SYLLABUS FOR PHY-121: University Physics I

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Carl Covatto
OFFICE: PSF-417
HOURS: Tuesday & Thursday 1:30-3:00 PM, and Friday 10:00-11:00 AM

I. INTRODUCTION

PHY-121 is the first part of a three-semester sequence in introductory physics offered to engineering and other science and pre-professional majors who have the appropriate background in mathematics. In particular, the prerequisite for PHY-121 is, in terms of its ASU course numbers, MAT-270. Inasmuch as a working familiarity with basic operational differential and integral calculus will be assumed, the student who has not had this course or its equivalent should withdraw from the class. Calculus will be used regularly throughout the course.

PHY-121 covers the subject of Newtonian mechanics. This includes the fundamental notions of trajectories, accelerations, forces, and conservation of momentum and energy, as codified in Newton's Laws of Motion. These concepts are illustrated in simple one-, two- and three-dimensional model systems. Many of the basic forces in nature are described, including Newtonian gravitation and elastic forces. Friction is frequently incorporated in order to bring greater reality into our models. The textbook is Fundamentals of Physics, sixth edition, by Halliday, Resnick, and Walker (Wiley, 2001.)

II. COURSE FORMAT AND POLICIES

A. General

The Semester commences on Monday, August 25 and concludes on Tuesday, December 9. A schedule of lectures, examinations and homework assignments is distributed as part of this Syllabus.

Lecture sections occur Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 7:40 AM until 8:30 AM in PSF-173. Attendance is strongly advised. Occasional in-class assignments will be given that will be included in your overall homework score. Missed assignments cannot be made up. Students are responsible for information imparted to the class during lectures. Homework will only be accepted before class begins on the date indicated in the schedule.

Recitation sections occur weekly as scheduled. Each recitation period will open with a 10 minute quiz. The bearing the quizzes and homework have on the final grade is described below. The principal purpose of the recitation section, however, is to give the student an opportunity in a small class environment to discuss and learn essential concepts and problem-solving strategies.

There will be five mid-term examinations and a comprehensive final examination. The lowest mid-term score will be dropped from the final grade computation.

Help-Study Sessions are for the students' benefit, but participation is optional. The Help-Study Hall (PSH-352) will be staffed by faculty and Teaching Assistants several hours each day.

B. Homework

The maxim that "To learn physics, one must do physics" is never truer than at the introductory level. A physics textbook must be studied several times over, its illustrative examples worked through and several exercises attempted before the student can hope to grasp the concepts in any permanent fashion. It is only after the foregoing has been done that one can expect to have success in working and understanding the assigned homework problems. In preparing to work the assigned homework problems, the student is advised to organize study sessions as follows: Read the text carefully, working through the steps of derivations and example solutions. Review lecture notes, using the text to help clarify and rewrite any that are otherwise confusing. Read each assigned problem with the object of understanding its contextual relationship to the concepts introduced in the text and the lecture. Attempt to solve the problem. Refer to the text, lecture notes, worked examples and additional exercises if you are still having difficulties.

Homework assignments can be found in the schedule. They will consist of varying numbers of problems some of which are not from the textbook. Each assignment will be handed in at the start of the lecture period on the date due. [Please do not fold your homework. It should be stapled together.] Your recitation section instructor will grade two problems from each assignment for 10 points each. The problems to be graded will be selected at random but will be the same for all recitation sections. The remaining problems will be counted for 1 point each if there has been a good faith attempt to solve them.

The following policies govern homework: Assignments will only be accepted before class begins on the days they are due. Late homework will not be accepted. Working with others is encouraged as a means of improving one's understanding through questioning and explaining, but written homework solutions should be one's own. Homework that has obviously been copied will not receive credit and the students involved will be subject to charges of academic dishonesty.

C. Quizzes

Quizzes will be administered during the first ten minutes of each recitation section meeting beginning the second week of the Semester. Only the highest 10 quiz scores will be counted. Quizzes will be similar to simpler problems or textbook examples, and will be on material already covered in the lectures and homework assignment of the previous week. The first quizzes will be given the week of September 1 through September 5, and will reflect the lectures and problems from the classes of August 25, August 27, and August 29. Note cards or formula sheets will not be allowed during recitation quizzes.

D. Examinations

The five mid-term examinations will cover material indicated in the schedule by lecture class numbers. Each mid-term will consist of three problems and ten multiple choice questions. The problems may be similar to homework, but they may also represent applications of principles in entirely different circumstances. Memorization of formulas will not be sufficient for obtaining high grades on examinations. The multiple choice questions may cover material from the textbook or lecture not ordinarily found in problems, e.g., technological and historical asides, conceptual questions, etc., as well as "quicky" problems. A collection of hints for preparing for and taking physics examinations is given in Dr. J's Examsmanship Bromides.

Examinations are governed by the following policies:

1. There will be no make-up examinations. On the other hand, the lowest score of all five examinations will be deleted in the final course grade calculation.
2. Academic dishonesty on an examination will result automatically in a failing grade for the course and referral to the Dean for further sanctions. Cheating in any form will not be tolerated!
3. The use of hand calculators of any kind is permitted.
4. Examination paper (including scratch paper) will be provided. Bring only your pencils and calculators.
5. Formula sheets will not be used in examinations. Understanding a concept of physics (which is what this course is all about) is tantamount to knowing its mathematical expression, how to apply it to a given physical situation and how to use it to deduce other mathematical or numerical results. Examination problems will not require the student's having memorized final results from specific examples (such as the range of a projectile under particular circumstances) but can be worked with a knowledge of the mathematical expression of fundamental principles along with a reasonable amount of mathematical dexterity. Non-trivial derivatives and integrals, numerical values of physical constants, and some case-specific formulas will be provided when their use is required. However, a student may bring his or her own 3"x 5" note card. A new notecard may be prepared for each midterm exam and the final. Note cards will be validated during the exam and may be used again on subsequent exams. For example, a student may use as many as four cards on the fourth midterm: a new one and three validated ones from previous exams. These note cards may contain anything the student thinks might be helpful.
6. Partial credit is given. Arithmetical errors will be treated charitably, but for answers that do not make physical sense (wrong dimensions, deviation by several orders of magnitude, etc.) no credit will be awarded. Always examine your solutions for reasonableness. You can rely on the general rule: The right answer with the right physics - most or full credit; the wrong answer with the right physics - partial credit; the right answer with the wrong physics - no credit; unreasonable answers, regardless of the physics - no credit.
7. In the event of a fire alarm occuring during an examination, students will be asked to close their examination booklets, gather their belongings and leave the room as expeditiously as possible, leaving their examination booklets on the tables where they were working. The booklets will be gathered and graded as they are. Unless the alarm proves to represent a bona fide emergency, there will be no make-up examination.
8. If a student believes there to have been an error in grading his or her examination, the complaint should be put in writing and handed, together with the examination, to the course instructor. The problem will be regraded by the individual who graded it originally. If the student is not satisfied with the grader's response to the complaint, he or she may appeal to the course instructor. In this event, the instructor reserves the prerogative to regrade the entire examination. (Simple errors, such as point addition, can be corrected by the student’s recitation section instructor without the need for a written appeal.) The deadline for appeal is before the next exam. For example all exam 1 appeals must be handed to the course instructor before the start of exam 2 on October 3.

The mid-term examinations are scheduled as follows:

Monday, 9/15; lectures 1-7

Friday, 10/3; lectures 8-14

Monday, 10/20; lectures 15-20

Wednesday, 11/19; lectures 21-31

Monday, 12/8; lectures 32-39

The final examination is scheduled on Monday, 12/15 at 10:00 to 11:50 AM and is comprehensive. It will consist of 40 multiple choice questions.

E. Final Grades

The final course grades will be derived from homework, quizzes, and examinations with the following weights:

Homework and in-class assignments: 10%

Quizzes (best 10): 14%

Mid-term Examinations (best 4 of 5): 56%

Final Examination: 20%

A minimum homework raw score of 150 (out of approximately 450 possible) is required for a passing grade in the course. There is no preset table of grade levels. The final class results will be “curved” with the expectation that the best students will receive a grade of A.

F. Withdrawal

Withdrawal policies are established by the University (see page 23 of the Fall 2003 Semester Bulletin). The deadline for unrestricted course withdrawal is September 19. Other deadlines are also given in the Bulletin. The important point to remember is that after September 19 (and before any other withdrawal deadline) one will receive either a W or an E depending respectively upon whether or not one is "passing" the course at that time as certified by the instructor. In particular, a cumulative homework score of less than 20% at the time of withdrawal will be interpreted as failing. Performance on examinations will also be taken into consideration.