Physics 1A
Introduction
"You do not really understand something unless you
can explain it to your grandmother."
--Albert Einstein
Introduction
Welcome to Physics 1A!
Physics 1 is a three quarter course
designed as an introduction into basic
physics for students in the biological
sciences.
Physics 1A in particular will focus on
classical physics and mechanics.
Please note that the lecture and the lab are
separate courses with separate instructors.
Introduction
Instructor: Dr. Mark Paddock
I am a Research Scientist (Biophysics) and a Lecturer in
the Physics department .
My degree is in Physics from UCSD.
This will be my 30th year at UCSD.
In my spare time, I work on photosynthetic, mitochondrial
membrane proteins and bacterial circadian systems.
Introduction
My office is located in
the 1623 Mayer Hall
Annex
mpaddock@ucsd,edu
Bonner
Hall
Urea
Hall
The TA for this course is:
Elizabeth Wicks
(ewicks@ucsd.edu)
Mayer Hall
York Hall
Elizabeth Wicks – Phys 1A TA
ewicks@ucsd.edu
Office hours: TBA
Discussion Section Thursday 6 pm – 8
pm, Center Hall 101
Physics 1AL
•
Lab TA Coordinators
•
Justin Bond
jabond@physics.ucsd.edu
Joe Salamon
jsalamon@physics.ucsd.edu
Ian Schanning
ischanning@physics.ucsd.edu
•
•
•
•
•
•
Faculty Instructor:
Dr. Alex Groisman
agroisman@physics.ucsd.edu
•
Lab Manual (4th Edition) is available at the bookstore.
•
Syllabus/Cal. Link/Supplementary Materials:
on TED
•
•
•
•
•
Labs start on Tuesday Oct 1!
The labs are located on 2306 and 2326 Mayer
Hall!
Also, you are to bring
the Academic Integrity
Policy to the first day of
lab.
The reading quiz given
on the second lab
meeting will be partially
based on the Academic
Integrity Policy and the
Scientific Integrity
Primer!
Student Advice – Direct
Quotes
•
Don't be afraid to ask questions!
•
Now that the lab course is over, I would advise myself to thoroughly review
the material that we will be experimenting prior to the lab.
•
I would tell myself to make sure I keep up with the readings in the book
because the material in the lab is a little bit ahead of the lecture material.
•
Uncertainty is present in every conclusion because there are always errors in
measurements that we have to consider when making our calculations.
•
I enjoy find uncertainty and error calculations because they show how precise
our measurements were and how well we were conducting our lab
experiments.
•
Honestly, i can't stress enough how comforting it is to be in an environment
where mistakes aren't seen as mistakes but seen as opportunities to find the
right answer.
Practical Information
The website will be an extremely useful place.
There you have:
An academic calendar
The class syllabus
The problem sets
Current announcements
Lecture PDFs will be posted before and after
each lecture
Homework solutions will be posted on
Mondays before Quiz
http://physics.ucsd.edu/students/courses/fall2013
Practical Information
There is a Facebook page for
Discussion
Questions
Links
Suggestions
A virtual nexus for the course
TED – used for grades
Practical Information
The book we will be using is:
Serway and Jewett, Principles of Physics,
5th Edition, Vol. 1 & 2 Brooks/Cole-CENGAGE
The list of homework problems for the quarter
is on the website
They are divided into: Easy, Medium, and
Hard
Solutions will be posted on the website before
the quiz
Quiz
Quiz
Expectations?
What do you think of physics?
What do you hope to learn?
Physics is the foundation
of life sciences
•
Biological and chemical processes are
ultimately consequences of physical processes
•
Basic problem solving techniques are inherent
in physics problems
•
Experimental techniques are nearly all derived
from basic physics principles
•
Proficiency in Physics is necessary for
GREs/MCATs/LSATs(!)
Collaboration Policy
•
You may work together* on your homeworks and
book problems.
•
You may not work together* on quizzes or exams.
•
You should ask instructor and TA for help.
•
You may not consult external solutions or turn in
someone else’s work.
*work together means discussing problems
and coming to a solution in collaboration; it
does not mean dividing up the assignment!
Need Help?
There is help available for you to complete
your homework and understand the concepts:
Problem Solving Sessions:
Thursday 6 - 8 pm Center Hall 101
Elizabeth
Physics Dept. Tutorial Center runs from SundayThursday from 3:00pm-8:00pm 2702 Mayer Hall
There are also office hours after Mon and Wed lecture
of by appointment
Facebook page for discussion and assistance
Private tutoring
Quizzes & Grades
"Equations are the devil’s sentences!"
--Stephen Colbert
Concepts will be emphasized. Yet elementary
math still plays a major role in the course
Your grades will be determined by your
performance on the quizzes and the final exam
There will be 4 quizzes:
Fri. 10/11 Fri. 10/25 Fri. 11/8
Fri. 11/22
Your lowest quiz score will be dropped
The cumulative final exam will be on Monday,
Dec 9th from 11:30am to 2:29pm
Lectures
"The lecture method is the process whereby the lecture notes
of the instructor get transferred to the notebooks of the
students without passing through the brains of either!“
--Darrell Huff
That quote pretty much sums up
my feelings about modern lectures
That is why I strongly encourage
your participation in the lecture
process
This is why we will be using
clickers (http://www.iclicker.com)
Clickers
To use the clicker:
1.
Register your i>clicker remote at
www.iclicker.com/registration by entering your
name, student ID, and remote ID (8 character code
on back of remote).
Deadline: 10/02/13.
2.
Select your answer. You must choose one of the
offered choices or you will receive no credit.
3.
The receiver (AA-frequency in York 2722) will tell
you if your answer is received by the system.
4.
You will receive one point for merely answering
and an additional point for answering a clicker
question correctly.
We will start using the clickers next Friday.
Clickers
You are responsible for bringing your remote to
Physics 1A classes.
Each clicker has a unique serial number on the
back of the remote. You should write it down and
place a piece of scotch tape over that ID to
preserve it.
All remotes have a 200 hour battery life (3 AAA).
Students found to be using multiple clickers in
class will be guilty of academic misconduct and
their clickers will be confiscated.
Topics - Overview
Basic physical principles
Start with units, vectors and scalars (weeks 1-2)
Then into Newton’s Laws (weeks 2-4)
Forces (weeks 4-6)
Momentum and Center of Mass (weeks 6-7)
Energy (weeks 7-8)
Rotational mechanics (weeks 9-10)
Administrative
Your grade will be calculated by:
60% Quizzes + 40% Final + ~5% EC (clickers
and participation).
Your grade will be determined by using the
following tentative scale:
Between 85% and 100%
=>
A
Between 70% and 85%
=>
B
Between 55% and 70%
=>
C
Between 40% and 55%
=>
D
Grade below 40%
=>
F
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity will be taken very seriously.
Research into the field shows that violating
academic integrity guidelines only postpones the
inevitable.
Also, along those same lines I expect you to be respectful
of others during lecture. If you cannot, then you will be
asked to leave lecture.
For Next Time (FNT)
Download and read syllabus
Read Chapter 1
Review basic math skills !!!
Start on the homework for Chapter 1
When is the first quiz?
Two weeks on Friday (10/11)