might be a ball’s
position at time 1. (1pt)Physics 232 General Physics II Spring 2017
Policies and Expectations
Reading: First off, to get the most out of our class time together, you should read the appropriate sections of the text first. In the process, I strongly encourage you to jot down things you’d like us to address when together. Beyond that, since you’re reading about physics, and physics is something that’s done rather than merely observed, the somewhat passive activity of reading will be most effective when interwoven with more active... er... um... activities. Here are a few things to do while reading the text. When you come to a big blue question mark, stop and think about the question (that’s actually what the authors call them, “stop and think” questions.) They’re generally quite simple, but they help you to keep alert. That’s just a ‘recommendation,’ you’ll also be ‘required’ to do some short exercises and experiments, more about them next.
Homework 30% of your grade. There are three types of homework: Classwork, Reading Exercises, Short Experiments, and Homework Problems.
Classwork: (2%
of your grade) You learn best by
doing and discussing, so periodically during lecture I’ll ask you to try your
hand at doing bite-sized bits of the day’s material and discussing it with your
colleagues. We’ll use “clickers” to
help log your answers and help me differentiate between what pretty much
everyone understands and what merits further discussion.
These questions are to help you
learn rather than me grade.
So you’ll get 1 point for every question you answer (right or wrong)
and 1 bonus point for every question you get right.
Daily Reading Exercises: (13% of your grade) As the name suggests, these are intended for you to try while you’re doing the reading before coming to class. Doing these will help you to get familiar with ideas and tool presented in the reading. Most of these are online versions of the exercises you’ll encounter as you read the text. While the versions in the text have answers provided at the end of the chapter, the versions online give you instant feedback and let you try until you get them right. You’ll find that you are able to correctly answer some of these after having done just the reading, while you may need to see examples of others in class first. The grading scheme is designed to account for this: you get 10% bonus on all questions correctly answered at least 10 min prior to class, and you can get 90% credit for any questions you correctly answer within the next 24 hours; that means that you’d average out to full credit if you got half the questions right before class and the other half right after class. Here’s how to access the RE assignments. Log in at www.webassign.net. Your login has the format lastname.firstname, your institution is “redlands”, and your initial password is “appleton” (I’d suggest personalizing it.) You get about two weeks in WebAssign for free, but after that you’ll need to buy a subscription (comparable to the cost of a workbook.)
Homework Problems:
(15% of your
grade) Weekly homework problems are generally due Fridays at 3pm
(see schedule); they are more
involved than those in the Reading Exercises.
Unlike the Reading Exercises, your work (not just the final answers) must
be turned in and will be graded; thus the work must be legible and easy to
follow (if your original work is not, you should copy it over.) Because good
problem solving style and communication are crucial to success on more
challenging problems, you will be graded not just on the quality of your
solution, but also on the quality of your
communication. For one thing,
this means explaining your reasoning in words as well as doing the math. Here
are some key things that I’ll be looking for:
·
Visual representation of the given and desired
information which communicates how they’re related. Explicitly define the
“system.” (1pt)
·
Meaningful and distinct symbols for the given and
desired quantities, ex.
might be a ball’s
position at time 1. (1pt)
·
Mathematical relations phrased in terms of these
symbols before numbers are used. (1pt)
·
Clear & Correct algebra (1pt)
·
Units accompanying all numbers. (1pt)
·
Correct Answer submitted in WebAssign (consistent
with values provided in WebAssign) (1pt)
You must also include units anywhere you use numbers (not
just at the end) and use proper vector notation when appropriate. You may find
the problem solving
technique /
template (found on the website) helpful in organizing your work on these
problems. Feel free to consult with each other or with me, but the work turned
in must be your own.
Sample problems are worked out at
http://physics.highpoint.edu/~atitus/mandi-3/
.
Another resource is answer checking in WebAssign – type in
your final answer, and it’ll tell you if you got it right; if you didn’t, then
you know to double check your work or check with me or a classmate.
Students have found this resource so valuable that I’ve made it required
– the point for having a correct final answer (1 out of 6 points for a problem)
comes from your submitting than answer in WebAssign.
Laboratory Experiences: 20% of your grade. Non-exam weeks, there will be laboratory experiences. These are of two types: experiments and simulations. In the experiments you observe and analyze the behavior of physical systems; in the computer simulations you employ the theory to model physical systems. As it was in Phys 231, the modeling will be done in VPython in the classroom. You can (but are not required to) install VPython on your personal machine; it is available for free at http://vpython.org. You may wish to (but are not required to) bring a floppy disc or thumb drive to class to take your programs home; many of the simulation instructions include suggestions on how you might adapt and extend your programs. No previous programming experience is necessary; you will learn what you need along the way. Formal lab reports will be required for only one of the more involved experiments. Details about the report will be given later.
Quizzes: 10% of your grade. There will be a short quiz over (almost) each chapter. As with the Homework Problems, you will be judged not only on the correctness of your solution, but also on the quality of your communication (of course, in a nod to time constraints, the standard will not be as high as for homework). The quizzes are intended to encourage you to look over the homework solutions and review anything that you didn’t understand. Equation sheets will be provided (and are posted online) – familiarize yourself with them so you know how to use them and what material you’re responsible for knowing.
Exams: 40% of your grade. There will be two mid-term exams (11% each) and a final with a section on the last third of the class as well as a cumulative section (18%). All exams will be closed book, closed notes. As with the quizzes, quality of communication, as well as solution, counts. Some equations will be provided; the most fundamental principles must be committed to memory. Sample exams will be available in class and on the website. The final is XXX (not yet published); if you’ve made travel plans for that day, change them soon (late change fees are unpleasant.)
Other notes
Drawing Electric and Magnetic Fields: This may sound silly, but it’s going to help a lot: On your homework, in your laboratory notebook, and on quizzes and exam, you must draw electric fields in orange (or red) and magnetic fields in blue. Erasable color pencils will be provided to you. In order to emphasize when you are dealing with electric and magnetic fields, nothing else should be drawn in those colors. I will try to stick to the same convention in class and you are encouraged to do the same in your notes.
Cheating: Dishonesty seriously undermines academic pursuit; therefore, it is my philosophy that the punishment for cheating should not simply erase its 'beneficial' effects, but be enough of a deterrent that the 'benefit' of cheating is not worth the risk. For example, if I identify cheating on an exam, the offender is likely to be failed from the course.
Reschedules:
Tragedies do sometimes happen, and you may not be able to take an exam at
its regularly scheduled time. If
you let me know well in advance, we can reschedule your exam.
If you do not notify my until the day before the exam, you must provide
documentation of your conflict (doctor’s note, plane ticket stub, etc.) before
your make up exam score will be recorded.
Accommodations:
With the support of Student Services, I am happy to make accommodations for
learning differences of which we are aware; of course, it’s difficult to make
accommodations after the fact, so I encourage anyone with a documented learning
difference to talk to Student Services.
Grade: If at anytime you are interested in reviewing your standing in the course feel free to give me a call, send me an e-mail, or drop by my office.
In Class Work 2%
Daily Reading Exercises 13%
Weekly
Homework
15%
Laboratory Experiences 20%
Quizzes 10%
Exams 40%
Final Grade Assignments: Final grades will be assigned according to the following:
93 ⅓ ≤ A (4.0) ≤ 100%
90 ≤ A- (3.7) < 93 ⅓
86 ⅔ ≤ B+ (3.3) < 90
83 ⅓ ≤ B (3.0) < 86 ⅔
80 ≤ B- (2.7) < 83 ⅓
76 ⅔ ≤ C+ (2.3) < 80
73 ⅓ ≤ C (2.0) < 76 ⅔
70 ≤ C- (1.7) < 73 ⅓
66 ⅔ ≤ D+ (1.3) < 70
63 ⅓ ≤ D (1.0) < 66 ⅔
60 ≤ D- (0.7) < 63 ⅓
0 ≤ F (0.0) < 60