Learning physics is very similar to learning how to play a sport or a musical instrument.
If your goal is to learn how to hit a nine-iron shot in golf, you can read books and watch
videos that describe the proper technique, and you can watch experts do it properly.
However, until you actually try it and work on it yourself, you have made very little
progress. Physics is the same way. You can read your text and watch your instructor
solve problems, but until you pick up your pencil and try it yourself, you can't
say that you are learning physics.
We are fortunate to have an excellent text book, Physics for Scientists and Engineers, 2nd Edition by
Randall Knight, at our disposal. For each class, you'll be assigned a few sections of Knight
to read before class. During class, I will give a 15-20 minute summary of the material in those
sections that is important for solving problems. We will then apply this to example problems. The text has
many excellent example problems, but I'll choose a selection from the end-of-chapter problems that are similar
to your homework assignments.
The solutions for all of the example problems done
in class will be posted on the course calendar page so you don't have to copy down everything we do in class.
Homework
Homework is where you actually learn how to do physics, and it will be structured so that you will start with
somewhat easy problems and progress to be able to solve the more challenging problems in the text.
Homework for the course will be done with the Masteringphysics website. This is a web-based homework
package for Knight's text. You are required to register for it - you should have a student access kit
that came with your textbook. To register, follow the instructions in the kit and on the site and use the
course ID posted on the mainpage.
There will be two types of homework assignments:
Daily Homework will consist of a few of the tutorial problems based on your textbook readings. These will
be assigned very frequently and will test how well you have comprehended the material in the text.
Chapter Homework will consist of a selection of problems from the end of each chapter. These will be due
after we finish that particular chapter.
Each problem is graded as you do it and is worth 10 homework points. The due date and time for a particular assignment
will be posted on the course calendar.
Late Homework Policy: Any problem completed before the due time
will be graded out of 10 points; any problem completed at any time (including up to the beginning of the final exam)
after the due time, will
be graded out of 5 points.
Really Important: My experience with Masteringphysics is that you still
have to do the physics the old-fashioned way - i.e. paper, pencil, eraser, and calculator!
Also, note that many of the exam problems will have a strong resemblance to the homework problems.
Finally, your homework course score is 100 points (the same as a single mid-semester exam) and is simply
the percentage of homework points that you have received. You will be able to keep track of your homework
grade on the MasteringPhysics site.
Exams
There will be three exams given in the evening (Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m.) during the semester
as well as a final comprehensive exam during finals week. The mid-semester exams will consist of 20 multiple choice
problems and conceptual questions similar to the homework. The final exam will have 30 problems/questions.
For each exam, you will be supplied with a copy of the physical constants and conversion factors from the front
cover of your text. You will also be given a sheet of important equations. I will have this ready before the
exam so that you will know exactly what you'll be given - anything not on the sheet, you'll have to memorize.
No make-up mid-term exams will be given! If you must miss a mid-term exam, contact the instructor before the
exam.
If you have a legitimate reason for missing the exam, you will be assigned an estimated score as follows:
Estimated Score =
(Your average of other two exams) (Class average of other two exams)
X (Class average of missed exam)
Assignment of this score is not automatic; you must submit to the instructor a written
request (email preferred) for an estimated score, along with a statement of the reason for missing the examination.
If you miss two or more exams you will receive an Incomplete grade for the course. Also note that
the final exam must be taken at the designated time on the course calendar.
Quizzes
I reserve the right to give a quiz on anything at anytime. Any quiz will
carry the same grade weight as one 40 point homework assignment, and will count toward your homework grade.
Grading Scheme
If you have kept track of the above, the exams and homework add up to 550 total course points.
Your course score is simply the percentage of possible points that you have earned.
The corresponding letter grade for your course score
is nominally based on a straight
percentage distribution (i.e., 100% to 93% = A; 93% to 90% = A-;
90% to 87% = B+; 87% to 83% = B; 83% to 80% = B-; etc.).
However, depending on the performance of the entire class, this may be
curved downward ( it will never be curved upward!).
You can always get a worst-case scenario of where you stand at anytime during the
semester simply by calculating
your percentage of the possible points up to that time. For example, suppose after the
second exam you have received a 65 on exam 1, an 80 on exam 2, and 467 homework points out
of 660 for a homework score of 467/660 = 70.8%.
Your course score is then
Course Score =
(65 + 80 +70.8)
(300)
= 71.9%
For this example, the worst case grade would be a C-.
Course Withdrawal Policy
The course withdrawal policy of the University can be confusing. In summary, the policy is:
If a student drops a full semester course by the third week deadline, the course
will be removed from the record. For Fall 2009, this date is September 14.
If a student drops a course between the third week and ninth week of the term,
a "W" will be recorded. For Fall 2009, this date is October 30.
A student cannot normally drop a course after the ninth week of the term (he/she is
in it for the duration) and the only way to drop at this point is by petition.
For a more complete description of the withdrawal policy, see the
Miami Handbook; look under sections 01.203.