| Spring 2008 - PHYS1500, General Physics I, Robicheaux |
PHYS1500, GENERAL PHYSICS IInstructor: F. Robicheaux, 105 Allison Laboratory, 844-4366, This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it Office hours: MTh 2-4 and any time I'm not occupied with other duties. Text: College Physics; 7th edition vol. 1, by Serway and Faughn. We will cover sections in Chs. 1-14. Prerequisites: I expect you to know and use basic arithmetic, algebra, and trigonometry. Previous exposure to physics/science may be useful but is not necessary. Classes: Parker Hall 236, TTh 8:00-9:15. Classes are for reinforcing and clarifying the fundamental ideas of the course with examples and demonstrations. They are not for introducing ideas. Reading: Reading is a crucial part of this course. The material is too difficult to learn by just listening to lecture. You should allocate roughly 45 minutes for each assignment to read the night before each class. The reading assignments are posted in the Blackboard calendar. Required Equipment: One iClicker: an electronic transmitter used for class feedback during lecture. The iClicker can be bought new or used from the book store or you can share with another student as long as they are not in this class. This will be part of your final grade and will start from the first class day. Your 3 lowest iClicker scores will be dropped. There are no make-ups. Your clicker will be registered in class and it must be registered by the 2nd day of class to get credit for all class days. You will get ½ credit for answering and ½ credit for answering correctly. The solutions to all clicker questions are already posted. You should not look at the online solutions until after class; bringing in the solutions will raise your clicker score a little at the price of guaranteeing a lower score on the quizzes (which is many more points). Tardy: If you do not answer the first clicker question or do not sign in, then you will be marked as tardy. After your 3rd tardy, every tardy will count as an unexcused absence. Attendance: Mandatory for the first day of class. I expect you to attend all classes. You should have a university valid excuse if you miss a class; your excuse must be turned in to me at the beginning of the next class. I will check your excuses if you have 4 or more absences. If you have more than 1 unexcused absence, then your final grade will be FA. If you have 4 absences and 3 are excused, then your final grade will not be decreased. If you have 4 absences and 2 are excused, then your final grade will be FA, even if your 4th absence is excused! To be marked as present, you must answer more than ¾ of the clicker questions that day or sign in and sign out. If you do not answer the last clicker question or do not sign out, then you will be marked as absent. Blackboard: Most of the class information will be posted through Blackboard: homework problems, announcements, grade info, material, schedule, etc. You are responsible for this information. Homework: See the Suggested Problems page; you should work all problems in the sections covered that week. You should work them on your own, without help from friends or solutions manuals. Recitation: All recitations are on Tuesday. The recitation will be 90 minutes of problem solving followed by a quiz. Every quiz is 25 points. Your two lowest quiz scores will be dropped. Almost all of the material will be from Suggested Problems or Recitation Problems or clicker questions. The quiz will not be just on the previous week’s material. (Ex. The quiz in week 8 will be 15 points from week 7, 5 points from week 6, and 5 points from week 5.) Memorizing the solutions to problems is worthless. The first recitation is Jan 8 and is mandatory (recitation absence on Jan 8 = dropped). Missed Recitation: A missed recitation without a valid excuse will count as 0 points. If you miss a recitation for a valid reason (see Tiger Cub), you must contact me within 2 days and submit your excuse within 1 week to have it marked as a valid absence. It must be possible for me to check it (legible signatures, phone numbers, etc). Your recitation grade will only be adjusted if you have 2 or more valid absences. Number of adjusted recitation quizzes = number of excused absences – 1. An adjusted recitation score = grade on final/4 Lab Work: All labs are on Thursday, the first lab is Jan 17. Most of the lab experiments are in the "Physics One" laboratory textbook by Simon. You must have this to enter lab. You should also bring your textbook to lab. The particular lab for each week will be announced. You will be expected to know what the lab is about before your lab session. Your lowest lab grade will be dropped. If you miss a lab for a valid reason (see Tiger Cub), you need to see your lab instructor about scheduling a make-up. Number of make-up labs = number of valid absences – 1 Midterm tests: There will be no midterm tests in class. Comprehensive Final Exam: Parker Hall 236 on Tues. May 6 9:00 am-11:30 am. Exam & Quiz protocol: You supply the writing device and calculator. All other material, including a formula sheet, will be provided. Test philosophy: The goals of the PHYS1500 sequence are to teach you some physics and an appreciation of the methods utilized in a highly successful area of human endeavor. The tests are purposely constructed in a way that you cannot make an A or B by memorization of the steps needed to solve problems. Grading: The final will count for 30% of your grade. The lab is worth 10%. The recitation quizzes will be worth 60%. The iClicker score is a bonus 5%. Grade Scale: 86-A, 76-B, 66-C, 56-D. Anything less than 56.0 is F. Student Discipline: You should be familiar with the Oath of Honor (Tiger Cub pg 15), the Policy on Classroom Behavior (Tiger Cub pg 66) and the Code of Student Discipline (Tiger Cub pg 68). I will be strictly following these policies because the class is large (approx 100).
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