EASTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY
TYPE OF REVISION: (CHECK ALL
THAT APPLY.)
DIVISION OF ACADEMIC AFFAIRS
Number/Subject Code
Course
x
x
x
REQUEST FOR COURSE REVISIONS
Course Title
Credit Hours
Course
Description
Prerequisite/Corequisite
Restriction
DEPARTMENT/SCHOOL: __PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY___________________COLLEGE:
ARTS AND
SCIENCES
CONTACT PERSON: _______MARSHALL THOMSEN________________________________
CONTACT PHONE:
7-8794
CONTACT EMAIL:
JTHOMSEN@EMICH.EDU
REQUESTED START DATE: TERM____FALL_________YEAR____2016_______
DIRECTIONS: COMPLETE SECTION A AND SECTIONS B1a, B2a, B3a B4a, B11, B12 AND B13. COMPLETE ONLY
THE REMAINING PARTS OF SECTION B THAT CONCERN THE REVISIONS CHECKED ABOVE. FOR ASSISTANCE
CONTACT THE COURSE AND PROGRAM DEVELOPMENT OFFICE.
A. Rationale for Revision:
The Master of Science in Physics Program, for which this course is required, is being revised in
order to even out the workload from one term to the next. This process requires reconfiguring
the PHY 530/531 course into smaller units. The change in course description and prerequisites
reflects the fact that students may take the courses in the PHY 529/530/531 set in any order.
B. Course Information
1. a) Current Subject Code and Course Number:
PHY 530
b) (If new) Proposed Subject Code and Course Number:
2. a) Current Course Title:
Topics in Computational and Advanced Physics I
b) (If new) Proposed Course Title:
Topics in Computational and Advanced Physics II
3. a) Current Credit Hours:
4
b) (If new) Proposed Credit Hours
2
c) (If new) Briefly describe how the increase/decrease in credit hours will be reflected in course content.
The current PHY 530/531 sequence has 6 credit hours. These courses consist of a set of modules each student takes,
with each module accounting for one credit hour. These modules are being redistributed over a three course
sequence PHY 529/530/531 of 5 credit hours and the material from the sixth module (Lagrangian Mechanics) is
being added to PHY 662. Overall, there will be no change in the content, just in how it is distributed.
4. a) Current Catalog Description:
A course in advanced topics in physics including computational physics, classical mechanics,
statistical mechanics, and electromagnetic theory. Students complete selected modules in these
subject areas, as determined in consultation with the instructor.
b) (If new) Proposed Catalog Description (Limit to approximately 50 words):
A course in advanced topics in physics including computational physics, classical mechanics,
statistical mechanics, and electromagnetic theory. Students complete selected modules in these
subject areas, other than those completed for PHY 529 or 531, as determined in consultation with
the instructor.
5. Method of Delivery (Check all that apply.)
Current
Proposed
a. Standard (lecture/lab)
a. Standard (lecture/lab)
On Campus
Off Campus
On Campus
b. Fully Online
b. Fully Online
c. Hybrid
c. Hybrid
Off Campus
6. Grading Mode
Current
Normal (A-E)
Proposed
Credit/No Credit
Normal (A-E)
Credit/No
Credit
7. (Complete only if prerequisites are to be changed.) List Current and Proposed Prerequisite Courses by subject
code, number and title.
Students must complete prerequisites before they can take this course.
Current:
Proposed:
8. (Complete only if corequisites are to be changed) List Current and Proposed Corequisite Courses by subject
code, number and title.
Students must take corequisite courses at the same time as they are taking this course.
Current:
Proposed:
9. (Complete only if concurrent prerequisites are to be changed.) List Current and Proposed Concurrent
Prerequisite Courses by subject code, number and title. Students must take concurrent prerequisites either before or
at the same time as they are taking this course.
Current:
Proposed:
10. (Complete only if course restrictions are to be changed. Complete only those sections that pertain to the
restrictions that are to be changed.) List Current and Proposed Course Restrictions. Course Restrictions limit the
type of students who will be allowed to take the course.
a. Restriction by College: Check if course is restricted to those admitted to specific college.
Current
Proposed
College of Business:
College of Business:
College of Education:
College of Education:
b. Restriction by Majors/Programs: Check if course is restricted to those in specific majors/programs.
Current
Proposed
Yes
Yes
No
No
If “Yes”, list the majors/programs
c. Restriction by Academic/Class Level: Check all those who will be allowed to take the course as part of
their academic program.
Undergraduate
Current
All Undergraduates
Freshperson
Proposed
All Undergraduates
Freshperson
Sophomore
Junior
Senior
Second Bachelor
Post. Bac. Tchr. Cert.
Sophomore
Junior
Senior
Second Bachelor
Post. Bac. Tchr. Cert.
Graduate
Current
All Graduates
Certificate
Master’s
Specialist
Doctoral
UG Degree Pending
Low GPA Admit
Proposed
All Graduates
Certificate
Master’s
Specialist
Doctoral
UG Degree Pending
Low GPA Admit
Note: If this is a 400-level course to be offered for graduate credit, attach Approval Form for 400-level Course for
Graduate
Credit. Only “Approved for Graduate Credit” undergraduate courses may be included on graduate programs of
study.
Note: Only 500-level graduate courses can be taken by undergraduate students. Undergraduate students may not
register for
600-level courses
d. Departmental Permission: (Note: Department permission requires the department to enter authorization
for every student registering.)
Current
Proposed
Yes
No
Yes
No
11. List all departmental programs in which this course is Required or a Restricted Elective.
Program
Master of Science in Physics
Elective ______
Required
x Restricted
Program
Required
Restricted
Elective ______
12. Is this course required by programs in other departments?
x
Yes
No
13. If “Yes”, do the affected departments support this change?
Yes
No
If “Yes”, attach letters of support. If “No”, attach letters from the affected department explaining the
lack of support, if available.
14. Will the proposed revision increase/decrease credit hours in any program?
Yes
No
x
If “Yes”, list the programs and provide an explanation for the increase/decrease, along with a copy of
the revised program that includes the new credit hour total.
C. Action of the Department/School and College
1. Department/School
Vote of faculty:
For _____8____
Against ____0_____
Abstentions ___1_____
(Enter the number of votes cast in each category.)
Department Head/School Director Signature
March 31 2016
Date
2. College
College Dean Signature
Date
3. Graduate School (if Graduate Course)
Graduate Dean Signature
Date
D. Approval
Associate Vice-President for Academic Programming Signature
Date
PHY 529, 530, 531
TOPICS IN COMPUTATIONAL AND ADVANCED PHYSICS
FALL 2016
Instructor: Marshall Thomsen Strong 302B 487-­‐8794 jthomsen@emich.edu The goal of this course is to round out your background in advanced topics in physics, preparing you for the 600-­‐level core courses in the Physics Graduate program and for the GRE in physics. A secondary goal is to provide you access to specialized topics in physics not covered in the core courses. Course website: http://people.emich.edu/jthomsen/ModuleWeb/P530home.htm Structure: This course is built around a collection of modules, each the approximate equivalent of one credit hour. At the beginning of the term, you and the instructor will jointly determine the modules that you will complete. A requirement of many of the modules is basic skills in using spreadsheets for analyzing data and functions, and for simple numerical integration. A student without these skills will take C1 as the first module. Modules C1 and C2 are also prerequisites for the 600-­‐level core courses. Each module has a list of topics that you are expected to master primarily independently, but with the support of the instructor and the recommended references. The modules are structured in such a way that the purchase of latest-­‐edition textbooks should not be required. However, you may find it useful to purchase an outdated edition. Check sources such as Amazon.com for reasonably priced used books. Problems for each module are given in the module packet and are not tied to any specific textbook. Students should submit problems for grading a few at a time, rather than waiting until the entire problem set is complete. Problems that are graded as 90% correct or better do not need to be resubmitted. Those scoring below 90% should be redone. Deadlines for completing module work are noted below. Students may consult with each other when working through problems, but they are strongly encouraged to complete the bulk of the work without assistance from classmates. Under no circumstances should complete solutions to these or nearly identical problems be sought out (from the internet or from classmates) or consulted while you are preparing your own solutions. Students should feel free to consult the instructor for assistance both in learning the material and in solving the assigned problems. Please remember that when you are asking the instructor about a problem you have lived with for many hours, it will be a lot more familiar to you than to the instructor (who may not have looked at it in over a year). Take the time to bring the instructor up to speed before you launch into your question. Feel free to email me with questions as well as to come to office hours. Grade Scale: A>93>A-­‐>90>B+>87>B>83>B-­‐>80>C+>77>C>73>C-­‐>70>D+>67>D>63>D-­‐>60>F Modules C1. Spreadsheets in Physics Introduction to the use of spreadsheets for graphing and analyzing data, and for performing simple numerical calculations. Applications are taken from classical mechanics and from electromagnetism. C2. MATLAB Introduction to the use of MATLAB for solving more complex problems in physics. Applications will be taken from classical mechanics and from electromagnetism. E1. Boundary Value Problems in Electrostatics and Special Functions
Study of Laplace’s equation, uniqueness theorems, method of images, separation of variables in Cartesian and spherical coordinates, multipole expansion, and Legendre polynomials. M1. Rotational Mechanics Study of planar and three-­‐dimensional rotations, including the topics of the moment of inertia tensor and Euler’s angles. M2. Lagrangian Mechanics Introduction to the use of the Lagrangian approach to study motion in general and coupled oscillations in particular. M3. Relative Motion Study of relative motion in non-­‐relativistic and relativistic settings. NED1. Non-­‐equilibrium Dynamics I. Introduction to chaos in the context of physics. Prerequisite: C2. NED2. Non-­‐equilibrium Dynamics II. A study of growth processes and fractal development. Prerequisite: C2. RCR. Responsible Conduct of Research This module is appropriate for those who expect to do research here or in a Ph.D. program. You will be guided through mini-­‐modules developed for EMU and you will be directed to read additional material on line. Assignments will be in an essay format. Not open to students with credit in PHY 406. S1. Statistical Mechanics I Introduction to the Boltzmann factor and to the statistical mechanics approach to defining entropy and temperature, with applications to black body radiation. Notes: 1. All students must complete C1 or be familiar with the material in C1 before moving on to other modules. 2. All students must complete C2 before taking any of the 600 level core courses, unless this is your first term taking a module course and you are taking a 600 level course concurrently. 3. The number of modules you complete must equal the number of credits you have signed up for. 4. If you have taken a module course before, you may not repeat modules for credit (unless you are re-­‐
taking the course to improve your grade). 5. LATE PENALTIES: The deadlines outlined below will be enforced. Final scores for an individual module will be marked down 10% if any deadline for that module is missed. An additional 10% will be taken off if the bulk of the work is over two weeks late. As long as significant progress is being made, second and higher resubmissions of problems will not be counted as late unless they are turned in after the deadline for submission of all materials at the end of the term. While it may seem somewhat severe to lose 10% of an entire assignment just because one problem is one day late, keep in mind that in most areas of employment, there are some rigid deadlines that cannot be missed without severe consequences. For instance, if a grant application is sent to the National Science Foundation one hour late, NSF will return the application unread. My experience has been that without this late penalty, most students fall so far behind in this class that they are unable to complete it. It is also not possible for me to give meaningful feedback on assignments if everyone submits the bulk of their work in the last week or two of the course. Hence, these deadlines will be strictly enforced to ensure that the work (both yours and mine) is distributed evenly throughout the term. 6. Deadlines are shown below. “1/2 Mod1” means this is the deadline for submission of approximately one half of the assignments from your first module. “Mod1” means that all of the assignments from your first module should be submitted by this time. “Mod1R” means all first revisions for your first module assignments are due at this time. With this layout, you will be working on revisions of one module at the same time as beginning work on the next module. That is the only practical way to keep up with the schedule. 7. You must check every answer you submit for correct units or dimensions. Likewise, all numerical answers must be physically plausible, both in sign and order of magnitude. Answers with incorrect units or dimensions, or answers that are completely implausible will be returned ungraded. 8. Several modules require access to MatLab. This should be available on computers in the GA office as well as in computer labs in the library and in the student center. You can also purchase a student copy for about $100 if you wish to put it on your own computer. 9. INCOMPLETES: Requesting an incomplete is strongly discouraged. If you do not have time to finish the work this term, you are unlikely to find time to finish it next term. In the event you are granted an incomplete, late penalties will accumulate up until the date you requested the incomplete. 10. Office hours will be posted on my door at the beginning of the term. There will be some set aside especially for this course—hours where you will be given priority over other students—but feel free to come to any of my office hours. Also feel free to email me with your questions. Due to limitations on my home computer, I may not be able to answer your emails until the next time I am in my office. Bibliography Addison, Paul S. Fractals and Chaos: An Illustrated Course. Institute of Physics (1997). Berger, J. E. and G. Nunes, Jr. “A mechanical Duffing oscillator for the undergraduate laboratory.” American Journal of Physics volume 65 Number 9 pages 841-­‐846 (1997). DeSerio, Robert. “Chaotic pendulum: The complete attractor”. American Journal of Physics -­‐-­‐ March 2003 -­‐-­‐ Volume 71, Issue 3, pp. 250-­‐257. Fowles, Grant R. and George L. Cassiday. Analytical Mechanics, 7th edition. Thomson Brooks/Cole 2005. Griffiths, David J. Introduction to Electrodynamics, 2nd edition. Prentice Hall 1989. Kittel, Charles and Herbert Kroemer. Thermal Physics, 2nd edition. W. H. Freeman & Company 1980. Marion, Jerry B. and Stephen T. Thornton. Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems, 4th edition. Harcourt Brace & Company 1995. Schroeder, Daniel V. An Introduction to Thermal Physics. Addison Wesley 2000.