NS101: Conceptual Physics
Fall semester, 2005
Professor:
Dr. John Lenters
office: 326 Crawford Hall
phone: 635-2156; fax: 635-2266; e-mail: jlenters@lssu.edu
office hours: Mon. 9:30-noon, Wed. 9:30-noon (no appointment necessary)
Lecture (304 Crawford Hall):
TR 9:30-10:50am
Lab sections (251 Crawford Hall):
A) Wed. 1:00-2:50pm
B) Thurs. 3:00-4:50pm
Course description (from LSSU catalog):
A survey of basic physical science principles emphasizing their applications in daily life.
Prerequisite:
1) MA086 (Introductory Algebra III) or satisfactory score on ACT or Placement Exam
General course objectives:
1) Develop an appreciation for physics and its application to the real world
2) Develop a conceptual understanding of a broad range of topics in physics
3) Learn basic mathematical tools for describing physical phenomena
4) Improve communication skills, especially as they relate to physical science
5) Have fun!
Specific course objectives - As a result of this course, you will be expected to have a good,
conceptual understanding of:
1) Position, velocity, and acceleration
2) Force, mass, and Newton’s laws of motion
3) Momentum and the law of conservation of momentum
4) Work, kinetic energy, potential energy, and energy conservation
5) Newton’s law of universal gravitation
6) Density, pressure, buoyancy, and Bernoulli’s principle
7) Temperature, thermal energy, heat transfer, and thermodynamics
8) Vibrations, waves, and sound
9) Electric charges, conductors, insulators, and Coulomb’s Law
10) Electric current, voltage, resistance, power, and Ohm’s Law
11) Magnetism and electromagnetic induction
12) Properties of light, color, optics, reflection, and refraction
Textbook:
Conceptual Physics, 9th edition, by Hewitt
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Supplements*:
- Practicing Physics, 9th edition, by Hewitt
- web site: http://www.physicsplace.com/
*The supplements are not required reading, but are there for additional help when you
need it. For example, “Practicing Physics” provides good practice questions for
understanding a topic and/or preparing for a test. Or if you’re interested in more
visual and interactive tutorials, or a wider selection of practice problems (with
immediate feedback), they are available from the web site.
Course calendar (subject to minor changes):
– September –
4:
9, 11:
16, 18:
23, 25:
30:
Chapter 1: About science
Chapter 2: Newton’s 1st law of motion – inertia; Chapter 3: Linear motion
Chapter 3 (continued); Chapter 4: Newton’s 2nd law of motion
Chapter 5: Newton’s 3rd law of motion; Chapter 6: Momentum
Chapter 7: Energy
– October –
2:
7, 9:
14, 16:
21, 23:
28, 30:
Chapter 7: Energy (continued); Chapter 9: Gravity
exam #1 (Oct. 7; Chap. 2-7, 9); Chapter 13: Liquids
Chapter 14: Gases and plasmas
Chapter 15: Temperature, heat, and expansion; Chapter 16: Heat transfer
Chapter 18: Thermodynamics; Chapter 19: Vibrations and waves;
– November –
4, 6:
11, 13:
18, 20:
25, 27:
Chapter 20: Sound; exam #2 (Nov. 6; Chap. 13-16, 18-20)
Chapter 22: Electrostatics;
Chapter 23: Electric current; Chapter 24: Magnetism
Chapter 25: Electromagnetic induction; (27th - Thanksgiving break)
– December –
2, 4:
9, 11:
15:
Chapter 26: Properties of light; Chapter 27: Color
Chapter 28: Reflection and Refraction
Final exam (Dec. 15; Chap. 22-28; 7:30-9:30am in 304 Crawford Hall)
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You will be graded on:
1) exams (45% - three exams at 15% each)
2) labs (25%)
3) homework (15%)
4) quizzes (10%)
5) attendance (5%)
Grading scale:
90–100%:
A– / A /A+
80–90%:
B– / B / B+
70–80%:
C– / C / C+
60–70%:
D– / D / D+
< 60%:
F
Exams:
There will be three exams this semester, covering 7 chapters each. The final exam is not
comprehensive, but will instead only cover the most recent material. All exams are closed
book, but calculators are allowed. A selection of potentially useful symbols, equations,
and/or formulas will be provided at exam time. The format of the exam will be primarily
multiple choice questions, along with some true/false. Make-up policy: If you miss an
exam because of an official university-excused absence, you must give prior notice that
you will be absent. If you miss an exam for any other reason, you must contact the
professor within 24 hours to schedule a make-up exam. In such instances, the exam will
be significantly different from the original exam (and probably much more difficult!).
Labs:
A short syllabus describing the laboratory portion of this course will be handed out at the first
lab. There are no labs during the first week of class, nor during the week of Thanksgiving
break.
Homework:
One of the best ways to prepare for exams is to stay abreast of the material as the semester
progresses. Homework assignments are designed to help you do this. In fact, some of the
problems on the exam may be identical to those assigned as homework. Typically the
homework will consist of reading the current chapter in the textbook and answering selected
review exercises and/or problems at the end of the chapter. Homework assignments are
posted on the web site and will be due on the day of the next exam (but don’t save it all
‘til the last minute!). Solution sets are available on reserve in the library. Your homework
will be assigned a percentage grade based on how many exercises/problems you answer.
Extra credit will be given if you answer more questions than just those that are assigned.
Homework handed in late will be graded down 10% for each day late (no credit if a week or
more late). Be sure to answer homework problems thoroughly, including all intermediate
steps (e.g., concepts or mathematical procedures) as necessary. Students are encouraged to
work together on homework assignments, but be sure to write up your final work on your
own. Directly copying another student’s work or the solution manual is not permitted.
Quizzes:
Students will occasionally be quizzed on material from the previous lecture or assigned
homework. These quizzes will be unannounced and will occur roughly once every 1–2 weeks
(i.e., not necessarily every week, and sometimes twice in the same week). The format will be
the same as tests, but much shorter (about 5-10 minutes long). Most of the quiz questions
will be taken directly from the web site. Students will be allowed to drop their worst quiz
score. The make-up policy for quizzes is the same as for tests.
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Attendance / class participation:
Although attendance will not be strictly taken, students are expected to come to every class
and be prepared to participate in discussion. Your attendance grade will be based on the
number of quizzes you are present for. I will also periodically call on students to come to the
blackboard to solve problems or participate in a demonstration. Your level of participation
will affect your final grade if it falls closely between two letter grades (e.g., halfway between
a B and B-).
Extra credit:
Students can obtain extra credit in three ways:
1) Lead the class in 30 minutes of lecture – raises your final grade by up to 1/3
2) Answer homework exercises/problems in addition to those officially assigned (see above)
– raises your final grade by up to 1/3
3) Successfully answer extra credit problems on the exams (point value will vary)
If you are interested in obtaining extra credit through option #1, please come talk to me to
discuss the format.
General policies:
- Students are expected to come to class on time.
- Cheating will not be tolerated and will result in a failing grade (on the assignment, exam,
or even the entire course).
- Please bring a calculator, textbook, and note-taking material to every class period.
- Any material presented in class (or assigned as homework) is fair game on exams, so be
sure to take excellent notes!
- Workload: The “101” in NS101 does not mean “easy.” This is a 4-credit class, so expect
to put in 8-12 hours/week of work outside of class time.
- You are encouraged to ask questions. The more the better – there’s no such thing as a
dumb question (except for those that go un-asked!).
- Students are also encouraged to speak to me outside of class regarding class material,
comments on how the class is going, or just questions about student life in general. I am
here to help, so please take advantage of the opportunity to speak to me about any issues.
- If you have any disabilities or special learning needs that I should know about, please
speak to me during the first week of class.
Disability Services and Accommodations for Students:
In compliance with Lake Superior State University policy and equal access laws, disabilityrelated accommodations or services are available. Students who desire such services are to
meet with the professor in a timely manner, preferably the first week of class, to discuss their
disability-related needs. Students will not receive services until they register with the
Resource Center for Students with Disabilities (RCSD). Proper registration will enable the
RCSD to verify the disability and determine reasonable academic accommodations. RCSD
is located in South Hall Office 206. The telephone number is (906) 635-2454.
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