Instructor:

David R. Sokoloff, Professor of Physics

160 Willamette Hall

Phone: 346-4755

e-mail: sokoloff@oregon.uoregon.edu

Office Hours

M 10:30-11:30	H 9:30-10:30
W 10:45-11:45	F 12:30-1:30

Other times possible by appointment.

Course Objectives:

1. To learn the basic laws of physics in the areas of electricity and magnetism and modern physics.

2. To develop physical intuition and build correct conceptual models for phenomena.

3. To apply the conceptual models and basic laws along with basic mathematics to solve problems.

Prerequisites:

PHYS 201 and 202, MATH 111 and 112 or equivalent. (You must know algebra and trigonometry!)

Required Text:

Douglas Giancoli, Physics, 5th edition, (Prentice Hall, 1998).

Optional Study Guide:

J. Boyle, Study Guide for Physics, 5th Edition, (Prentice Hall, 1998).

Grading:

1. Quizzes (Three scheduled. Lowest grade dropped. See Schedule and Makeup Policy.)	15%
2. Tutorials and Tutorial Preparation (Attendance Mandatory, see Tutorials.)	15%
3. Homework to Hand In (Turned in every Thursday by 10:00 AM, lowest grade dropped, see Homework.)	16%
4. Midterm Exam (See Schedule and Makeup Policy.)	16%
5. Final Exam (Cumulative. See Schedule and Makeup Policy.)	32%
6. In-Lecture Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs). (See Interactive Lecture Demonstrations)	6%
TOTAL	100%

Tutorials:

Tutorials begin the second week of classes, April 8-9. Problem solving will be the focus of the Tutorials. There you will work collaboratively with your classmates to develop and practice your problem solving skills. You are required to attend Tutorial each week. 10% of your grade for Tutorials will be assigned for attendance as follows: miss none or one=10%, miss two=8%, miss three=6%, miss four=4%, miss five or more=0%. You must attend the Tutorial section in which you are registered unless you have permission (see Makeup).

Tutorial Prep.:

In order to make your time in Tutorial more effective, you are required to attempt solutions to the two problems listed as Tutorial Prep. on the Schedule each week, and bring them to your Tutorial. This will make up the remaining 5% of your Tutorial grade. A record of your attendance and preparation and the work done by your group will be turned in at each Tutorial.

Interactive Lecture Demonstrations (ILDs):

A mastery of physics means having a conceptual understanding of physical phenomena as well as being able to solve physics problems. ILDs will be used to develop your conceptual understanding. These will be announced one lecture in advance. Attendance and active participation are required (one point for each--a total of 6 points). (To accommodate unforeseen circumstances beyond your control, you will actually be allowed to miss one of these ILDs, but makeups will not be possible. Save your one miss for a truly unavoidable absence.) Exams and quizzes will include questions based on the ILDs.

Quiz, Homework, Tutorial and Exam Makeup Policies:

Since your lowest quiz grade and lowest homework grade will be dropped, you can miss just one quiz or homework for any reason, and there will be no makeups. If you know in advance that you will miss a quiz for an extraordinary reason, it may be possible to take the quiz early. Talk to your lecture instructor.

A makeup Midterm or Final exam will only be given when you have a documented excuse (doctor's note, traffic citation, jail bond, etc.).

You may make up a Tutorial during the same week in another section with permission from the makeup instructor. A Tutorial cannot be made up after that week, and Special Lecture Activities cannot be made up at all.

Time Commitment and Management:

As a rule of thumb, university courses require 2-3 hours/week of work outside of class for each hour spent in class. Therefore, if you wish to succeed in General Physics, you should devote a minimum of 8-12 hours/week outside of class. There are certain keys to using your time efficiently:

• It is best to spend 1-2 hours each day on text readings and/or homework problems (as opposed to longer periods of time on a weekend or right before an exam or quiz).
• Study in small groups and discuss difficult concepts with other members of the group.
• If you get completely stuck on a problem, write down notes to remind yourself of the questions you have, and then see your lecture or tutorial instructor or go to the Drop-in Help Center as soon as possible to get help.
• If you get significant help on a problem, immediately try another similar one (even if it is not assigned) to build your confidence.

You can make best use of the problem solutions by attempting the problems first. If you get stuck, you may want to use the solutions to give yourself hints.

You will not learn problem solving skills, nor will you build confidence in your ability to solve problems by simply reading through the solutions. In fact, simply reading through logically mapped out solutions may give you false confidence! Only problem solving practice in Tutorial and in working on homework will make you an accomplished problem solver.

Students who attend class regularly, devote adequate time outside of class, manage their time effectively and practice good problem-solving skills as outlined under Homework, generally succeed in this course.

Lab:

Those who are also registered in the laboratory, PHYS 206, will find that the laboratory exercises will also help you to understand the physical concepts. The laboratories have been based on the most recent research into how students best learn physics at this level, and often make effective use of microcomputers as aids to instruction. No previous knowledge of computers is necessary. Note that labs begin Monday, April 5. Buy your RealTime Physics lab book before attending lab.

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