Course
description
Physics
10 is a one-semester introduction to the principles and concepts of
physics. Along the way, we will meet some of the contributors to the
story of physics, from Plato to Chu and Hawking, and learn how their
descriptions of the universe reach into every corner of our lives.
Note that Physics 10 won't train you to solve complex problems in
applied physics or engineering. In fact, your mathematical abilities
are unlikely to be challenged in this course.
By the
completion of Physics 10, you should be able to read, understand,
discuss, and even criticize articles in the popular press and scientific
magazines. As our society becomes ever more reliant on technology,
its citizens must become fluent in the underlying principles of technology
or get left behind. The goal of Physics 10 is to increase scientific
literacy and to demonstrate how tomorrow's technology is the application
of today's concepts.
Class meetings
There are no class meetings for physics 10. All course material will be accessed through the internet, primarily through Blackboard, and The Physics
Place Website produced by the publisher of your textbook.
For blackboard quizzes, you will log onto the site when a quiz is available (see
the class schedule), work both on and off line, and then submit your
answers before the due date. Of course, you are welcomed and encouraged to attend regular office hours. See "contact Instructor" in the blackboard website.
Physics Place Information
The physics place
for the 11th edition of Hewitt is a relatively new website. So far, so good,
but there is likely to be a few bugs, so be patient and don't worry
if things go wrong..think happy thoughts and send me an email. In
any case, here is what you need to know:
To Get the The
Physics Place, click on the Link at the top of the page,
or go to: http://www.aw-bc.com/physicsplace/.
It will take you to the Physics Place Home page.You should have access
code information bundled with your textbook. If or some reason,
you don't have to have a new version of the 11th edition of the text,
You will have to purchase an access code on line. Go the physics place
web site and click on the link asking you to do so. Once you
have set up your account, you can use your new user name and password
to get started. You will need to enter the class ID during or after
the registration process or you will not get credit for your work
in the physics place. You can do this when you register, or you can
click on the join a class link
| The Class ID is cm192758 .....make sure you enter this or
you will get no credit for your work! |
Using the Physics
Place.
Once you login, you will
see a menu on the left hand side of the page. You should try clicking
on the various links to familiarize yourself with them. For class
credit, however, you will need to use the Quiz, Tutorial,
and Interactive Figure links. Note the pull down
menu at the top of the page to get you to the correct chapter.
There is also a menu on the left side that provides a shortcut directly
to the quizzes, tutorials and interactive physics. The class
Schedule lists exactly what quizzes, Tutorials, and Interactive Figures
you are supposed to do each week. These are due the Wednesday AFTER
the week in which they are listed. For example, " tutorial:
appendix A: the metric system (DB)" is listed in week one (1/21).
This means you are are to complete the tutorial by Wed 1/28 at 11:59
p.m. For tutorials or Interactive physics assignments with a (DB)
after the listing, you will need need to report in the discussion
board to get credit by the due date.
Physics Place and the Discussion Board
For a few of the tutorials and all of the interactive figures, you will see the abbreviation (DB) listed in the class schedule next to the assignment listing. This means that you are to go to the discussion board and look for the name of the assignment. There you will post one sentence to one paragraph detailing what you observed and learned from the tutorial or Interactive Physics activity. More guidelines will be provided in upcoming emails and announcements.
Late assignments
Late Physics Place assignments will still be graded, but you are likely to be marked down a minimum of 10 percent, and a maximum of 25 percent depending on how late these are submitted (and how timely the instructor is grading them). Late penalty is completely at the instructor's discretion. If you have a problem, please let your instructor know--the best away to avoid late penalties is to turn the assignments in on time!
Getting Credit for the Tutorials and Quizzes.
For most of the tutorials (i.e. the ones that do not have a (DB) after the listing), you will be given credit for working through it. When you complete the tutorials,
you will be asked to submit your work for grading.
Make sure you click on the submit for grading tab to get credit for you work. When you are finished with a quiz and click submit, then your grade will be recorded. You may take a quiz more than once for credit prior to the due date.
Knowing your grades
in the Physics Place.
There is a link called
"the results reporter". It will tell you what quizzes and
tutorials you have completed and what your score is. If you are not
satisfied, you can take the quiz or tutorial again!
Course
materials
Required
text: Hewitt,
Paul G, Conceptual Physics , 11th Edition. Available
at the LPC bookstore, or online.
Other
materials: The
Physics Place, 11th edition--An on line web site. If you purchased
the book new, you will have the access code. You will need to purchase
an access code when you first enter the site. The site is located at http://www.aw-bc.com/physicsplace/. Make sure you click on the 11th edition text!
.
Calculator: An inexpensive
easy to use scientific calculator is going to be helpful in this class. You won't use it often, but you will be asked to do a simple calculation from time to time.
Computer with Internet
Access -- All work can be done on campus if necessary if your
connection goes down. Computers can be found in the LRC, building
300, and building 1800 (second floor).
Assignments
and computer use
Hewitt's
Conceptual Physics, 11th edition is an excellent, and
entertaining, book, so feel free to read all the sections you wish.
But there is far more in the text than you are expected to "master"
for the quizzes and exams. To help guide you through the huge amount of material available, a set of on-line lectures will be available in blackboard for you to view during the course. The Lectures will also be linked in the class schedule in the same row as the blackboard quiz in which that material will be tested.
Homework: the graded homework for this class is entirely your work in The Physics Place and the related postings in the discussion board. You will not be assigned problems directly from the text, but both the physics place and blackboard quizzes will have many questions that are similar or identical to those in the text.
Remember
that course web sites,
particularly the class schedule, will be updated as the course continues.
In other words, it will be necessary to "reload" the schedule
when you haven't visited it for a few days. Try to avoid printing
out the entire schedule, and relying on the printed copy. You will
be notified ahead of time in class, of course, when and if the schedule
changes.
On-line Class
Discussion
Remember,
you aren't alone in physics 10. Most of the time, if you have a question,
someone else in the class will have the answer. Likewise, if you have
an interesting idea that you would like to share, there is someone
else who would like to hear it and respond. To make this process more
fun, interesting, and useful to you, the discussion area in Blackboard
will include areas where you can discuss assignments and even quizzes
with other students. While this is not technically a "chat"
area, it is a discussion board where you can post your questions,
thoughts, and replies to your fellow students. The instructor will
monitor this area periodically, and even participate as a member of
the class. Your participation grade (see "grading" below)
will include your use of the discussion board.....your participation
grade will be a judgment call on the instructors part. As a rough guide, approximately one post per week will be sufficient for full credit. Remember that you are required to post your observations regarding the tutorials and Interactive physics assignments from the physics place that are marked with a (DB) in the class schedule. Don't forget about this part of the class!
There are two types of quizzes in this class:
On-line quizzes in blackboard must be submitted
electronically on the dates listed below. When the quiz is available
in Blackboard, the link will become active. Chapter quizzes from the
physics place are open all the time, but you must submit them according to the dates in the
class schedule. Please be sure to check
the schedule a few weeks ahead to be prepared for the quizzes. All
on-line quizzes are "open," meaning that you can use any source available
to you, and take as long as you like during the time the quiz is available. You may collaborate with classmates while working on the quizzes--please discuss concepts together, but select your answers privately!
Missed
and Late quizzes:
If you
miss a quiz in blackboard, you take take the quiz late for 15% reduced credit. You must take the first two quizzes prior to the "W" deadline as listed in the weekly schedule. Note that your percent score
on the final exam will automatically replace your lowest quiz score if it is less than the final exam, even if you haven't missed a quiz. If you do miss one quiz, then the final exam percentage will replace the missed quiz. If you percentage on all quizzes is higher than your percent score on the final, then the final exam will not replace a quiz!
Cheating vs. fair use
policy
In my opinion (as both
an instructor and as a long time student), there are three important
components to learning a subject: learning on your own, learning by
interacting with others, and getting feedback to see whether you really
understand something. In Physics 10, I wish to strongly encourage
all three methods. Most of your assignments will be designed to do
just that...getting you to do some research to answer questions that
will pique your interest and help you learn, and then discuss the
responses with others, either in person or through the Class discussions
area.
The on-line quizzes, however,
represent a bit of a gray area. On the quizzes, you will be asked
a series of questions (mostly multiple choice) that test your understanding
of a topic, or at least your familiarity with the learning resources
(i.e. where to find the answer in the text, or on the web). So here
is the dilemma: Can you ask a classmate or someone else about quiz
questions? The answer is "sometimes."
To make this a bit less
cryptic, here is how you cheat on a quiz:
Student A takes the quiz and submits his or her answers. Feedback
is automatically output for each question. Student B then gets the
feedback (i.e. the correct answers)
from Student A and uses those answers to get a higher score on the
quiz. Just to make it clear, using feedback in this way is not allowed! Repeated violation of this policty will result in an F in the class and possible expulsion from the college.
On the other hand, collaboration is extremely helpful in learning physics, and highly encouraged, so here
is what is fair in taking a quiz:
1. either take the quiz completely on your own, or
2. collaborate with others to discuss the concepts and possible answers, but make your own decision about what answer to select. Note that everyone will have different sets of questions and answers (with some overlap, of course).
3. come to your instructors office hours will working on the quiz, or send an email with specific questions after you have done a bit of reserach
