Using Physics to Understand the World:
The Physics of Everyday Life
Physics 1020: Dr. Eleanor Hodby
Day 1:
Introductions / Welcome
Review Electric Charges
Review Electric Circuits
Reminders:
Register Your Clickers
Reading for Thurs: 10.1, 10.3 Bloomfield
Physics is EVERYWHERE in everyday life
• We live in an increasingly technological society
• Example: Sending a message over the last century
• Today, EVERYONE needs a basic grasp of
science for a successful society
Course Goals
1. To have an interesting class that covers physics.
2. To begin to see science in everyday life.
3. To understand that the universe is predictable rather than
incomprehensible.
4. To see that science (particularly physics) is based on
quantitative experiments.
5. To learn to think logically in order to solve problems.
Note: this is NOT an exercise in mathematics…
We will use math, but only as a tool for understanding
ideas / the world --- basic mathematics…
1020 Learning Team
1020 Team:
Lecturer: Eleanor Hodby
TA: Kevin Givens
LAs: Samuel McDowell
Michael Stone
Textbook: Bloomfield, ‘How things work’
(same as Phys 1010)
Website: http://www.colorado.edu/physics/phys1020/
• Contains everything you need to know about the course
(Syllabus, contact info, deadlines, dates, …)
NOT taken 1010? See me after class.
Important points about learning:
• How much you get out of class (and University) is ultimately up to you.
• Learn physics by “constructing” your understanding.
• Everyone can learn, but takes time and effort.
• Figuring out what you don’t understand and constructing a good question
will take you a long way towards the answer
• Everyone gains by working together.
- Learn from helping and being helped
Note:
• Variations in background and ease of understanding guarantee that material
is not at the perfect level for everyone
• Easily fixed by coming to office hours /help sessions and discussing.
• Easily turned into constant confusion and frustration by not keeping up!
Features of Physics 1020
1.
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3.
4.
5.
6.
Lectures and clicker questions
Weekly homework assignments
Reading quiz
Paper
4 Labs
3 in class exams plus final (no mid-term
evening exams)
1. Lectures and Clickers
Bring Pre-class notes, clicker and calculator to every lecture
1) Preclass notes will be posted on course website by Monday
morning of each week
(Suggest you bring these skeleton notes to take notes on)
2) We will use clickers in EVERY lecture
- MUST REGISTER your clicker on CUconnect
- Clicker points policy:
2 for participation per lecture (answer all questions)
0-2 graded questions per lecture
Q: Do you have a clicker with you?
a) Yes
b) No
c) Don’t know
Check you have in class points on CU
learn this weekend
If not, your clicker isn’t registered/working
2. Homework Assignments
• Homework Assignments posted on webpage by noon on Monday.
• Each Homework will be worth ~15-20 pts.
• Target time investment is 4+ hours per week
• Homework submitted at START of class on Tuesday.
• NO late homeworks accepted.
• 2 lowest HW scores dropped. No other adjustments. Do not waste these you will need them if you are ill later in the semester
Homework 1 due Tuesday 1/19!
Problem solving sessions
• Monday 2-3.30pm, Friday 4-5.30pm
• Location: G2B87 (behind the helproom)
• Come work on the homework with your classmates!
Office/helproom hours
EH: Thursday 12.45pm -1.45pm, Physics helproom
And by appointment or email
KG:
Collaboration vs. Plagiarism
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Collaboration encouraged
Once you understand an idea write it down in your own words.
Representing ANYONE else’s work as your own is cheating.
If two answers are identical, both will get zero
Cheating will lead to failing the class.
CU Honor Code
Example of HW answer
• Q: I drop a egg A from a height of 1 m and egg B from a height of 2m.
Which is travelling faster when it reaches the floor?
• Physical principle: Conservation of energy
• How applies: Initial gravitational potential energy (related to height of
egg) = final kinetic energy (related to speed of egg)
• How reach answer: initial PE = mgh
Final KE = 0.5 mv2
 mgh = 0.5mv2
m and g the same for each egg. If PE = KE, then bigger h means
bigger v.
Egg B dropped from 2m will be travelling faster.
• Clarity:
– Include every step of your argument or calculations
– BUT keep it succinct – don’t woffle
Useful handout on ‘ a logical approach to problem solving’ in this week’s
reading – available on course homepage
3. Reading Quiz
• Clicker questions at start of Tuesday lecture (1pt per question)
• This weeks reading: 10.1, 10.3 by Thursday, 10.2 by next Tuesday
• Quiz next Tuesday
4. Paper
• Short written paper and oral presentation
• Apply physics to explain something of interest to you not covered by class.
5. Labs
• Labs- only 4 weeks during term! Labs very gentle.
• Weeks 3, 5, 7, 9. Presentation week 15
• Hands on involvement with physics being covered in the class.
• Honest effort will get reasonable grade.
• Must pass ALL the labs to pass course. BE THERE.
• To switch lab sections, see me after class today
Final grades
Final grades are based on the total number of points earned throughout the semester
In-class Reading Quizzes
Homeworks
Lab: Group Lab Reports
Lab: Individual Participation
Paper draft
Paper final
In-class quest. (Clickers)
Hour Exams
Final Exam
3 pts
~15-20 pts
15 pts
5 pts
20pts
40pts
2-4 pts
40 pts
80 pts
x ~10
x ~12 (Lowest 2 dropped)
x4
x 4 (must do all 4 to pass)
x1
x1
x 25 (Lowest 3 dropped)
x3
(Lowest dropped)
x1
Final grades 2
• Most important for good grade is do all the assignments!
- Missing class and homework put you in danger of failing, no matter
how well you do on the exams!
- Do all assignments well, get B even if lousy on exams.
• Lowest hour exam, 2 lowest weekly homework score and 3 lowest in-class
scores (reading / clickers) will be thrown out.
- Covers illness, car wrecks, computer crash, forgetting etc.,
- You can miss two week’s homework, one week of class, and one exam
without penalty.
- Don’t waste now, you will probably need later!
1020 Topics
Part 1: Electricity Review, Copiers, Electric Power Plants and the Power Grid.
Part 2:Sound, Speakers, and Radios, TV.
Part 3: Sunlight, light, and color, Lasers, 35 mm Cameras and Digital
Cameras, Optical Storage & Communication
Part 4: Balloons--Hot air and helium
Part 5: Nuclear weapons and Medical Imaging (x-ray, MRIs, etc)
Part 6: Cosmology (origin, size, composition, evolution of universe, what
they are and how we know. )
This schedule is flexible and depends partly on your interests
Talk to us - we will hear you and will respond……..usually :0)
Balloon demos of electrostatic charges
1. Remember - rub balloon on hair, stick on wall.
2. Rubbing two balloons on hair, will they:
a) repel
b) attract?
How to figure out? 1st step in process?
Other information or reasoning that checks your answer?
VandeGraaff generator
• Belt piles charges onto sphere
• Builds up huge voltage on sphere
(up to 5MV for a big generator)
Pom-pom demo
Attach Pom-pom to top of VdG and turn on.
What will happen?
a) Nothing
b) Sparks will fly from pom-pom
c) Nasty smell of burning pom-pom will develop
d) Pom-pom strands will stand on end and repel each other
How to figure out? 1st step in process?
Other information or reasoning that checks your answer?
Demo of pie plates stacked on Vandegraaff.
Turn on VG, put lots of extra electrons on it. What will happen to
the plates?
a. nothing, will stay there.
b. all will fly off at same time
and stick together.
c. top one will fly off, then next
to top then next etc.
d. all will fly off at same time
and separate.
How to figure out? 1st step
in process?
Other information or
reasoning that checks your
answer?
-X-section, just after turn on
Now hook up wire to middle plate.
Turn on VG, what happens to the plates?
a. nothing, will all stay
there.
b. top one will fly off,
then next to top then
next etc.
c. only ones above
where wire is hooked
will fly off.
d. all above wired plate
will all fly off at
same time .
e. something else
-X-section, just after turn on