Course Syllabus
Course Description:
This course is intended for students not majoring in physics or engineering but needing a one-year course in physics as a requirement for their major program. The course is the first of a two-semester sequence. Core topics include: kinematics, dynamics, work and energy, momentum, rotational motion, fluids, and simple harmonic motion.
Download a copy of the syllabus here
Student Learning Outcomes:
Upon successful completion of the course, students will be able to:
- Predict the future trajectory of an object in two dimensions with uniform acceleration.
- Analyze a physical situation with multiple constant forces acting on a point mass using Newtonian mechanics.
- Analyze a physical situation using concepts of work and energy.
- Analyze static and dynamic extended systems using the concepts of torque and angular acceleration.
Laboratory Course Objectives: At the conclusion of the laboratory component of this course, the student should be able to:
- Analyze real-world experimental data, including appropriate use of units and significant figures.
- Relate the results of experimental data to physical concepts discussed in the course.
This course also fulfills the requirements for a general education course - GEM 4 - Scientific Ways of Knowing. The outcomes for GEM 4 are:
- Apply foundational knowledge and models of a natural or physical science to analyze and/or predict phenomena.
- Understand the scientific method and apply scientific reasoning to critically evaluate arguments.
- Interpret and communicate scientific information via written, spoken and/or visual representations.
- Describe the relevance of specific scientific principles to the human experience.
- Form and test a hypothesis in the laboratory or field using discipline-specific tools and techniques for data collection and/or analysis.
How to Contact Me:
Jenni Light, PhD
Office: MLH 120 A
Phone: 208-792-2796 (office) 509-254-4330 (cell - please include your name on texts)
Office Hours: by appointment
Course Content:
- Nature of Science and Physics
- Kinematics
- Two-Dimensional Kinematics
- Dynamics
- Uniform Circular Motion
- Work and Energy
- Momentum
- Statics and Torque
- Rotational Motion
- Fluids
- Heat and Heat Transfer
- Thermodynamics
- Oscillatory Motion and Waves
- Sound
Textbook:
Great news: your textbook for this class is available for free online!
College Physics from OpenStax, ISBN 1-947172-01-8
You have several options to obtain this book:
You can use whichever formats you want. Web view is recommended -- the responsive design works seamlessly on any device.
Grading:
- A 100.0-90.0%
- B+ 89.9-86.7%
- B 86.6-83.3%
- B- 83.2-80.0%
- C+ 79.9-76.7%
- C 76.6-73.3%
- C- 73.2-70.0%
- D+ 69.9-66.7%
- D 66.6-60.0%
- F <60%
Here is how your grade will be calculated:
30% quizzes & homework
30% Labs
40% Exams (10% for each exam)
How the Course Will Work:
The way this course is designed may seem different than other courses you have had. Research on learning has shown that active learning is, by far, the most effective teaching method. Active learning is not "chalk-and-talk," so I won't stand in the front of the room and lecture at you; rather you will start the process by reading and completing the modules, then you will come to Lab and to the homework help sessions for focused individual or small group coaching and facilitation. This might feel like you are doing all the work, and actually, you are. That's what learning feels like. It's *your* learning, own it and thrive in it. My part in all of this is to develop the modules and activities that work to bust misconceptions and build on what you already know and fuel an interest in learning more.
So that's where the modules come in. The course is divided into modules aligning with the book content. Each module contains reading quizzes and homework with associated due dates. It is your responsibility to work though the modules by the due dates listed and come to the Labs and homework help sessions with questions. There will be four exams covering approximately 2-3 chapters, all weighted equally throughout the course. The final exam will be the fourth test over the remaining chapters. The exams will take place during Lab time. The good news is that the exams are *not* cumulative - they will cover specific chapters.
To meet spacing requirements due to Covid-19, the class has been randomly split into two groups - Andromeda and Whirlpool. The Andromeda group will meet on Tuesday during the regular class time in the classroom (MLH B10) to complete the Labs. The Whirlpool group will meet on Thursday during the regular class time for Lab. On Tuesday from 3:00-4:15, Group Andromeda students will be able to attend a homework help session, and from 4:45-6:00 Group Whirlpool students will be able to attend their homework help session.
Important Notes:
-
Assignments need to be completed and submitted by the due date listed. Late homework and quizzes are not accepted unless there is a previously approved accommodation or doctor's excuse. There are ample additional assignments to make up should you have to miss some.
- Any student needing accommodations should inform me. If you feel you might need accommodations, contact the Accessibility Services [https://www.lcsc.edu/accessibility-services/] early in the semester so that reasonable accommodations may be implemented as soon as possible. All information will remain confidential.
- Academic dishonesty and plagiarism will result in a failing grade on the assignment. Using someone else's ideas or phrasing and representing those ideas or phrasing as our own, either on purpose or through carelessness, is a serious offense known as plagiarism. "Ideas or phrasing" includes written or spoken material, from whole papers and paragraphs to sentences, and, indeed, phrases but it also includes statistics, lab results, art work, etc. Please see the Student Code of Conduct for policies regarding plagiarism, harassment, etc. [https://www.lcsc.edu/student-affairs/student-code-of-conduct/prohibited-conduct/]