Jim Brennan
jbrennan@boisestate.edu
Physics Department Phone: 426-3775
Office Hours Tu-Th 3:00-4:00pm, MP312
or by appointment
Department of Physics
PHYS 112 GENERAL PHYSICS II
Spring 2014
Course Description
PHYS 111-112 GENERAL PHYSICS (3-3-4)(DLN). Mechanics, sound, heat, light,
magnetism and electricity. This course satisfies the science requirement for the
bachelor of arts and bachelor of science curricula and may be taken by forestry, predental and pre-medical students. Recommended background: high school physics
or PHYS 101. PREREQ: for PHYS 111: MATH 144 or MATH 147 or satisfactory
placement score into MATH 170. PREREQ: for PHYS 112: PHYS 111.
Meeting Times and Classroom
Section 001: Tuesday and Thursday, 1:30-2:45 PM, MP101
Section 002: Tuesday and Thursday, 4:30-5:45 PM, MP118
Please do not be late for class. This is disruptive and inconsiderate to others.
Textbooks and Required Materials
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


Knight, Jones, and Field, College Physics, 2nd ed.
Lab book: Riemann, Exercises in Physics PHYS-112
A scientific or graphing calculator
Clicker or ResponseWare app
Course Evaluation
Your current grades, except for the Mastering Physics assignments, will be posted in
the Gradebook in Blackboard. The Mastering Physics homework grade will be
transferred to Blackboard at the end of the course.
Grade
A
B+
B
BC+
C
CD
Minimum
Requirements
12 labs
12 labs
12 labs
12 labs
10 labs
10 labs
10 labs
F
Revision date: 1/21/14
1
Min points
900
875
825
800
775
675
650
575
0
Max points
1000+
899
874
824
799
774
674
649
574
A single grade is assigned for the entire course, including the lab activities.
Contributions to the grade will be as follows:
Activity
Participation/Clicker,
typical
On-line Homework
Labs
Tests
Comprehensive Final
Total Possible
How many
Points ea.
Total pts.
25
15
13
3
1
3
11.5
20
120
150
75
172.5
260
360
150
1017.5
The Blackboard gradebook will calculate your current grade using these weightings
and cutoffs, except that the homework grade will not show up in Blackboard until the
end of the course. The grade calculated in Blackboard is the grade you will get.
Please do not ask me to give you a higher grade.
Revision date: 1/21/14
2
Homework
Homework is worth 17% of your grade. All homework will be done on the Mastering
Physics website. (www.masteringphysics.com). Our class ID is
MPBRENNAN91662
Our Zip code is 83725.
Reading Questions: The purpose of the Reading questions is to encourage the
student to thoughtfully read the chapter prior to the topics being covered in
lecture. At the mastering physics website you will find a set of questions due each
week, before the topics are covered in lecture. These questions will use the
straightforward aspects of the chapter. Students are encouraged to work in groups
and help each other to get these problems.
Flexible Homework: Underlying this approach is the assumption that students are
mature and responsible learners who wish to understand the material. Homework
will be assigned regularly and due weekly. The homework problems will be drawn
from the text and Mastering Physics tutorials. The homework system will typically
be as follows:
 There will be assigned approximately 20-21 problems from the end of the
chapter.
 The student will select 15 of these problems which are of interest. Working
more than 15 problems is fine. This will make you smarter.
 The homework will be done on-line, at the www.masteringphysics.com
website.
 The mastering physics homework system reduces the credit given by 4% per
hour for late homework. Any homework more than 24 hours late will
receive zero credit.
Since the homework is submitted on-line, an Internet failure can be bad news. Do
not wait until the last minute to submit your homework. If you lose points for
lateness in submission, the points cannot be made up.
Exams
There will be four exams including the final. Exams are approximately 50% of your
final grade. The three exams during the semester will be focused on the material
covered during that module. All exams will be taken in the Online Testing Center on
the 4th floor of the Education building. Here are some useful guidelines:
 You need to make an appointment to take your exam. The center is very
busy so make your appointment ASAP at
 http://at.boisestate.edu/tools-and-facilities/online-testing-center/
 Do not miss your appointment. You probably will not be able to reschedule.
 You are allowed to bring a standard-size sheet of paper with handwritten
formulas to the exam. Be sure to write your name on your formula sheets.
They will be collected after you finish your exam.
 Make sure that you bring your scientific calculator. Bring extra batteries in
case the calculator dies.
Revision date: 1/21/14
3
Missed Exams: If you have a compelling reason to miss an exam you must make
arrangements with me PRIOR to the exam. If no arrangements are made prior to the
exam a grade of zero will be earned.
Labs
Students must register for a laboratory section. There will be 14 lab activities
available. Since only 13 labs are required, the 14th lab activity can be used as a
make-up lab. The lowest lab score will be dropped at the end of the semester.
Should a time conflict arise, students can attend a different lab section at the
discretion of the lab instructors. This can be done a maximum of twice during a
semester.
Academic Dishonesty
Academic integrity will be strongly enforced in this course. Any student caught
cheating on any assignment or exam may fail the assignment or exam in question or
fail this course dependent on a hearing with the course instructor. Academic
Dishonesty is defined in the Student Code of Conduct (Article 2, Section 18). It is
strongly suggested that you read and understand these definitions:
http://osrr.boisestate.edu/scp-codeofconduct-article2/#18
Student Contributions
Regular classroom attendance is expected. Changes to the syllabus, schedule
and/or assignments may be announced in class. It is the student’s responsibility to
be aware of any such changes.
All registered BSU students receive a Boise State email and Blackboard account. It
is the student’s responsibility to access both accounts regularly to avoid missing
important messages and deadlines.
All students are expected to conform to the BSU Student Code of Conduct. All
persons are expected to act in such a manner as to maintain a positive and
productive learning environment with respect for one another.
Special Accommodations
Reasonable accommodations are available for students with a documented
disability. If you have a disability and may need accommodations to fully participate
in this class, please visit the Disability Resource Center (DRC). All accommodations
MUST be approved through the DRC (Administration 114). Please stop by or call
208-426-1583 to make an appointment with a disability specialist.
http://drc.boisestate.edu/
Drop Policy
Students are responsible for adding and dropping courses. At the end of the first
week of class, faculty may perform faculty initiated drop for non-attendance, but it is
the student’s responsibility to drop any course he/she does not intend to finish.
Students who stop attending a course without filing a drop request will receive a
grade of F.
Revision date: 1/21/14
4
Emergency Procedures
If there is the need for an evacuation of the building, please take your personal
belongings in the immediate vicinity and exit the building via the posted evacuation
route. The last person to leave the room (instructor or student) will turn off the lights
and shut the door. If you need assistance, please assemble in the designated area
and emergency assistance will be provided. After exiting the building, please
assemble in a group at least 30 feet away from the building.
Your instructors cannot be responsible for administering medication or medical
assistance in the event of a personal medical emergency.
DISCIPLINARY LENS STATEMENT
Boise State's Foundational Studies Program provides undergraduates with a broad-based
education that spans the entire university experience. Phys 112: General Physics satisfies
four credits of the Foundational Studies Program's Disciplinary Lens requirement. It
supports the following University Learning Outcome, along with a variety of other coursespecific goals:
Apply knowledge and the methods characteristic of scientific inquiry to think critically about
and solve theoretical and practical problems about physical structures and processes.
Phys 112: General Physics is designed to develop an understanding of the nature of
Electricity and Magnetism, wave motion, optics, and atomic theory.. This course helps
to achieve the goals of the Foundational Studies Program by focusing on the following
course learning outcomes. After successful completion of this course, you will be able
to:
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

Correctly interpret and solve problems involving Electricity and Magnetism
Correctly interpret and solve problems involving wave motion and wave interference.
Correctly interpret and solve problems involving wave optics and geometric optics.
Revision date: 1/21/14
5
Schedule (subject to change)
Week
Dates
1
1/20 - 1/24
Ch. 20, Electric Fields
NO LAB
2
1/27 - 1/31
Ch. 21, Electric Potantial
Lab 1: Electrostatics
3
2/3 - 2/7
Ch. 21, Electric Potantial
Lab 2: Electric Field Mapping
4
2/10 - 2/14
Ch. 22, Current and Resistance
Lab 3: Resistors and Resistivity
5
2/17 - 2/21
Ch. 23, Circuits
Lab 4: Capacitors
6
2/24 - 2/28
Ch. 24, Magnetic Fields
Lab 5: Electrical Energy (handout)
7
3/3 - 3/7
Ch. 25, Magnetic Induction
Lab 6: Field in a Coil
8
3/10 - 3/14
Ch. 25, Magnetic Induction
Lab 7: Earth's Magnetic Field
9
3/17 - 3/21
Ch. 15, Traveling Waves
Lab 8: Waves, Traveling and Standing
Topic
3/24 - 3/28
10
3/31 - 4/4
Labs
Exams
Exam 1
Exam 2
SPRING BREAK
Ch. 16, Superposition
Lab 9: Resonant Air Columns
Ch. 17, Wave Optics
Lab 10: Double Slit
11
4/7 - 4/11
12
4/14 - 4/18
Ch. 18, Ray Optics
Lab 11: Reflection and Refraction
13
4/21 - 4/25
Ch. 19, Optical Instruments
Lab 12: Lenses
14
4/28 - 5/2
Ch. 28-29, Atoms and Quantum
Lab 13: Spectral Lines
15
5/5 - 5/9
Ch. 30 (section 1-5), Nuclear Physics
Lab 14: Decay Mechanisms
16
5/12 - 5/16
Finals Week
Revision date: 1/21/14
Exam 3
Final
6