Physics 211 Course
Description, Spring 2008
Goals
- The
goals of this course are to teach you to understand basic classical mechanics
at the conceptual level, and to make you adept in solving relevant problems.
The approaches used to achieve these goals involve 1) lectures to interactively
discuss and demonstrate the principles, 2) laboratory experiments allowing
you to actively explore these principles, 3) computerized homework on the
World Wide Web to engage you in problem solving, and 4) interaction with
instructors in discussion sections to provide one-on-one help with concepts
and problem solving.
Background
Needed
- We
expect students to have a good grasp of trigonometry and to be able to differentiate
and integrate simple functions such as polynomials, sines and cosines. This
requires a knowledge of calculus (credit or concurrent registration in
Math 231 is a prerequisite of Physics 211).
- High
school physics is not a prerequisite, but most students enrolled in Physics
211 will have had high school physics. As a result, the pace of the course
is such that students without previous physics experience will have to allot
more time each week for study. This is especially true at the beginning
of the term, when less-well-prepared students will have to learn the problem
solving skills which physics demands.
Lectures
- Students
should attend two 75-minute lectures per week, one on Monday and one on
Wednesday. Each lecture will be given four times on those days.
-
Each lecture will involve several interactive learning sessions
where you will be asked to participate. During
these "ACT's" students will work in groups on a specific assigned problem
and will discuss the results with other students and with the instructors.
This will allow the instructor to pinpoint problems in understanding and
deal with them before moving on. The purpose is to help you understand,
and your participation is strongly recommended.
- Come
to the lecture! You should read the lecture notes and the appropriate sections
of the text prior to each lecture, and use the lecture session to clarify
and reinforce the ideas encountered.
- Do
not get behind. This will be especially important during the first few
weeks of the course when the pace is very fast.
- Copies
of the lecture notes are available at the bookstore and on the web site.
WWW
Assignments
- Each
week you will be responsible for completing a computer-based homework assignment.
These assignments are graded and are an integral part of the course.
- To
start work on a homework assignment, click once on "Homework"
on the Physics 211 homepage. Then click on the assignment you wish to do.
The current assignment can also be reached directly from the "Course
Syllabus at a Glance" section of the Physics 211 homepage.
- The
homework assignments consist of two parts: Homework A (problems where you
are given help and feedback), and Homework B (an "online quiz" type problem
for which you are not given feedback until after the deadline).
- For
each homework set, the full-credit deadline is 8:00 am on Tuesday following
the week in which the material is covered in lecture. There is no late credit
for Homework B. For the regular Homework problems, work
done after -- but within one week of --- the deadline for a set receives
a 10% penalty. (Note that this is a relatively small penalty and that
it is well worth doing the homework even if the full-credit deadline has
passed.) No credit is given for homework completed after this second
due date.
Consult the Course Syllabus for homework due-dates.
- You
may work a problem as many times as you like before the deadline and only the highest grade
is recorded in the gradebook. You can never lower your score by reworking
a problem.
Discussion
Sessions
- Discussion
sessions are held in 137, 143 and 147 Loomis and 151 Allen Residence Hall. Each
week you will attend a two-hour discussion section conducted by a TA. These
sections will be active learning sessions in which you will work in small
groups on conceptual tutorials and problem solving, guided by your TA. These
sessions are designed to aid you and test you in the understanding of the
course material, and you should find them beneficial in preparation for
the hour exams. We
will usually begin each discussion session with one of the exercises in
Tutorials in Introductory Physics. It is very important that you bring
this book to each discussion section.
- At
the end of each discussion session, your TA will administer a short quiz
(usually about 20 minutes in length) based on the current material. This
quiz will be graded and recorded in the gradebook. It is important to bring
your calculators to each discussion session.
Lab
Sessions
- Lab
sessions are held in 232 and 264 Loomis.
- The
laboratory portion of Physics 211 will consist of nine 2-hour laboratories,
each involving a series of activities, including (i) setting up simple experiments
to investigate topics you've studied in class, (ii) making predictions about
the outcome of your experiments, (iii) performing measurements of different
phenomena you've studied in lecture, (iv) analyzing your experimental results,
and (v) answering questions concerning your results and predictions. You
will complete the lab write-ups during the lab section and hand them in
at the end of the lab section. Additionally, all labs (except the Laboratory
Orientation) will require completion of pre-labs which are to be handed
in at the beginning of the relevant lab section. Your total laboratory score
will be worth 20% of your grade. Of the 20 points allotted for each laboratory,
15 points will be awarded for participating in and completing the laboratory,
and answering questions in the lab write-up and up to
5 points will be awarded based on the answers to questions in the
prelab.
Exams
- Three
90 minute multiple-choice exams will be given. (See the Course Schedule
for the dates.) You will be assigned a room for each exam based on your
discussion section, and attendance will be taken by your discussion TA.
Bring a calculator and a #2 pencil to all exams. In addition, bring your
official university identification card to show upon request.
- Conflict
exams will be scheduled for those with a legitimate (documented) schedule
conflict. These are usually on the same evening but earlier than the regular
exam. Actual times will be announced in lecture.
Grading
- Your
final grade for Physics 211 will be based upon your total score on all the
components of the course.
-
The total score out of
1000 points is the sum of your scores on the
following:
- Final exam (300
points )
- Mid-term exams (3
x 100
points each),
- Labs (200
points),
- Homework & quizzes (200
points)
- Based on our experience from previous
semesters, rough guidelines for letter grades (minimum score) this
semester will be: A+(950), A(920), A-(900), B+(880), B(860), B-(835), C+(810),
C(780), C-(750), D+(720), D(690), D-(610), and F(<610). Notice
that we do NOT use the common 90/80/70/60 breakdown for letter grades. The
reason for this is that for some parts of the course the average score is
typically very high. For example, there is no reason you should not be
able to score 100% on your web based Homework A assignments. Students
also tend to do very well on labs and quizzes. This means that you cannot
compensate for low examination grades by getting high homework/quiz/lab
grades. On the other hand, you can seriously lower your final grade with low
homework/quiz/lab grades.
The
real payoff for doing well on the homework, quizzes and labs is a better
understanding of the physics and consequently higher examination scores. To
give you an indication of your standing during the semester, you will be
given scaled scores for each hour exam. The
web-based gradebook will show, for all aspects of the class, exactly how
you are progressing. At the end of the course, quiz, homework and lab components
will be put together to obtain the final grade.
-
During
the term, you should regularly check that the exam, homework, lab, and quiz
grades are correctly entered in the gradebook. It is your responsibility
to bring any problems with your assigned grades to the attention of your
section instructor immediately.
Final
Exam
- The
final exam will be three hours in length and will cover material from the
whole semester.
- All
questions about grading policy or any of your grades should be directed
to your lecturer.
Absences
and Excused Grades
- There
will be no make-ups for missed exams, quizzes or laboratory work in Physics
211. Unexcused absences from hour exams or quizzes will receive a score
of AB, which is numerically equivalent to zero. Similarly, prelabs or lab
reports that are not turned in at the time they are due and in the lab section
for which you are registered will be scored AB, unless an excused absence
is granted.
- An
excused absence from an hour exam will receive the score EX. At the end
of the semester, hour-exam EX scores will be replaced by a weighted average
of all of your non-EX scores on exams (hour exams and final exam). Similarly,
an excused absence from a quiz will receive an EX and such scores will be
replaced by the semester average of all non-EX quiz scores. EX scores for
prelabs and lab reports will be treated in a similar manner.
- If
you miss a discussion quiz or lab for a valid reason, take your excuse to
231/233 Loomis. The secretary will make copies of it to distribute to the
course personnel. If appropriate, you will receive an EX grade.
- Excused
grades for lab reports, quizzes and hour exams will be given only in one
of the following circumstances: (a) illness; (b) personal crisis (e.g. automobile
accident, required court appearance, death of a close relative, weather
conditions which make it impossible to get to the university); and (c) required
attendance at an official UIUC activity (e.g. varsity athletics, band concert).
- In
case of (a), go to the McKinley Health Center. If upon examination the staff
decides you are sick, you will receive a slip from the Center with a telephone
number that you should provide to 231/233 Loomis. The course secretary may
call the Center to verify that you were seen there (the Center does not
provide written excuses per se), OR
go to your private physician and obtain a written excuse. The excuse should
contain your doctor's name and telephone number so that the secretary can
call to verify the information.
- In
case (b) contact the Dean of Students' Office 333-0050. (At night this number
is known as the Emergency Dean). Inform your lab or quiz TA. that you have
done so. The Dean of Students' Office will send a letter to 231/233 Loomis.
This letter will be distributed to your instructors.
- In
case (c) inform the course secretary (231/233 Loomis) in addition to any
relevant TA in advance about any hour exams, quiz or lab that you
will miss.
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