Undergraduate Program
Topics for Discussion
• Status of the Plans for a BA Physics Degree
• Status of AST/PHY277 “upgrade”
• Three similar ‘seminar’ courses:
PHY104
Opportunities in Physics
PHY200
Physics Today
PHY311
Connections in Science
December 14, 2004
Bachelor of Arts in Physics
Where we left last time:
• Advantages of a B. A. in Physics seriously questioned
• A closer look to other institutions advised
What has been done since:
• Questionnaire sent to Mid-west Physics Chairs
• Twelve responses have been received and compiled
Status of Plans for Bachelor of Arts in Physics
Last year’s discussions crystallized in concrete proposal
This year’s discussion has questioned advantages of
instituting a B.A. in Physics:
• Prospective clientele is not clear
• It is doubtful that it’ll attract more students
• It may reduce the number of B. S. Physics majors who
take the B.S. track
• It may require the introduction of new courses, which is
not a good “economics” decision
• It is not clear how much other institutions have
benefited from a B.A. program
Proposal: Take a closer look one more time to more
institutions, before settling issue definitively
A Survey of Other Institutions
Institution
BS creds
BA creds
BS grads
BA grads
Comments
Case Western
60
36
17
3
BS includes various
tracks
Connecticut
36
24
7
3
18
7
10
1
Florida
Iowa
Montana
New Hamphsire
46
28+12 (sci)
Recent program;
wild fluctuations in
numbers; their
guess: no net gain
No BA
22 courses:
14 courses:
math/phy/che math/phy
10
1
Penn State
No BA
Purdue
No BA
Rochester
8 upper div.
courses
5 upper div.
courses
Toledo
18
6
30
5
Vanderbilt
Wash. Seattle
Rutgers
55/yr!
48 (Prof)
33+9 (Appl).
27 + 18
23
12
Numbers include
phys. and phys/astro
majors
3-year-old program.
Total current enroll.
Only BA; no BS
No BA; thinking of
one.
BA for hs teaching,
patent-law arguing
Questionnaire
1.
Do you have (or did you have in past) a BA or 'General' degree
program in place?
2.
How many credits are required in physics for the BA and the BS?
How many credits in related disciplines for each?
3.
Do you have courses that are specifically tailored for the BA
outside those offered for the BS degree?
4.
What are they?
On average, how many physics majors graduate per year in the
BS and BA tracks?
In your estimation, how many of those with
the BA degree would not have enrolled in the BS if the BA
were not available?
5.
If you have a web page that describes the requirements for BS and
BA, could you give us the link?
Bachelor of Arts in Physics
Where we left last time:
• Advantages of a B. A. in Physics seriously questioned
• A closer look to other institutions advised
What has been done since:
• Questionnaire sent to Mid-west Physics Chairs
• Twelve responses received and compiled
What we found:
• The BA program marginal as a recruiting tool
• Benefits of BA program not significant
What we propose:
• Shelf plans for BA in Physics, for now
• File gathered information
• Revisit decision in 5 years, if appropriate
Chair’s note: The suggestion to table the institution of
a BA degree was accepted.
AST/PHY277: Computation for PHY and AST Majors
Where we left last time:
• Proposal of mandatory, 3-credit AST/PHY277
well received
• Syllabus to be completed
What has been done since:
• A small committee (Swesty, Jacobsen, Drew)
has drafted a detailed syllabus
AST/PHY 277: An Introduction to Un*x Computing
Objective
Prepare Physics and Astronomy majors for modern
scientific computing, with value well beyond their
undergraduate years.
Main Areas
Computer Literacy
Computer Programming
Numerical Methods
Characteristics
Mandatory for AST and PHY majors
3-credit course
Taught once a year (Fall semester)
Will need a TA, for extensive grading and “help in the field”
Limited numbers of seats (25 to 30 max)
AST/PHY277: Computation for PHY and AST Majors
Where we left last time:
• Proposal of mandatory, 3-credit AST/PHY277 well received
• Syllabus to be completed
What has been done since:
• A small committee (Swesty, Jacobsen, Drew)
has drafted a detailed syllabus
What will happen, if syllabus is approved:
• “New” AST/PHY277 forwarded to CAS Curriculum Comm.
• CAS Curriculum Comm. will review case in January
• If approved, new AST/PHY277 will start in Fall ’05
AST 277/PHY 277
In 1-credit course we teach:
In 3-credit course we could add:
•
•
Introduction to Unix
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
– basic file manipulation commands
– editing files
– working remotely
•
Introduction to Fortran 90
–
–
–
–
–
•
integer & floating point arithmetic
real & integer variables and expressions
basic conditional & loop structures
static arrays
basics of subprograms
•
Trapezoidal rule integration
Basic least-squares fit
Newton-Raphson iteration
Euler's method for ODEs
more extensive tour of Unix
graphics & visualization applications
makefiles
LaTeX
HTML
IDL/Mathematica/Maple/Matlab
symbolic manipulation
Programming
– Complex variables & strings
– Formatted I/O
– allocatable arrays & dynamic memory
allocation
– All of F90 & procedural parts of C++
– pointers in F90, C, C++
Rudimentary numerical techniques
–
–
–
–
Computer literacy
•
Numerical Methods
– Greater detail of numerical integration,
root-finding, ODE methods
– Intro to Monte-Carlo methods
The faculty enthusiastically endorsed making “Computation
in Physics and Astronomy” a required 3 credit course for
first offering in Fall 2005.
Three Comparable Seminar Courses
PHY104
Opportunities in Physics
Stony Brook faculty, alumni and other physicists discuss their current projects and their careers, and relate their
activities both to basic undergraduatethe introductory physics curriculum and to areas of on-going research
PHY200
Physics Today
Introduces students to the excitement of current topics in physics research. Students are introduced to researchers
from the University and Brookhaven National Laboratory who are conducting research at the forefront of a variety
of subfields of physics. Literature search and presentation skills are developed .
PHY311
Connections in Science
A selection of the interrelations between physics and other scientific and technological fields, using modern
examples from engineering, Investigation of the application of physics to other scientific fields including
medicine, biophysics, chemistry, engineering, and applied mathematics, among others. The course is taught as a
seminar and includes guest lecturers, tours of laboratories, and discussion of classic and current research projects.
Three Comparable Seminar Courses
Enrollment:
F04
S04
F03
F03
PHY104
7
13
PHY200
5
6
PHY311
9
9
Proposal
Leave PHY311 as it is
Consolidate PHY104 and PHY200
The undergraduate curriculum committee proposes:
1. Make PHY277 a requirement for PHY major
(it already is for AST)
2. Expand AST/PHY277 syllabus and make it a 3-credit course
3. Encourage students to take AST/PHY277 in Sophomore year
4. Encourage upper-division instructors to include numerical
problems in their assignments
The faculty voted to amalgamate PHY104 and PHY200
into PHY200 starting as soon as possible.