PH 111X, Studio Physics -- Mechanics

This is the introductory course in Newtonian mechanics. Minimum recommended background: concurrent study of MA 1021. We meet in OH 117 on TF from 9-10:50 and W in OH 126 from 9:00-9:50. Instructor: Professor NA Burnham, nab@wpi.edu. The goals of the course are:

Students shall conceptually understand the fundamental principles of vectors, kinematics, Newton's Laws, and energy and momentum conservation, for both linear and rotational motion.
Students shall be able to apply the above principles to experiments in mechanics.
Students shall be able to apply the above principles to solve physics problems in cartesian coordinates using algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and calculus, both symbolically and numerically.

If you pass this course, you will be credited with the work for PH 1110. This version, PH 111X, is a "studio" version, in which lectures are replaced by online assignments, and the contact hours are devoted to any necessary mini-lectures, clicker questions, problem-solving, and lab activities (4 hrs/wk), as well as review sessions and exams (1 hr/wk).

Textbook and on-line homework access

The textbook is "University Physics" by Young and Freedman, 14th edition. While it is not necessary to have your own printed copy, access to it in some form (friends, libraries, e-text, etc.) is highly recommended. You must have a Mastering Physics account [1] associated with University Physics in order to do the homework and prepwork, worth 25% of your final grade.

1. http://www.pearsonmylabandmastering.com/northamerica/masteringphysics/

Final grade determination

Percent	Activity
60 %	Three equally-weighted exams. 10 % penalty for unexcused absences.
25 %	Mastering Physics prepwork and homework, course ID: BURNHAMPH111XC18, due mornings at 8:00 AM. The lowest two scores will be dropped; late work will not accepted for points, although you may (re)work them for practice. (There are primer and review problem sets as well. However, these are not for credit.)
10 %	Lab worksheets, as follow-ups to the in-class lab-oriented activities. Submission through Canvas of a PDF file by 8:00 AM the morning after a studio session. Lowest score dropped. Make-ups are not possible.
5 %	Clicker score. During a studio session, you earn one point for answering a question and two points for answering correctly. Failure to return your loaned clicker at the end of the term results in a $75 charge to and a hold on your account. Lowest daily score dropped. Make-ups are not possible.

If your final numerical grade lies on the border line between two letter grades, then your class participation will determine which letter grade you shall receive.

Calendar

PW = PrepWork, WS = WorkSheet, HW = HomeWork, PR = Primer, RV = ReView. All are due at 8:00 AM on the day shown. The practice sessions in OH 126 and primer and review problem sets on Mastering Physics are optional (in green). The diagnostic test on the last Wednesday is mandatory, i.e. you will not receive a final grade until you take it.

Week of	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday
7.January.2018	What's due Today's topic Sections in book		--	--	PW1 Intro 1.1-1.6	WS1, PM1+2
14.January	HW1 MLK Day	PW2 Kinematics I 2.1-2.6	WS2, PW2B Vectors 1.7-1.9	HW2	PW3 Kinematics II 3.1-3.5	WS3, RV1+2
21.January	HW3	PW4 Dynamics I 4.1-4.6	WS4, RV3 Practice set	HW4	PW5 Dynamics II 5.1-5.5	WS5, RV4, PM3
28.January	HW5	PW6 Energy I 6.1-6.4	WS6, RV5 EXAM 1	HW6	PW7 Energy II 7.1-7.5	WS7, RV6, PM4
4.February	HW7	PW8 Momentum I 8.1-8.2	WS8, RV7 Practice set	HW8	PW9 Momentum II 8.3-8.4	WS9, RV8
11.February	HW9	PW10 Torque 10.1, 11.1-11.3	WS10, RV9 EXAM 2	HW10 Advising Day	PW11 Rotational kinematics 9.1-9.4	WS11, RV10
18.February	HW11	PW12 Rotational dynamics 10.2-10.4	WS12, RV11 Practice set	HW12	-- Reading Day	--
25.February	RV12	PW13 Angular momentum 10.5-10.6	WS13, RV13 Diagnostic Test Mandatory	HW13	EXAM 3	Happy Spring Break!

Communication and office hours

My office is OH 219. I am sometimes in my lab, OH 009, in the Physics Library, OH 118, or in the department office, OH 119. My mailbox is between the doors of OH 118 and 119. Email nab@wpi.edu (checked twice daily), web www.wpi.edu/~nab, office phone with voice mail (508) 831-5365; fax (508) 831-5886; my basic weekly schedule, with office hours, is posted at www.wpi.edu/~nab/Sched.html. Please put "PH 111X" in the subject line of your emails for a faster response. The web address for this page is www.wpi.edu/~nab/PH11X.C18 .html. My research is described at www.wpi.edu/+AFM and at links therein.

Help

There is often a physics graduate student in the physics library, OH 118. He or she sits near the sign labeled "Physics Help". There should be a schedule posted on the library door and online under the Student Resources area of the Physics Department's website.

If you need course adaptations or accommodations because of a disability or if you have medical information to share with me, please see me. Students with disabilities are encouraged to contact the Disability Services Office (DSO) as soon as possible to ensure that such accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion. The DSO is located in Daniels Hall, (508) 831-5235.

Academic dishonesty

Individual integrity is vital to the academic environment because education involves the search for and acquisition of knowledge and understanding, which are, in themselves, intangible. Evaluation of each student’s level of knowledge and understanding is a vital part of the teaching process, and requires tangible measures such as reports, examinations, and homework. Any act that interferes with the process of evaluation by misrepresentation of the relation between the work being evaluated (or the resulting evaluation) and the student’s actual state of knowledge is an act of academic dishonesty. The moral equivalent of academic dishonesty in larger society is treason.

In Studio Physics -- Mechanics, you are encouraged to collaborate on the homework, although you must submit the homework yourself. Lab data must be collected by you and your partner(s), if your partner is present. However, individual questions must be answered individually. During an exam, you may have only the exam, a calculator, and writing implements on your desk; no telephones or other communication devices are allowed. You may not give or receive information during exams, except to ask the instructor to clarify a question.

Educational research has shown that:

The most learning occurs in an environment characterized by high expectations and respect and care for individual students, and where the value of collaboration is stressed over competition.
The most learning occurs in an active classroom environment where students take responsibility for learning rather than being passive receptors of the professor’s knowledge.
Students can learn as effectively or more effectively from peers than from a professor.
Facilitating development of students’ communication, teamwork, and interpersonal skills is as important as helping them learn physics.
Professors and students are equals in the learning process. I have as much to learn about teaching and people as they have to learn about physics.

Above three sections adapted from: Disability Services Office, Dean of Students Office, Prof. Phillies, Prof. Demetry.

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N.A. Burnham, January 2018