Physics 5B
Introduction to Physics II
Winter 2012
Syllabus
Lecture : MWF, 9:30 to 10:40 pm in Thimann Lecture 3.
Instructor: Robert Johnson
Office: 323 Natural Sciences II; Office phone 459-2125
E-mail: rjohnson@scipp.ucsc.edu
Office hours: T 10–11 am; W,F 2–3 pm; Th 11–noon (all in Nat Sci II 323)
Course Web site: http://scipp.ucsc.edu/~johnson/physics_5b.htm, or go directly to
eCommons.
Textbook: Giancoli, Physics for Scientists and Engineers, 4th Ed., Volumes 1 and 2.
Lab Manual: Oscillations, Fluids, Waves and Optics, developed by George Brown.
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Dates
Jan 9
Jan 11
Jan 13
Jan 16
Jan 18
Jan 20
Jan 23
Jan 25
Jan 27
Jan 30
Feb 1
Feb 3
Feb 6
Feb 8
Feb 10
Feb 13
Feb 15
Feb 17
Feb 20
Feb 22
Feb 24
Feb 27
Feb 29
Mar 2
Mar 5
Mar 7
Mar 9
Mar 12
Mar 14
Mar 16
Mar 19
Topics
Density and pressure in fluids
Pascal’s principle; buoyancy
Continuity and Bernoulli’s equation
Holiday
Applications; viscosity; surface tension
Oscillation; simple harmonic motion
Energy in harmonic motion; pendulum
Damped and forced oscillations
Transverse and longitudinal waves
Midterm Exam #1
Superposition; reflection; interference
Standing waves; vibrating string; sound
Musical instruments; overtones
Beats; Doppler effect; shock waves
Reflection and mirrors
Spherical mirrors
Refraction
Refraction at a spherical surface; lenses
Holiday
Thin lenses
Lensmaker equation; cameras
Midterm Exam #2
Optical instruments
Huygens’ principle; diffraction; 2-slit
2-slit intensity pattern
Thin films; Michelson interferometer
Single-slit diffraction
Circular aperture; instrument resolution
Diffraction grating; X-ray diffraction
Polarization
Monday: Final Exam 8:00 to 11:00 am
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Reading
13.1–13.4
13.5–13.7
13.8–13.9
13.10–13.14
14.1–14.2
14.3–14.5
14.6–14.8
15.1–15.5
HW
Registration
#1
Fluids
#2
Harmonic Oscillator
#3
15.6–15.8
15.9, 16.1–16.3
16.3–16.5
16.6–16.9
32.1–32.3
32.3
32.4–32.7
32.8, 33.1
#6
33.2–33.3
33.4–33.5
#7
33.6–33.10
34.1–34.3 (35.3)
34.3–34.4
34.5–34.6
35.1–35.3
35.4–35.6
35.7–35.10
35.10–35.13
Lab
Mechanical Waves
#4
Waves on a String
#5
Resonance Tube
Geometric Optics
Compound Optics
#8
Interference
#9
Polarization
#10
Physics 5B
Introduction to Physics II
Winter 2012
Schedules and Course Materials
In addition to my own web pages, I have also set up an eCommons site for this course. If you are
registered for the course, then you should be able to log in at https://ecommons.ucsc.edu/xsl-portal and
access the Physics 5B course pages. Click “Startup Help for Students” on that site for more
information. I will post exam grades and exam solutions on eCommons and will use the site to send
notices to you at the email address indicated for you in the eCommons class roster. If you do not
normally check mail at this address, then make sure that your messages are appropriately forwarded.
The eCommons calendar shows the dates and times of all class sessions, exams, due dates, and so
please make use of that to be sure not to miss anything.
Note that this syllabus is subject to change during the quarter, so it is best to access the most
up-to-date version on the web rather than relying on a paper copy.
Textbook Study and Preparation for Class
You are expected to read the assigned sections of the textbook, according to the syllabus, before
attending lecture. In most cases you must also complete an associated “reading quiz” prior to lecture.
The reading quizzes are to be found in Mastering Physics.” Some of the multiple choice questions
concern the latest reading assignment and should be very easy to answer based on the reading. Others
are conceptual questions, usually related to the previous lecture, which may require deeper thought but
should be good preparation for my exams. In some cases you may be asked to run and interact with
web-based animations. I will drop from consideration your two lowest reading-quiz scores, so that
missing up to two of them will have no effect on your grade.
In general, the lectures will not cover all material that you are responsible for. Do not assume
that just because I did not mention it in lecture that it will not appear in the homework or on an exam.
I will not necessarily go through all of the textbook’s derivations in lecture, but that certainly does not
mean that I don’t think they are important. If you want to master physics, then you must go through
every step of every derivation on your own with pen and paper. Neither watching me do it nor simply
reading the text is sufficient. Over the years I have had numerous students tell me after doing poorly
on an exam that they had read all of the material and “understood” it. But people learn by doing.
Only if you can do the derivations yourself and work at least most of the problems yourself will you
be likely really to understand the physics.
Lectures and Participation
Active participation during the lecture, by way of the i>clicker (http://www.iclicker.com), is required
in the sense that participation and attendance will count toward your course grade. The clicker will
allow you to respond to multiple-choice questions that I will project from time to time during class. It
can be purchased at the bookstore or online, although most of you probably already have one from
Physics 5A. In the participation grading there will be only a slight penalty for wrong answers (80%)
versus right answers (100%), just to provide some motivation to try to answer correctly.
To receive credit for your participation you must register your i>clicker for this class (your
registration from the previous quarter has expired).. To do so, you may go to http://www.iclicker.com
and click on “Register Your i>clicker” at the bottom of the page. You will need to enter your name,
eCommons user ID (your CruzID that you find before the @ucsc.edu in your campus email, not your
numeric UCSC student ID), and your i>clicker Remote ID. Please do not include the @ucsc.edu in
your ID! It is to your advantage to register early, but your scores will be kept on file, in case you
register late.
I will drop from consideration your two lowest lecture participation scores, so that missing
two lectures will have no affect on your grade. If you forget your clicker you may be able to borrow
one from me for the duration of the lecture (if you ask early enough), but there is no guarantee of that.
Laboratory
Concurrent enrollment in one of the Physics 5M laboratory sections is required for the course. The
instructor of record is not me, but rather Prof. George Brown (gsbrown@ucsc.edu, 290 ISB, phone 9-
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Physics 5B
Introduction to Physics II
Winter 2012
2327). A lab manual must be purchased at the Bay Tree bookstore. You must also bring to the first
lab session an empty quad ruled (i.e. graph paper) 1077/8 inch “Comp Book” to serve as your lab
notebook. They are available in the book store. At the beginning of each lab session you will be
expected to submit your completed answers to the relevant “prelab” questions (found in the lab
manual), which will count for a significant part of your lab grade. You will not pass the lab course if
you miss more than one lab session (and missing one session will detrimentally affect your grade by
one letter).
Each student must attend exactly one lab section during the first week (the week of January 9) for
a short administrative session (no experiment). Forms will be made available then in case that you
need to add or swap your lab section. If you are not registered in your desired section, do not crash
multiple sections. The form will allow you to rank-order your preferred sections. All labs are held in
Thimann 121. The list of teaching assistants and their lab sections can be found linked to the course
web page.
Homework
Homework will be done through the Mastering Physics system, as was done in Physics 5A. The
course identifier this quarter is MPJOHNSON50842.
Completing all of the homework assignments is the single most important requirement for
success in learning this subject material. In general people learn by active participation. If you work
the homework problems to completion by yourself, then you will learn, and you will very likely do
well on the exams. If you get stuck on a homework problem, then by all means seek assistance, and
do not quit until you know how to work the problem. However, you cannot adequately learn the
material, let alone learn problem solving techniques, by simply reading over the solution or copying it
from another student. Therefore, while you are encouraged to discuss the homework problems with
other students, as well as instructors, you should work out and submit your final answers by yourself.
Do not wait until the last minute to start working on the homework! Doing so leaves too long
a lag between the lecture/reading schedule and your work, makes it difficult for you to get help when
you need it, and gives you insufficient time to do a good job. To assimilate the physics requires active
problem-solving work on your part concurrent with the lectures and reading.
Instructor Office Hours
My office hours are listed above and in the eCommons calendar. I expect to devote all of that time to
this class, so I encourage you to take advantage of it. I enjoy teaching one-on-one or in small groups.
It can be helpful to you, and it also gives me valuable feedback. I have included more hours than
required, and I have tried to stagger them during the week, in the hope that nearly every student will
have at least one of the times free of conflict. While in special circumstances you may be able to
arrange to meet with me at other times, I cannot schedule regular tutoring sessions outside of my
office hours. However, I am willing to answer specific questions at nearly any time, whether in person
or by email.
Discussion Sections
There are no formal discussion sections in which to enroll. However, informal tutoring sessions will
be held by the lab TAs in ISB room 235, in addition to the instructor’s office hours. Attendance is
optional, and you may attend any or all of the sessions (not just the one led by your lab TA). The list
of teaching assistants and their discussion section schedules will be linked to the course web page. All
of the teaching assistants are graduate students in the physics Ph.D. program and are well qualified to
help you with problem solving or understanding any of the course material.
MSI
Physics 5B has Modified Supplemental Instruction (MSI) support. Times for the MSI sessions will be
established in the first week of class and can be found at
http://eop-apps.ucsc.edu/msi/msischedule.cfm.
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Physics 5B
Introduction to Physics II
Winter 2012
They will be led by Gary Parks (gparks@ucsc.edu) and Eric Reichwein (ereichwe@ucsc.edu
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Exams
The two midterm exams and the final exam are designed to evaluate your understanding of the
concepts as well as problem solving ability. Therefore, expect a mixture of multiple-choice questions,
short answer questions, and problem solving. The multiple choice and short answer questions will be
similar to those that you will see in reading quizzes and in lecture, while the problem solving will be
similar to homework (although not as lengthy as the most difficult homework problems). I will post a
practice exam in order to give you a better idea of what to expect. (But the questions and problems on
the practice exam are very unlikely to be duplicated on your exam!)
The exams are closed-book. Necessary physical constants and esoteric formulas will be
provided on the exam, but you are expected to remember definitions and fundamental equations.
All three exams are required for passing this course. However, if for some reason you do
inadvertently miss a midterm exam, please do talk to me about whether some accommodation short of
failing can be agreed upon.
Physics 5J
The Physics 5J honors section is an optional, separately-enrolled course that offers additional subject
material and more problem-solving experience loosely related to this course. I do not play any role in
managing or teaching Physics 5J.
Grading
Grades and evaluations will be based on the following components with their associated weights:
 Homework:
15%
 Reading quizzes:
5%
 Lecture participation (clickers): 5%
 First midterm exam:
20%
 Second Midterm exam:
20%
 Final exam:
35%
Subject to possible small downward revisions, you can roughly expect the grade break points to be as
follows: >83% A, >63% B, >45% C. I do not “grade on a curve,” so there is no fixed percentage of A
grades, for example. If all of you score above 83%, then I will give everybody an A! Similarly, if
nobody scores below 45%, then nobody will fail. Please note, however, that if you are a physics
major, then you must not be satisfied to pass with a C grade, as that will not represent adequate
proficiency with the course material to prepare you for upper division physics courses.
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Physics 5B
Introduction to Physics II
Winter 2012
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