PHYS 1210/1310: Physics I – Mechanics and Mechanical Waves
General Information
Instructor:
R. Michalak,
Office
215 PS
E-mail
rudim@uwyo.edu
TAs:
Jyoti Pandey
Subash Kattel
Ravi Neupane
Mika Moriwaki
PS213
PS103D
PS103B
PS233
jpandey@uwyo.edu
skattel@uwyo.edu
rneupane@uwyo.edu
mmoriwak@uwyo.edu
SI:
Office hours (RM): MW 4-5 , R 10-11, or by appointment
This course fulfils university program requirement USP ‘SP’ for 4 credit hours
Lecture:
Text:
MWF
900 to 950
PS314
Sears & Zemansky’s University Physics, 13th edition by
Young&Freedman (older editions may vary substantially!
second hand books often come with expired homework key)
MasteringPhysics : www.masteringphysics.com use picture link for 13th ed
Choose University of Wyoming and choose class RMS14Phys1210
Lab Manual: Available at the book store. Author: Rudi Michalak. Make sure you get the
Phys 1210 manual and not the Phys 1220 one.
Webpage:
You will find lecture templates and other course related information on my website
www.physics.uwyo.edu/~rudim Check regularly for updates.
Supplementary Reading Suggestions: On your request I am happy to name some useful texts, which adopt
different teaching approaches than Young Friedman. As you progress in your major, reading will become a
more and more substantial aspect of learning. At our course level, expect to read at least 20 pages per week
in our text. I will clarify reading techniques in an early lecture.
Course Content and Course Pre-Requisites:
This course is an introduction to the physical phenomenon of gravity and the field of mechanics. We will
approach the material from theoretical and applied angles. Mechanics builds the foundation of classical
physics. We will deal with the so-called Newtonian Mechanics and will concentrate on an understanding of
the concepts of force and energy as cornerstones of the theory, and we will formulate the principles of
Newton’s Laws, Energy Conservation, Momentum Conservation, and Angular Momentum Conservation.
These do all apply, too, in a bigger context than just Mechanics of Classical Physics, but their foundation
lies in this field. We will then extend our understanding of Newtonian Mechanics to periodic motion and
wave motion (Wave Mechanics). Time permitting, other specialized topics will be added (see tentative
schedule at the end of the syllabus).
A working knowledge of calculus is required. Calculus I is a pre-requisite for this course! Calculus II is a
co-requisite! Note, that the systematic of the science of physics does not follow the systematic of
mathematics! We will have to use concepts like differentiation, integration, and vectors from week one on.
Also, good success in this course is unlikely without a solid grasp of algebra, geometry, and trigonometry.
All of the following information is tentative and I reserve the right to change any of it as seems
necessary to keep the class average on course. If such changes are made, they will be announced at
lecture in class. It is your responsibility to keep yourself informed about any such changes:
Lecture
Our course consists of a large amount of information and a complex logical network of reasoned argument.
Perhaps unlike in engineering classes, we DO place some focus on where equations come from, derive
them. Perhaps unlike in math classes, we pursue a much more applied angle and, when we focus on
modelling, we place less emphasis on rigor and more on physical intuition.
I have arranged the content into five major sections: Kinematics – the study of motion, Dynamics – the
study of the causes of change of motion, Laws of Conservation – how to build equations for solving
problems, Rotational Motion- ibid., Special Cases - Law of Gravity & Periodic Motion and Mechanical
Waves, etc.
Active lecturing is an activity that is sometimes improvised and ad hoc. I try to respond to questions and
follow ideas that may emerge in a particular classroom in real time, if the situation allows it. Under such
circumstances, making errors is human. When I catch such errors early, I correct them as I go. When I catch
them late, I may send a class email out to address the situation. If it does not get caught by me at all ask or
give that which is written in our text preference. However, even texts make mistakes ...
Some technical notes:
The lecture will in part be presented in power point and in part on the white board. Demonstrations, videos,
and web-applets will be used wherever helpful and when it fits into the time schedule. They help
illustrating a complex or new phenomenon or principle.
You need to write down the information on the white board as your lecture notes, or it will be lost. You are
expected to take notes about videos and demonstrations. The content of both may be part of exam
questions.
I employ group work techniques during lecture. Our department’s record has shown that the use of modern
teaching techniques deepens understanding and reliably improves the outcome on standardized tests of
knowledge retention. You can only expect to benefit from these when you actively participate.
Discussion Sessions and Laboratory
Participation in labs and discussion is mandatory.
Each lab consists of a pre-lab, a main lab, and a post-lab. The post-lab reports are due one week later and
will be graded and handed back in the week after that. The pre-labs have the character of predictions and
are not graded but must be handed in. Each post-lab is worth 10 points and each main lab is worth 10
points, too.
As the term progresses our expectations will increase: During the first few labs, it is mainly your active
participation that is assessed. By the week of exam 1, we will operate at full expectation level and
thoughtful work will include the anticipation of and correction for errors, your decision to adapt the
experiment plan to the factual situation in the lab, and other such proactive contributions. The competence
of your work will include such factors as the correct use of measurement equipment and the identifying of
and timely correction of wrong results.
Exams
The exams will contain both quantitative and conceptual problems. The exams will be closed books and
closed notes. I will provide you, however, with the formula sheet taken from the Phys 1210 master
formulas in the lab manual. The use of any electronic equipment is not permitted during the exam. This
excludes calculators, which do not store formulas.
All exams are mandatory and none of the grades will be dropped or replaced. The exams will be held at the
following times and cover the following chapters in Young & Freedman:
Pre Exam 1
Exam 1,
Pre Exam 2
Exam 2,
Exam 3, final,
CR314
CR302
CR314
CR302
CR314
F Jan 31st 9am
R Feb 13th 500 – 700 pm
F Mar 14th 9am
R Mar 27th 500-700 pm
M May 5th 815 – 1015
Chapter 1-3
Chapter 1-5
Chapter 8-10
Chapter 6-10
Cumulative
If you have a university excuse or other acceptable reason to ask for a makeup exam I will consider that
request, if it has been sent in to me by email not later than two days before the exam. You will only be able
to participate in the makeup exam, if I have accepted your request in writing (by email).
Homework
We use the Mastering Physics online homework system (see course webpage). The online homework must
be submitted by each student individually but you are allowed to work together on the solution method (not
on each individual numerical solution!) as long as everyone contributes an equal share and contributes to
all problems. You will find that, if you try to take a free ride on these, you will fail the exams by a wide
margin.
The deadline for each homework is indicated in the tentative schedule below and in MasteringPhysics, but
is subject to change as announced during lecture. Be advised not to work last minute on the online
submissions. The system tends to be busy at times and the internet connection could be down. It is your
responsibility to work and submit before the deadline. I set the online hw system up to accept post deadline
submissions for a set grade penalty. The system will close for late submission at the last day of classes.
The MP syntax requires some experience. I provide a no penalty training hw. Some problems in it can earn
you a small bonus. It also gives you opportunity to learn the language syntax to avoid grade penalties in the
actual hw.
A short list of common sources of grade loss in MP:
-
Wrong spacer between multiple entries
Wrong rounding of final or intermediate results
Multiple attempts used up for the same wrong answer (note also: MP has a 2% answer
tolerance criterion for grading)
Student fails to press the final ‘submit’ button of a problem
Some problems have hint boxes. Using hint boxes is not causing any penalty, unless you enter wrong
answers into answer boxes. On the other hand, you can earn partial credit for a problem in such answer
boxes.
You find further information here:
An instruction video http://www.masteringsupport.com/videos/intro_video/intro_video.html
FAQ page
http://www.masteringphysics.com/site/support/faq-students.html
PC requirements
http://www.masteringphysics.com/site/support/system-requirements.html
General info
http://www.masteringphysics.com/site/product/for-students.html
Academic honesty
In short: Don’t cheat. In the long run you are only hurting your chances at succeeding in college because
courses tend to build onto each other. You may also make your exams more difficult than they otherwise
would have been: If I see that 90% of the class have a 100% grade on a difficult hw task, I may think that
all students have mastered it and put such a difficult problem on the exam. Finally, cheating is of course
dishonorable behaviour.
The actual university rules:
Academic dishonesty is defined in University Regulation 802, Revision 2 as “an act attempted or
performed which misrepresents one’s involvement in an academic task in any way, or permits another
student to misrepresent the latter’s involvement in an academic task by assisting the misrepresentation.”
and there is a well-defined procedure to judge such cases and serious penalties may be assessed. A shorter
common sense interpretation could sound something like this: If it’s not your work, don’t pretend that it is.
For our work the following is of particular relevance:
The general solutions to online homework (i.e. NOT with your own set of numbers but ONLY the principal
ways of answering a question of a certain type) may be discussed in groups but must be worked out and
submitted to the MP grading separately. In particular, it is not allowed to use one student’s account to test
an answer and then use it for submissions in other accounts. If you get caught doing this, all involved
parties will receive an ‘F’ in the course.
You may use solution CDs and other sources, which provide answer for exam practice only. Using such
sources for online hw is fraud. Anyone, who will be caught committing such fraud, will receive an F as
course grade and the Dean of Students will be informed of the incident. A safe way of testing yourself
during exam prep is found in the ‘Answers to selected questions’ at the end of the text.
Lab reports are group work. Everyone has to contribute equally to each report in order to put his/her name
on the report. Splitting the work up:
- “I do problem 1, you do problem 2” is only allowed, if you cannot find times to get together to work the
postlab and then each member of the lab group must proof read the final report. Proof reading means that
you agree with the method of solution and that you are familiar enough with it to do it on your own.
Signing your name on the report means you state that you have abided by these rules. If we are in doubt
whether a group has abided by the rules, we may ask for an ad hoc demonstration of some solutions during
lab. If in such a process it turns out that a student has no clue as to how to solve any one problem from the
lab report we will count this as cheating with the lab report. Remember that this will affect the whole
group.
- “I do it this week, you do it next week” is not allowed. If you get caught doing this everyone in the lab
group will receive a grade zero for that lab.
Exams are not group work and must be entirely your own work and must be performed without consulting
any help (no books, notes, electronic media, etc. other than what is being handed out to you).
Academic honesty is important beyond school and, in school, some of its purposes are to develop
respect between faculty and students, to ensure fair and effective grading, and to help to create an
environment that fosters learning.
Special accommodations
If you have a physical, learning, or psychological disability and require accommodations, please let
me know as soon as possible. I will try to accommodate your condition as best as circumstances
allow. You will need to register with, and provide documentation of your disability to, University
Disability Support Services (UDSS) in SEO, room 330 Knight Hall, 766-6189, TTY: 766-3073.
Additional help
"Physics at Night" help sessions will be held six hours each week in Physics 234, generally
Monday-Wednesday evenings from 7-9. Your TAs, the SI, and I myself have office hours. I
encourage you to come to any of these to clarify any issues you may have with understanding the
material. These opportunities are also ideal for addressing any remedial issue you may be struggling
with.
How to be successful in physics and in our course:

Work both independently and in groups of your peers; you can help each other understand the
course material. The person, who explains, learns, and the person, who asks, learns too. If you need
help finding a group of classmates to work with, let me know and I will help to connect you.

Read the text. The text can be lengthy and you may struggle to make the time to read it all.
Identify the core text of a chapter (usually where the main definitions are introduced) and at least one
core example (usually not the short and easy ones) and read those. Reading physics texts means
working through them and going back and forth as signposts in the text may indicate (e.g. see figure
1; or: according to equation 2.3 means: go there and study it in context).
Lecture time is precious and should be reserved for the difficult aspects of a topic. Come prepared
and it will be much easier to cover the difficult material.

Take each exam at the scheduled time. If you have a scheduling conflict due to a Universitysponsored activity, it is your responsibility to inform the instructor well before the date of the exam.

Spend approximately 2-3 hours outside of class doing homeworks and reading the text for each
hour you spend in lecture. For a 4-credit class this is something like 8-12 hours per week outside of
class. If you are spending routinely much more time than this, please come to see me so that we can
ensure that you spend your time efficiently.

Work many problems beyond the assigned homework. As with everything, practice, practice,
practice...

Attend every lecture, discussion, and lab. Getting material that you missed is your responsibility.

Do refrain from unrelated activities that interrupt class. Typical such activities are arriving late,
leaving early (if you absolutely have to leave, plan ahead and sit in an aisle seat), watching videos,
texting, receiving cell phone calls, chit chatting. Such behaviour is rude and it affects your peers’
opportunity to learn.

Read your university email account at least daily. I do contact students through them when an
issue cannot wait to the next class meeting.
Another rule for our course: Do not record the lecture without my permission in writing. If I should give
such a permission I may attach conditions to it (for example, the student has to sit in the front row and
cannot tape classmates). I reserve the right to give a grade penalty, if you violate this rule, and other
measures may be taken in addition, depending on the particulars of the case.
Grading
-
The average final grade in the course has historically been a B (~2.6-2.8). This is right on target for the ten
year average of freshman and sophomore classes in both, the College of Arts and Sciences and the College
of Engineering.
Details of grading
Exams:
Pre-Exams:
Homework:
Labs:
Grading Key
(tentative and subject to revision at my discretion):
3
(45%)
2
(15%)
12 online, no grade skipped
(20%)
11 no grade skipped
(20%)
_____
100%
√
correct
(√)
mostly correct
~
somewhat correct
≈
vague
(-)
incomplete
missing
#
wrong
Scale:
A
B
C
D
F
> 90.0%
80.0-89.99%
70.0-79.99%
60.0-69.99%
< 60.0%
I reserve the right to curve the final grade and each exam. Curving can be helpful to keep class morale up,
but is detrimental to group work and prevents students from getting realistic feedback of the quality of their
work. It may also contribute to unrealistic expectations for upper level courses. I strive to minimize curving
and, ideally, I would avoid it altogether. Usually, I am in touch with what my students can and can’t do and
I try to write exams in that spirit. Often, I have to apply only minimal curving or no curve altogether.
I will discuss grades for hw, labs, exams, and all other grades only for up to one week after the work has
been handed back to class (not one week after you may have collected it).
Tentative Class Schedule Spring 2014 – PHYS 1210
Week
M
W
F
1 Jan 13 – Jan 17
Intro/ K1
K2
K3
Lab
W,R
Safety,
Prelab
Discussion
Notes
Homework#0: T 11pm
Pre-disc.
Labs WR1,W37; Disc M2CR147,M3Edu211, T245WyoH434
Homework #1: T 11pm ch.2
2 Jan 20 – Jan 24
-
K4
K5
0,1
3 Jan 27 – Jan 31
D1
D2
D3
2
Homework #2: T 11pm ch.3
Ch 2,3
Pre-exam 1 F 31, lecture
Homework #3: T 11pm ch.4
4 Feb 3 – Feb 7
D4
D5
D6
3
Ch 4,5
5 Feb 10 – Feb 14
C1
C2
C3
4
Ch 5
Homework #4: T 11pm ch.5
Exam 1 tentatively CR302 R Feb13, 5pm
Homework #5: T 11pm ch.6,7
6 Feb 17 – Feb 21
C4
C5
C6
5
Ch 6,7
7 Feb 24 – Feb 28
R1
R2
R3
6
Ch 8
8 Mar 3 – Mar 7
R4
R5
R6
7
Ch 9
Homework #7: T 11pm ch.9
Mid semester: Mar 7 (grades due on the12th)
9 Mar 10– Mar 14
R7
R8
R9
8
Ch 10
Homework #8: T 11pm ch.10
Pre-exam 2 F 14, lecture
10 Mar17 –Mar 21
-
-
-
-
-
11 Mar24 –Mar 28
G1
G2
G3
-
Ch 10
12 Mar31 –Apr 4
PM1
PM2
PM3
9
Ch 13
13 Apr 7 –Apr 11
PM4
W1
W2
10
Ch 14
14 Apr14 –Apr 18
W3
W4
-
Homework #6: T 11pm ch.8
Spring break
Homework #9: T 11pm ch.10
Last day of withdrawal from courses: 28th
CR302
Advising week – get your Perc Exam 2 tent. R Mar27, 5pm
Homework #10: T 11pm ch. 13
Homework #11: T 11pm ch. 14
Homework #12: T 11pm ch. 15
15 Apr21 – Apr25
W5
W6
W7
Make up Ch 15
Labs:W
11
Easter break 18-20
Homework #13: F 11pm ch. 16
Ch 16
Last day to withdraw from university: 25th
16Apr28 –May 2
May 5 – May 9
14M15W14F= 43
F/E2
800-1000
F/E3
-
F/E3
12
review
Dead week: last day of classes 2nd
All final exams are in the regular class rooms unless otherwise
arranged