Website address: www.phys.virginia.edu/classes/142R

Course Instructor:

Stephen T. Thornton, Professor of Physics

Room 305, Physics Building Office telephone: 924-6808

Email address: stt@virginia.edu

Office Hours: Tuesday and Wednesday 1:30 - 2:30 p.m., Room 305.

Course Times:

Lecture: TTh, 9:30 - 10:45 am, Room 204, physics building

Every student must take the discussion section: Wed, 4 - 4:50 p.m., Room 205, physics building.

Final Exam:

The final exam is scheduled for Monday, December 20, 1999 in room 204, 2-5 pm.

Textbook: Physics, vol. 1, Fishbane, Gasiorowicz and Thornton.

Course Objectives

The aim of this course is to teach you concepts and understanding of the physical world. Doing problem solving is an important part of this course, and your grade will depend on your ability to understand concepts and your ability to solve problems. An understanding of the material is crucial to your ability in problem solving, as is the acquisition of a set of skills about problem solving. The lectures are oriented towards helping you understand the concepts and how to solve problems. We will perform many demonstrations and solve many examples and problems in class and during the discussion section. Understanding the material is the best long-term way for you to be able to solve the problems that an engineer faces. Read each assignment before the lecture and again as soon as possible after the lecture. Attending the lectures and seeing demonstrations is an important way for you to understand the material. Doing the assigned problems and attending the problem sessions is an important way to acquire problem-solving skills. You must be enrolled in the problem session in addition to the lecture. The problem session quizzes will be given during the discussion session. Note that a significant part of your grade depends on these quizzes, so you must attend the discussion section.

Homework Assignments:

Students will be expected to work and study outside the classroom. Weekly homework assignments will be posted here on the website.

Remarks

1. Exams are separately scheduled in the evening, not during regular class time.
2. No makeup exams will be given. Missed exams receive a grade of zero unless an excuse for missing the exam is given to and accepted by me before the exam.
3. You are required to attend the problem session. Each week there will be a graded quiz in the problem session that contributes to your final grade. Missed quizzes receive a grade of zero unless an excuse for missing the quiz is given to and accepted by me before the quiz.
4. Problem sets are due at the beginning of each problem session. These will be assigned each week one week in advance. No extra credit or makeup assignments will be given. Keep up!
5. Regrading. I will correct arithmetic grading errors on exams and I will consider differences of opinion between answers submitted and the exam solutions. Regrade requests must be submitted in writing within 7 days after the exam is returned, explaining how much credit you think you deserve and why you think you deserve it. The same policy will be used for homeworks and quizzes.
6. Collaboration on problem sets: I encourage you to discuss problem sets with each other and to work out together methods of solution. What is unacceptable is the joint composition of a single solution and the submittal of a symbol for symbol and word for word copy of this solution. Your solution must be written out by you and only you. It is an honor violation for you to copy another person's solution or a joint solution, even if you helped work out the solution.
7. Attendance policy: Attendance is not taken, but you are responsible for all assigned material, whether it is presented in lecture or not. You are also responsible for knowing the problem assignments and for any announcements of changes in the schedule that may be made in lecture.

Grading:

Final grades will be determined by the following distribution:

Exam I	15%
Exam II	15%
Problems Session Quizzes	20%
Homework	20%
Final Exam	30%

 

Syllabus

Lecture	Date	Chapter	Topic
1	Sept. 2	1	Introduction, units, vectors, etc.
2	Sept. 7	2	One-dimensional motion
3	Sept. 9	2,3	One- and two-dimensional motion
4	Sept. 14	3	Projectile and other motion
5	Sept. 16	4	Newton's Laws
6	Sept. 21	5	Simple forces; Applications: friction, drag
7	Sept. 23	5	Forces and circular motion
8	Sept. 28	6	Work and energy
9	Sept. 30	6,7	Forces, energy, and power
10	Oct. 5	7	Conservation of energy
			EXAM I, October 5, 5:30 - 6:30 p.m., Room 203, covers Chapters 1-5
11

 Homework (due at beginning of problem session, unless otherwise noted.

Date Due	Homework Assignment
September 8	Chapter 1: 11, 18, 32, 46, 54, 80
September 15
Septemeber 22
September 29
October 6
October 13
October 20
October 27
November 3
November 10
December 3
December 10

Course Rules and Regulations:

It is important for students to be aware of these rules and regulations which may change throughout the course. Changes will be announced in class, and all changes will be listed on the website. Students are responsible for keeping up with the Course Rules and Regulations as stated on the website.

 In general, assignments and notices will be listed on the course webpage. This includes, but is not limited to, homework assignments, syllabus changes, course rules and regulations changes and additions, dates and times of any review sessions, and material to be covered on class exams.

1. Illness (as an excuse) must always be established in writing.

   EXAMS:

2. If you do not turn in an assignment (including homework) on time or miss an exam (including being late and for illness), you will receive a grade of zero, unless you have prearranged approval by Professor Thornton. Messages of any kind including, but not limited to, email, telephone message, oral messages of any kind, notes delivered by a third party, etc., are not acceptable by themselves without a response by Professor Thornton. Any oral approval given by Professor Thornton must be confirmed in writing.
3. If you miss the beginning of an exam, you will still be expected to turn in the exam at the end of the regular class. Oversleeping is not an acceptable excuse. If you miss the exam, you will receive a grade of zero.
4. There will be no rescheduling of exams except for instructor approved medical emergencies or official university travel. Leaving town for anything else including, but not limited to, vacations, family reunions, concerts, Nobel prize receptions, White House visits, athletic events for non-participants, etc., will not be an acceptable excuse for missing an exam or for not turning in homework. All rescheduled exams may, at the discretion of the instructor, be oral examinations.

   HOMEWORK:

5. Separate sheets must be stapled together and your name and student ID number clearly printed on all sheets. Check that your homework sets are complete. Missing sheets will not be accepted later.
6. You may work together in doing homework, but you must write them up separately and in your own words. Points will be deducted from all homework that are found to have similar answers, regardless of who obtained those answers from whom.
7. Not all the homework problems in a given assignment will be graded. The problems chosen to be graded will not be announced to you. Your homework grade will depend only on how you do on the problems chosen to be graded, not on any of the others.