FLORIDA INTERNATIONAL UNIVERSITY

Department of Physics

Syllabus for Physics with Calculus II - Spring 2010

Combined Lecture / Lab (PHY 2049/2049L)

Class Web Site: http://www.fiu.edu/~kramerl/Teaching/2049S10/

Last Update: Sunday, January 3, 2010 4:46 PM

Course Description

This course comprises both the “lecture” and the “lab” components of the college physics course. These two components have been integrated into a single course because a physicist has no artificial division between theoretical and experimental investigations; therefore, why should your physics course? As a result this course will be run in a studio format where the lab and lecture components are integrated. This has two major implications, first, you must be registered for both the “lab” and “lecture” components. The second implication is that since the two components of the course compliment each other, you will receive the same grade for the “lecture” and the “lab”.

You can expect this course to be significantly different from the standard physics course. This course will be activity-based and requires the sharing of ideas and working in groups. Activities will include thought experiments, working with open-ended questions, solving problems, and experimental investigations. You should be aware lectures will be nonexistent, as this is a cooperative learning environment.

Introductory physics is structured such that a small number of models can be applied to a wide variety of situations. In this second semester, you will be engaged in the study of models that apply to the study of electricity and magnetism. Succinctly, the goal for this semester is for you to expand your ability to construct, articulate and use basic scientific models, a process we will refer to as modeling.

It is probably more appropriate for you to think of yourselves as young, apprentice physicists. Learning physics involves learning a set of skills. Just as one doesn’t learn how to play basketball by listening to a lecture on basketball, one doesn’t learn physics by listening to a lecture on physics. Accordingly, this course will emphasize competencies as well as content. You will be actively engaged in problem solving rather than working plug and chug problems. This does not mean greater mathematical complexity but rather will require greater thought on your part. The modeling approach used in physics is a general skill that can be applied to a variety of other disciplines, scientific and otherwise.

This is the second of a two-part introductory general physics course intended for scientists and engineers. We will cover electricity and magnetism, including forces and fields, circuits, Maxwell's Laws, light, and electromagnetic waves.

Our course goals are to:

1. Develop a model-centered, constructivist basis of mechanics.
2. Develop strong laboratory skills using computer-based data acquisition and analysis tools.
3. Develop autonomous learning skills.
4. Learn to think clearly and simply about the physical world.

Course Strategy

Central to the course is developing an ability to think and learn for yourself. There is no simple way to gain this skill, it comes slowly over time and with practice. You must be actively engaged to learn the material. You cannot passively watch your classmates and expect to grasp the material, cognitive science has proven that the mind must interact to learn. You must offer opinions, right or wrong, and compare those to others. You only learn when your are making mistakes (if you have the answer right, then you already know it). Grading is designed to help you in this endeavor: much of the classwork is graded on effort, on offering right/wrong opinions on your quest to understand. You also have many resources including your group, your friends, class learning assistants, and your professor. Our team is dedicated to helping you learn; however, you are ultimately responsible for your learning. The course is structured with this in mind.

Preparation: You will be expected to arrive in class ready and willing to think and learn, with your group members and class. You need to be engaged in the topics of the day, and have notes/questions from the previous classes available. Ancillary electronic activities are not good for learning (a cell phone repository is available for those unable to break the habit). And you must be on time, lateness is not condusive to a good learning environment, as both you and your group mates suffer. You made a commitment to a class that begins at 8:30 am, you should keep it or find another section.

The book should is best used as a reference, to clarify topics and/or to fill in gaps in your understanding. The book does present a full development of the concepts, including proofs, although in terse language. Reading a science textbook is not like reading a novel, you must take your time to understand what is written before moving on. You are responsible for reading the text as you find necessary.

Classes: Laboratory investigations followed by additional group exercises and discussions will form the basis of this course. Results will be summarized and presented to the class and discussed. Not only must you attend class, but you must also actively engage yourself and your classmates, to succeed. Watching someone else do the work will not build the insight and confidence to do well in homework, on exams, and understand physics.

Collaborative Work: Scientists and engineers work in groups as well as alone. Social interactions are critical to their success. Most good ideas grow out of discussions with colleagues. This course encourages and incorporates collaborative teamwork, a skill that is valued by most employers of scientists, engineers, and technicians. As you work and study together, help your partners to get over confusions, ask each other questions, and critique your group assignments. Everyone benefits from cooperative learning - expressing your ideas so that others can understand them helps clarify them for oneself.

Whiteboarding: Results of labs and group exercises will be summarized on whiteboards and then presented to the class. Discussions and comparisons of the results will follow. Whiteboard presentations should include the relevant facts / details from the lab or exercises, appropriate sketches, graphs (with labels), and other useful points. These whiteboarding presentations will form the crux of the course. The point of the presentation is to firm up your physics knowledge and build confidence in presenting material.

Open Labs : To help you through this course, we will operate Open Labs during the week. Open Labs are times when the classroom will be open for your use and staffed by CHEPREO fellows. You'll have access to lab equipment so you can extend the labs that we do in class or complete missed parts of labs. You can also use the time to clarify questions on the material or homework. Or just hang out and work on your course work. No rules, just use it to your best advantage. Times will be set during the first week. Lack of use may result in the cancellation of hours.

Course Details

Textbook: We will be using University Physics by Young and Freedman, 12th Edition as our textbook. This comes with a student access kit for MasteringPhysics, our online homework system, and tutoring access.

Whiteboarding Presentations: Labs and other exercises will be presented to your classmates via whiteboards and will be graded. Whiteboard preparation and discussion are the critical attributes of the grading. In other words, preparing a whiteboard with proper information (legible, good labels, appropriate graphs / sketches, etc) and then presenting it to the class and responding to the questions will garner the most points. Having the right answers on the whiteboard at the beginning isn't crucial, but understanding the physics by the end of the discssion is crucial.

Homework: There will be graded homework assignments for every chapter we cover. The graded assignments will be done through the MasteringPhysics web-based system. When you purchased your book, you should have gotten an information booklet and registration number. Full credit is assigned for completing 80% of the points in an individual assignment. This allows you to pick and choose a bit (and allows for problem errors in MP). You may also receive 12.5% extra credit for each assignment for completing 90% or more of the points. It certainly behooves you to do as many problems as possible, as they may show up anytime. You are encouraged to discuss the problems among yourselves; however, each of you is responsible for submitting your own individual answers.

Homework will be due roughly one week after we complete the chapter. The system has a cutoff date after which answers are accepted for diminishing value for a limited time (normally 24 hours). You are in charge of your learning, and you must manage your time such that you can complete the assignments on time. The system has a cutoff date after which answers are accepted for diminishing value for a limited time. No extensions will be granted, even in the case of network or server failure. In rare cases where you cannot complete assignments due to unforeseen circumstances, you may request a special extension. If approved, you will be required to hand in complete solutions on paper, be graded via sampling of solutions, and receive no extra credit.

There will be two types of homework problems - skill building and end of chapter problems. Skill building exercises provide guidance in doing the problems - hints and other feedback is provided. End of chapter (EOC) problems originate in the back of the book, individually randomized for your assignment. Skill building assignments should help with EOC problems and should be done first. Note that practice skill problems are included with every assignment. You do not receive credit for these problems, but they may help you prepare for other problems.

In order to pass this course, you must practice the techniques you are learning. You must avoid the temptation to cut corners in working homework. Unfortunately, many people discover that this only cheats themselves and often this discovery is made when it it too late to fix the problem. By taking the homework assignments seriously, you reduce the overall difficulty of the course.

Lab Reports: You will do many experimental investigations through the course of this semester, some will be more formal, some will be less formal. Lab activities are graded, lab reports are the lab worksheets that are filled out during the lab. Credit is generally given for completing the worksheets, points generally are only deducted for not completing the report. The goal is to make predictions as a scientist and then compare with other groups, making errors (and learning the correct interpretation) is an important part of learning. You must be present for lab reports to count. Labs may be made up outside of class (during open labs or at other times).

Exams: There will be two in-class exams and a comprehensive final exam. The second in-class exam will be done in teams. The final exam will consist of two parts - one covering material discussed since the second in-class exam and the second covering all material of the class. Formula sheets will be provided with the exams, as well as, prior to the exams on the class web site.

Makeup exams are given only under extreme circumstances. Notification of an unavoidable exam absence must be made prior to the exam (voice mail and email are acceptable). Excused-absence exams will result in adjusting the weighting of the other grade components or administration of a make up exam at the sole discretion of the instructor. Weight adjustments or makeups are given only after receiving a 60 or higher score during an in-class exam.

Class Web Site: Please look to the class web site for additional resources. The site contains this syllabus, problem assignments, homework solutions, and other resources. If you have any suggestions for improvements, don't hesitate to let me know.

Email List: A class mailing list has been established. You are required to maintain contact with the list as official announcements will be made through the list. Please add the list to your spam filter (test messages will be sent the first day). You are encouraged to post questions, answers, jokes, etc to the list. I will monitor the list and provide guidance when appropriate. Don't be surprised to find useful hints floating around the list. You have been subscribed to the list through your FIU email account. You should have received an email with details including the location of the list archive. You may add or change the email account by contacting your instructor. You may also forward email from your FIU account to any other account. Note that the list is a closed list; therefore, all messages must come from a currently subscribed address.

Class Absences: Our material is learned interactively in class and missed material will be very difficult to makeup. Further, not only will I be counting on your presence, but your group members will rely on your help as well. Active participation is critical to the class; attendance is therefore mandatory.

If you are unable to attend class because of illness, you MUST notify me IN ADVANCE (except for emergency situations). It is YOUR responsibility to find out what material was discussed that day and to make-up any missed homework or in-class work.

If you miss an exam you will be given a grade of zero on that exam. The ONLY exceptions to this policy are serious illness or accident. In these cases, please follow the following procedure: Call and leave a message BEFORE the exam (unless you are incapacitated) explaining why you won't be able to take the exam as scheduled. Have the doctor's office call me and verify your illness and have them write and sign an excuse on office letterhead explaining that you are too ill to take an exam.

Situations may arise during the semester in which you must miss a class for reasons beyond your control, such as participating in a varsity scholarly or athletic event, or attending an out-of-state family wedding, etc. These cases are generally known well in advance and if you give me sufficient notice, I will excuse you from class that day and arrange a make-up schedule for homework, etc. either prior to that class or upon your return. Note: You must give 2 weeks advance notice to have your absence excused.

Learning Environment: The goal of the course to learn physics. There are many resources to help you learn including your book, your classmates, your instructor, and the class web page. You should take advantage of as many of these as you need in order to learn the material. If, at any point during the course, you feel your performance is slipping, you must immediately seek assistance. Please don't wait until the day before the final to ask for help. I am always available to help, during office hours and non-office hours. Please email or call my office or lab to make sure I am available.

This is a college course and we expect an appropriate learning environment. Cell phones, beepers, etc are not to be heard or seen in class; it is rude to be texting, checking e-mail, ordering pizza or any of the other things that you can do on your phones. If a cell phone is seen in class, it will be removed and may be recovered at the end of the class period. In the case that you answer a cell phone or text message during an exam, I will consider that a sign that you have finished with the exam and I will collect the exam at that point. Please be considerate and just don’t do it.

Cheating and Plagiarism: I encourage students to work together when studying and doing homework.

• That does not mean I expect your solutions to be the same. Keep this in mind as you complete the writing for your homework.
• There will be at times group assignments in which I expect only one solution or project. Discussing and sharing ideas is different than copying. Cases of cheating or plagiarism (as defined in the FIU Student Handbook, p. 9) will not be tolerated and I will pursue the strongest punishment allowed by the College.The minimum punishment for cheating will be receiving an "F" grade for the course. Further action may be taken including referral to the University Academic Conduct Review Board.
• In the case of cheating on the group exam, even if only one member is cheating I will treat it as if the entire group cheated.

FIU STUDENT CODE OF STANDARDS: A University is a learning community following a tradition more than 1,000 years old. Florida International University is a community dedicated to generating and imparting knowledge through excellent teaching and research, the rigorous and respectful exchange of ideas, and community service. As a member of this community:

• I will respect the tradition of academic inquiry, the University’s rules of conduct, and its mission.
• I will respect the opinions and differences of all members of the FIU community.
• I will practice civility and demonstrate conduct that reflects the values of the institution.
• I will respect the rights and property of the University and its members.
• I will be diligent and honest in my personal and academic endeavors.

FIU Academic Honesty Policy: In meeting one of the major objectives of higher education, which is to develop self-reliance, it is expected that students will be responsible for the completion of their own academic work. The use of literature, notes, aids, or assistance from other sources should be clearly identified with respect to all course assignments and examinations. In addition, students are expected to use all resources, including books, journals, and computers only in legal and authorized ways. They should also refrain from falsification of records, attend class as required, and participate in the educational process without disrupting the orderly processes and functions of the University.

Grading

In order to foster cooperation and collaboration among as many of you as possible, grades will based on an absolute scale. This means that helping others will not jeopardize your grades, it will, most likely, improve your grade as explaining concepts to other develops understanding for yourself. The grading scale for both lecture and lab sections is:

An F0 will be assigned to students who both earn a failing grade based on course standards and who fail to complete at least 60% of the course requirements or fail to attend at least 60% of class sessions. An F0 equals zero grade points per credit hour and is a permanent grade.

The breakdown of components for the grading is:

Please note that 30% of your grade is derived from non-exam work. This means you have a great deal of control over your grade. Also note that 11% of the grade originates in class work. It is in your best interest to attend class and actively participate. If you make the effort on the homework and classroom exercises, you receive credit for the work and are better prepared to perform well on exams.

Homework: Each assignment will typically contain 10-15 problems worth 1-5 points each. Getting 80% of the points in an assignment will result in a 100% score, with 12.5% extra credit for attaining 90% or more of the assignment points. The points can be obtained in any manner using the values of the various problems.

We will be using University Physics by Young and Freedman, 12th Edition. Below are the chapter sections we should cover during each week of the semester. Some sections will be covered in greater depth than others. It is important to read the sections prior to each class.

Class Schedule*: 

*subject to change

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