PHYSICS 112 SYLLABUS
General Physics

Fall 2009

Instructor: GaryHunt@boisestate.edu

Office Hours: Monday, Friday 9:40 – 10:30, Thursday 1:00 – 3:00 or by appointment

Textbook:
College Physics, Knight, Jones, and Field, First edition
Cooperative exercises in Physics 112
PRS Clicker

Prerequisite: Successful completion of Physics 111 (or equivalent) with a score of C or better.

The instructor will assign the grades at the end of the semester using the following scale:

  Grade:  Minimum Requirements  Min points  Max points
  A+  12 labs975    1000+
  A  12 labs925    974
  A-  12 labs900    924
  B+  12 labs875  899  
  B  12 labs825  874  
  B-  12 labs800  824  
  C+  10 labs775  799  
  C  10 labs675  774  
  C-  10 labs650  674  
  D 575  649  
  F 0  574  


Grading: A single grade is assigned for the entire course, including the lab activities. Contributions to the grade will be as follows:
  Activity  How many  Points ea.  total pts.
  participation/clicker, typical27  3  81  
  JITT Questions15  5  75  
  Online Flex Homework15  5  75  
  Labs13  20  260  
  Tests3  120  360  
  Comprehensive Final1  150  150  
  Extra-credit several  max. of  40  
  total Possible =  1041  


Extra credit opportunities will include but not be limited to: Physics Colloquiums, the 14th lab, and extra homework.

Lecture: Lectures will be given on Tuesday and Thursday. Students are responsible for all material covered in the lecture. Students are responsible for covering missed lecture materials by reading the text and borrowing lecture notes. Reading quizzes, clicker activities, and participation activities will be conducted and collected during the lecture. There are no provisions for making up missed class activity points.

Exams: Four exams will be given, three during the semester and one during finals week. The three during the semester will be focused on the material covered during that module. The exams are closely focused on materials presented during the lectures and labs, and are similar to the homework problems, labs, and lecture conceptual exercises. Students may bring a single 5 x 8 card as a hand-written cheat sheet to each exam.

Exams 1-3 will be taken in the blackboard testing lab, ED418, http://itc.boisestate.edu/testinglab/directions.pdf. The tests are scheduled to give you 1.5 hours. The sooner you schedule yourself a time slot the better. Go there today and get a time for all the tests. http://itc.boisestate.edu/testinglab/STU_OLR.asp The final exam will be given in room MP101 and will be a pencil and paper test. Missed Exams: If you have a compelling reason to miss an exam you must make arrangements with your instructor PRIOR to the exam. Provisions can be made to take a make up an exam at the end of the semester. If no arrangements are made prior to the exam a grad of zero will be earned.

Flexible Homework: Underlying this approach is the assumption that students are mature and responsible learners who wish to understand the material and obtain a good grade. Homework will be assigned regularly and due weekly, typically Saturday evening. 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 15-16 problems from the end of the chapter.
  • The student will select 10 of these problems and work those ten. Working more problems is fine.
  • The homework will be done online, at the masteringphysics.com website.
  • The solutions to five problems will be posted by the Wednesday before the problems are due. The solutions to the rest of the problems will be posted following the due date of the homework.
  • 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 online 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.
Extra Credit homework: There will be several extra credit homework assignments during the semester. These will cover topics not addressed during lecture time.

Just-In-Time Teaching (JITT) Questions:
The purpose of the JITT questions is to encourage the student to thoughtfully read the chapter prior to the topics being covered in lecture. On Blackboard in the Just in Time folder, there will be a survey for you to complete weekly. This is due every Monday evening. The questions are short essay questions covering the following weeks reading. Your answers will be graded on a participation basis. If you give reasonable answers in complete sentences you will receive credit. Your instructor will use this information to modify the lectures, covering areas of student difficulty.

Labs: Students must register for a laboratory section. There will be 14 lab activities available. Since only 13 labs are required, the 14 lab activity can be used as a make-up lab. Should a conflict arise, students can attend a different lab section at the discretion of the lab instructor.

The Secrets of Success: (see page xxviii in the text)
1. Read ahead and come to the lectures.
2. Form a study group.
3. Blow up your TV.

Student Conduct: The student conduct code for this class can philosophically be summed us as:
  • Show respect for your fellow students (no yelling, no cursing)
  • Show respect for the lab equipment (no horseplay)
  • Show respect for your instructors
The actual Conduct Code document is at: http://www.boisestate.edu/osrr/scp/student_code.html In particular note article 3, sections 6-11, which establish student conduct norms for the lab setting.

The home page for this issue which contains some other material on how misconduct is handled can be found at: http://www.boisestate.edu/osrr/ .

Goals: The following goals are based on criteria set by the Boise State Core Curriculum Committee.

Critical Thinking / Problem Solving Skills: Identify and analyze problems in the physical sciences by learning what the physical laws are and then applying reasoning to a physical situation and determine what will be the results of certain actions. This will be practiced both in thought situations (such as the exercises at the end of the chapter) and in practical lab exercises.

Communication Skills: Communication skills will be strengthened by reading, writing lab reports, team interactions during the lab exercises, and verbal communication in asking and answering questions during class. Written communication skills will be checked in the written paper portion of the labs. Oral presentation skills will be improved by the lab poster presentations.

Cultural Perspective: There will not be much development in this area; however, some references will be made to the times the scientists lived and to some extent the influence the society of the time had upon the development of the ideas being put forth. There will be some reference to the effects of technology on society and also that of society on technology.

Breadth of Knowledge and Intellectual Perspective: This course will add to the student’s general knowledge by introducing them to the basics of physics. Students should become more aware of the physical world and how it works. There will also be an appreciation of how scientific discoveries are made.