121 Syllabus - Fall 2020

     For Fall 2020, our PHY121 class meetings and recitations will be fully remote via Zoom. More information can be found here.

     PHY-121 is the first part of a three-semester sequence in introductory physics offered to engineering and other science and pre-professional majors. The prerequisite for PHY-121 is MAT-270. A working familiarity with basic differential and integral calculus will be assumed.

     PHY-121 covers the subject of Newtonian mechanics including kinematics (the description of motion), and dynamics (the relation of motion to force and mass). Among the most important topics are Newton's Laws of Motion and the conservation of momentum and energy. Other topics are rotational kinematics and dynamics, Newtonian gravitation, and simple harmonic motion. A detailed list of topics can be found on the Topic and Reading Schedule which accompanies this syllabus.

     The textbook is University Physics, by Young and Freedman, 15th Edition, (Addison-Wesley, 2020.) The Looseleaf Edition is strongly recommended (the looseleaf edition is not available at the bookstore). Reading assignments are keyed to this textbook. Mastering Physics (MP) is required. The easiest way to get MP plus the Looseleaf textbook is to register for MP through our class Canvas page and then, within MP, purchase the looseleaf textbook directly from Pearson. Also required is Learning Catalytics; if you purchase Mastering Physics with etext, then you automatically have access to Learning Catalytics. For our online testing, a WebAssign account is required; this is most cheaply purchased with a credit card at WebAssign.

     Our tests will require a Lockdown Browser. Installation of our Lockdown Browser will require a Windows or a Mac operating system. See more details here.

The text of the syllabus is also available as a pdf file.  Coming Soon

Textbook Options Looseleaf Edition Recommended
Course Updates 11/11 Needed Changes to Schedule and Syllabus
Active Learning for Fall 2020
Course Format and Policies
Topic and Reading Schedule
Recitation Schedule
Learning Catalytics Information Policies
Mastering Physics Information Tips
WebAssign Information Tips  
Zoom Information
Slack Information
Course Objectives
Test Rules Quiz Rules  
Pre-Class Survey Please Complete Our 1-Question Survey
Equation Sheet
Derivations: Parallel Axis Theorem<>System Kinetic Energy
             Torque and Angular Momentum About the Center of Mass
Hint for Yo-Yo Problem:Push the Trike
Links Used in Class Meetings
Math Summary:Dot Product and Cross Product of Vectors
                        Taylor Expansion

PLACES TO GET HELP
My Office Hours
TA and LA Office Hours
Physics Success Center Schedule in F186
Physics Dept Tutor List
Engineering Tutor Center
First-Year Center
Student Success Center
Success Center Online Tutoring
Textbook Sites - practice MC tests and more
Online Tutorials - interactive instruction


GRADES:   Final LC Grades Now Posted
Final Quiz Grades Now Posted
Final CW (Classwork) Grades Now Posted
Final MiniQuiz Grades Now Posted
Final Reading Quiz Grades Now Posted
Final MP HW Grades Now Posted
Final Test Grades Now Posted
Final Overall Grades Now Posted

Note that grades are not listed in alphabetical order

Quiz <> RQ <> LC <> MQ <> CW <> Test <> HW <> Overall

Class Average Test 2 Average Now Available
HOW TO FIGURE YOUR FINAL GRADE.   


TA's
Steven Martinez