572-6519
E-Mail: fernando@nku.edu
Course home page : http://www.nku.edu/~fernando/phy211.html/
My Home page : http://www.nku.edu/~fernando/

OFFICE HOURS:

M 12:30 am - 2:30 pm; T 12:40 pm - 1:40 pm; H 12:40 pm - 1:40 pm;
If you want to meet me on a specific time other than the office hours, talk to me or send me an email so that we can set up a time.

LECTURE TIME AND LOCATION:

Section Time Location
Phy 211-05,06 TR 6.00pm-7.50pm NS 424

CREDIT HOURS:

5.00

COURSE DESCRIPTION AND PREREQUISITES:

Phy 211 is a non calculus based introductory course in Physics. During the fall semester we will mainly focus on Mechanics and Thermodynamics. Knowledge of trigonometry, algebra and geometry will be expected which is of the level of MAT 119 or equivalent. There is a review of Mathematics in Giancoli's text book in Appendix A which may be helpful.

REQUIRED TEXTS:

Text (required): Physics, 5th Edition with Multimedia pack, by Douglas C. Giancoli
Lab Manual available from the web page: http://www.physics.nku

OPTIONAL TEXTS:

Student Study Guide by Joseph Boyle
MCAT Study Guide by Joseph Boon

OBJECTIVE:

Objective is to achieve a good understanding of basic concepts and to be able to apply these concepts to a variety of physical situations. Students will acquire skills in scientific methods, critical reasoning and problem solving. In the fall semester we will focus on Mechanics and Thermodynamics. Tentatively, material from chapters 1 - 10 and 13 - 15 from the textbook will be covered.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF LECTURES

No Week of Chapter
1 20th Aug 1
2 27st Aug 2
3 03rd Sep 2,3
4 10th Sep 3
5 17th Sep 4
6 24th Sep 4
7 01st Oct 5
8 08th Oct 6
9 15th Oct 7
10 22nd Oct 8
11 29th Oct 9
12 05th Nov 10
13 12th Nov 13
14 19th Nov 14
15 26th Nov 14,15
16 03rd Dec 15
17 11th Dec Finals

You are required to read the appropriate chapters before coming to class.

ATTENDANCE:

You are expected to attend all lectures and labs and to participate in classroom discussions. Excessive absences will reduce your grade. You will be warned before any points are deducted.



GRADING POLICY


Your grade will be judged on your performance in Homework,Quizzes, Four tests and the Laboratory. Points will be allocated to each of these in the following manner:

GRADING SCALE:

Grade Components Weight
Homework and Quizzes 15%
Laboratory 10%
3 test grades @25% each 75%
Total 100%

GRADE WEIGHTS

Total points: Your grade cannot be lower than
90% or more of the total points A
80% or more of the total points B
70% or more of the total points C
60% or more of the total points D
0% or more of the total points E

Important Notice for First year students

First year students will receive mid-term assessments of their performance.
  • Mid-term grades will be issued only to students who have successfully completed fewer than 30 semester hours;
  • Students will be able to access mid-term grades through Norse Express as soon as faculty submit the grades;
  • Mid-term grades are not part of student's permanent records; they will be replaced by final class grades when these are submitted;
  • Mid-term grades do not guarantee a good or bad class grade; they reflect a current level of performance that can be altered by the quality of subsequent work.
  • Mid term grades will be given on October 20th.

    • HOMEWORK:

    Suggested Homework problems will be assigned from each chapter. It is important to work Physics problems to obtain a good understanding of the Material covered. You are required to hand over all the homework problems. The due date will be announced in the class. No late homework problems are accepted. Two problems out of each homework set will be graded. It is important that you show the work in an organized manner clearly showing the final answer with appropriate units. Each home work set will be worth 10 points.

    QUIZZES:

    A quiz will be given Thursdays of every week.(except for the week of Aug. 20th). It will be given on the material covered in the previous week. Each quiz will be graded out of 10 points. The total points for Homework and Quizzes will account for 15% of the final grade of this course.


    EXAMS:

    Exams are closed book and notes. The exam dates are set, but the topic ranges may change. Typically, the material for an exam will be completed one week before the exam. Students are expected to know some basic expressions or equations used in Physics. An exam review will be held sometimes during the week before the exam at a convenient. (It will not be held during the class hours but most probably after 4 pm so that everyone can attend). There are no make up exams unless I decide your reason for missing is acceptable. If you miss an exam, you get a zero.
    The first two tests will be held during the class hours on the given date. The final exam will be held on the dates given for each section. Following are the tentative schedule.

    Test Date Chapters covered
    Test 1 Sep 20 1,2,3,
    Test 2 Nov. 01 4,5,6,7
    Final Exam 11th Dec at 6.15pm-9.00pm Comprehensive, includes Cha.8 ,9,10,13-15

    LABORATORY

    General Physics 211 accompanies a weekly laboratory. Experiments are based on the material covered in the lecture. Following are the sections and the meeting times for the Phy 211-05,06.

    Section Meeting Times Location
    05 T 8.00pm-9.40pm NS 321
    06 H 8.00 pm - 9.40 pm NS 321

    There are fourteen labs scheduled for the fall semester commencing from the 1st week of classes. (week of August 20th). The total points earned in labs would account for 10% of the grade in this course. More details about labs and The Lab Schedule is available in the web page http://www.nku.edu/~fernando/lab211.html

    WITHDRAWAL

    The last date to withdraw from a course without a grade appearing in your transcript is Sep 07th . The last date to withdraw with a "W" appearing in your transcript is Oct 26th.




    ADDITIONAL RESOURCES


    Web site: http://www.prenhall.com/giancoli:
    Physics : Principles and Applications:
    Features include practice tests with on-line feedback grading keyed to the text.

    Tutors:Learning Assistance center or the Physics club.

    Library: All the solutions to the homework problems and exams would be in the Library for your reference. Also, you could find other text books similar to the one we use in the library. These books could be used as sources for additional practice problems.

    SUGGESTIONS FOR DOING WELL IN GENERAL PHYSICS

    STUDY HINTS


    1). Form a study group.
    2).Read the entire chapter quickly to obtain the main ideas and concepts.
    3).Attend the lectures: ask questions in class or after class.
    4). Re read each section of the chapter slowly trying to understand each idea the author presents.
    5). Work through all sample problems in the text and all examples given in class.
    6). Read and understand the Review and Summary at the end of the chapter. Try to memorize the equations in the summary.
    7). Write your own review notes with all the facts and equations you need to solve problems. Update your notes as needed while solving the problems.
    8). Work on the assigned problems.
    9).If help is needed, ask for help from the instructor or ask help from a tutor at the Learning Assistance center.
    10). Discuss the problems in your study group. Write solutions for each problem. Make sure each member of the study group understands the solutions.
    11). Do not get behind on the scheduled material and problems. Try to spend time, at least every other day, studying physics and working problems.

    HINTS FOR TAKING EXAMS

    A. Before the exam

    1).Review the summary in the text, your class notes and your review notes.
    2).Study all examples done in class
    3) Study all sample problems in the text.(try solving the problems with the solution covered)
    4).Study all assigned problems
    5). Try taking a sample exam. Pick several sample problems or assigned problems and try to solve each problem with no aids, in a time of 20 minutes or less.
    6).Attend any exam review sessions.

    B. During the Exam

    1)First read each exam problem.
    2)Begin with the problem you find the easiest.
    3)Write neatly. Draw a diagram. Show all work.
    4)If unable to solve one part of a problem, go to the next part.
    5)Check the units of your answer. Check that your answer makes sense. Make sure all items requested are answered.
    6)Allocate enough time for each problem. If stuck on one problem go to the next problem and return to where you got stuck later.
    7)If time is available, recheck each problem before submitting the exam.

    COMMENTS:

    I reserve the right to change any of the above due to any unforeseen reason. If you don't understand any part of this syllabus, ask for clarification during the first week of the classes.
    Furthermore, if you have any questions about the course material don't hesitate to come to see me. If you follow the study hints I have given you above, the chances of you becoming successful in this course is high. But most importantly, if you have any questions, ASK!. Don't wait till the last moment to cover the entire syllabus. Remember, do LOTS OF PROBLEMS!!. Good luck and hope you would enjoy this course.