Crn 10550, 15488, MWF 1:10 - 2:00 pm, Spring 2012
Dr. Marcus Alfred
Thirkield Hall, room 202
202-806-6258
bisonphysics@yahoo.com
Office Hours: 10-11 Mondays
COURSE DESCRIPTION
The topics we will cover include kinematics, dynamics, work, energy, momentum, simple harmonic motion, gravitation, materials, properties of fluids, thermodynamics, waves, sound and both interference and diffraction. The class will include lecture and discussion.
COURSE GOALS
Students should experience phenomena describing and/or motivating the laws of physics or physics models
Students will understand the motivation and quantification of the laws of physics
Students will master the construction of simple physics models from fundamental laws, standard techniques and standard methods
Students will understand physics as a science
Students will understand research process
Students will connect science class work to research on campus
Students will become aware of research opportunities
Students will connect the science & engineering work of African Americans to a broader African American cultural experience
COURSE OBJECTIVES
Students will define physics terms
Students will derive common physics expressions
Students will recognize common physics methods and techniques
Students will list example phenomena of physics concepts
Students will apply concepts to simple models
Students will construct simple theoretical models and potential experiments
Students will describe applications, phenomena, and models in terms of physics
Students will describe problems in terms of scientific method – obs, question, theory & model, experiment, pub)
Students will list African American HU researchers, topics, and potential internship choices
Students will attend several physics seminars
Students will participate in weekly peer questions
Students will attend weekly HU research lecture (10mins on Wednesdays)
Students will attend weekly ethics discussion in lecture
COURSE OUTLINE
Motion along a straight line: Average speed, average velocity, instantaneous velocity, acceleration, Motion with constant acceleration
Vectors: Displacement vector, Vector addition and subtraction, Position vector, Component and magnitude angle forms, Vector multiplication
Motion in 2 & 3 dimensions: velocity and acceleration vectors, motion with constant acceleration, projectiles, uniform circular motion, relative motion
Newton’s laws: First, second and third laws, Combination of forces, Motion with a constant force
Applications of Newton’s laws: Friction, Hooke’s law, Uniform circular motion
Work and energy: Work, Variable force work, Kinetic energy, Gravitational PE,
Conservation of energy: PE of a conservative force, PE curves, Other forms of energy, Mass and energy, Power
Gravitation: Law of universal gravitation, Kepler’s Laws, Energy in orbital motion
Systems of particles: Momentum, Center of Mass, Motion of CM, Energy of system of particles
Collisions: Impulse, Elastic and inelastic collisions, 2D &3D collisions
Rotation of a rigid body: Rotation about a fixed axis, Constant angular acceleration, KE & moment of inertia
Dynamics of a rigid body: Work, energy, power, and torque, Equations of rotational motion, Angular momentum, Torque and angular momentum vectors
Statics and elasticity: Static Equilibrium, Levers and pulleys, Elasticity
Oscillations: Simple harmonic motion, Simple harmonic oscillator, KE & PE
Waves: Transverse and Longitudinal, Periodic waves, Superposition, Standing waves
Sound: Intensity, Speed of sound, Standing waves in air, Doppler effect, Diffraction
Fluid mechanics: Density and flow velocity, Streamlines, Pressure, Pressure in static fluid, Archimedes’ principle, Bernoulli’s equation
Ideal gas law: Ideal gas law, Temperature scale, Kinetic pressure, Internal energy of ideal gas
Heat: Energy Transfer, Thermal expansion, Thermal conduction, Changes of state, Specific heat, Adiabatic Expansion
Thermodynamics: First law, Heat engines, Second law, Entropy
INSTRUCTIONAL METHODS
Challenging questions, Short answer exercises, Conceptual peer to peer exercises, Guest Researcher seminars & mini-lectures,Demonstrations
COURSE REQUIREMENTS AND POLICIES
Course prerequisite or corequisite: Math 156
Attendance: Attendance is not mandatory but highly recommended. Many quiz and homework problems will be based on work and examples done in class.
Homework: Homework will be assigned each week on a Friday. It will be due the following Friday in lecture. Each assignment will be approximately 10 problems from the textbook. Each homework assignment will be approximately 10 points. The recitation instructor will grade the homework papers and return them within a week with a score. 10% of the homework score will be based on participation in recitation. THERE IS NO LATE HOMEWORK!
Quizzes: There will be quizzes every Friday during the semester. Quizzes will be based on basic problems.
Exams: The midterm exam is worth 20% of your grade. The final exam is worth 30% of your grade. The midterm is on Friday, 3/02/12 in class. The final is on Friday 5/04/12 from 11am - 1pm in room 300. All exams are closed book and no electronic devices are allowed. Bring only a pen and pencil. An early final exam option is available. The early exam will be 4/25/12 from 1-3pm.
Grades: A student’s grades in the class are based on a composition of 20% quizzes, 30% homework, and 50% for the exams. Standard grades for scores: A 100-90, B 89-80, C 79 -70, D 69 - 60, F 60 and below
Cheating: Cheating of any kind will not be tolerated. Please refer to the Howard University Handbook (H - book) for university guidelines on cheating. No talking under any circumstances is permitted during an exam. If help is needed simply contact the instructor. In addition, only a pencil is required for all exams; notebooks, calculators, and scratch paper will not be needed.
Recommended Textbook: Serway and Jewett. Physics for Scientists and Engineers. 8th edition, vol 1. Brooks and Cole. 2009. ISBN10: 143904838X, ISBN13: 978-1439048382.
General Policies: All lectures and recitations may be videotaped and NOT made available to the general public. Also, turn off your cell phones in recitation and lectures. It is a distraction to your instructors and your fellow students.
Howard University is committed to providing an educational environment that is accessible to all students. In accordance with this commitment, students in need of accommodations due to a disability should contact the Office of the Dean for Special Student Services for verification and determination of reasonable accommodations as soon as possible after admission to the University, or at the beginning of each academic semester. The Dean of the Office for Special Student Services, Dr. Barbara Williams, may be reached at 202-238-2420
TENTATIVE COURSE SCHEDULE
WEEK 1: Welcome, Orientation, (1/09/12 - 1/13/12)
WEEK 2: Chap 1&2: 1d kinematics (1/16/12 - 1/20/12)
WEEK 3: Chap 3&4: Vectors & 2d kinematics (1/23/12 - 1/27/12)
WEEK 4: Chap 4&5: 2d kinematics & Forces (1/30/12 - 2/03/12)
WEEK 5: Chap 6&7: Forces and Energy (2/06/12 - 2/10/12)
WEEK 6: Chap 8: Conservation of Energy (2/13/12 - 2/15/12)
WEEK 7: Chap 9 & 10: Center of Mass Motion and Rotations (2/20/12 - 2/24/12)
WEEK 8: Chap 11: Angular Momentum (2/27/12 - 3/02/12)
WEEK 9: Chap 12: Equilibrium 1 (3/05/12 - 3/09/12)
WEEK 10: Chap 13 & 14: Gravity and Fluids (3/19/12 - 3/23/12)
WEEK 11: Chap 15: Oscillations (3/26/12 - 3/30/12)
WEEK 12: Chap 16 & 17: Waves and Sound (4/02/12 - 4/06/12)
WEEK 13: Chap 19, 20: Temperature and the first law (4/09/12 - 4/13/12)
WEEK 14: Chap 21,22: Kinetic Theory and Entropy (4/16/12 - 4/20/12)
WEEK 15: Early Final (4/23/12 - 4/27/12)
HOMEWORK HELP
Help with homework is available most days in room 207 in the physics building from 5-7pm.