Physics 125

Syllabus

Introduction

Physics 125 is a course in introductory physics designed for architecture majors. There are several things that we should keep in mind. First of all, you are taking this course because it contains material (both conceptual and quantitative) that you will need in your future courses in architecture. Because physics is by itself such a well-defined discipline, there is a natural tendency to follow the discipline rather than to relate what we are learning to another discipline (such as architecture). That line of thinking gets students into thinking that physics is not terribly important for their own career. For that reason, I invite you to ask the question “how does this relate to something that I need to know to become a better architect?” at any time. Hopefully, I will work in enough examples as we go that will make the connections, but whenever asked, I will be happy to come up with more.

The second thing that we should keep in mind is that we will be working on two areas of understanding. The first is getting a conceptual framework for physics. That can be fairly simple e.g. I drop a ball and gravity causes it to accelerate towards the floor. Then the concepts get a little more complex e.g. a ball that I throw vertically into the air stops momentarily at the top of its flight but is being accelerated downwards the entire flight. Along with the conceptual understanding, we are very much interested in improving your problem solving skills. In physics, this means translating a problem into some (algebraic) equations and using those to solve a problem. Developing good problem solving skills requires patience and we will try to provide you with as much help as you need. On the other hand, those very skills may be the most important for your future. They are very much a part of breaking down a complex project into solvable components.

Finally, I have chosen to emphasize topics that are of the most relevance to future architects. That means that if you want to hear about the latest ideas in elementary particle theory or astrophysics, you should consider another course. We will focus on 1) describing  motion (kinematics) 2) the natural laws of motion (Newton’s laws), 4) static equilibrium (why structures don’t fall down) 3) conservation of momentum and energy 4) rotational motion and torques. 5) I have decided to supplement the textbook in the area of static equilibrium because of the importance of statics to architecture. Here we need to make some comparisons between the way that physicists solve static problems and they way that architects do it.

After we cover mechanics, we will talk about the thermal properties of materials.  Understanding the properties of materials is naturally important to architecture, and I would recommend a trip to a local Home Depot to review building materials and their physical properties (density, thermal conductivity or R value, expansion coefficient, elastic constant i.e. is it brittle?, breaking strength, etc.). We will spend some time on heat engines including heat pumps. We will look at the question of why it’s such a bad idea to use conventional electric heaters.

Finally, we would like to look at things that oscillate (earthquakes, sound, light) as well as learning some things about electricity and magnetism.

 

Textbook

Getting the “right” textbook for this course is a bit of a challenge. Given the quantitative level of the course, most texts assume a two semester course leaving students with a large and heavy book, and leaving us to skip many chapters and sections. I have instead opted for the text book Physics: a World View (Fifth edition) by Kirkpatrick and Francis. This text comes with a problem solving supplement, and we will make a lot of use of the supplement. Be sure to by the version of the text that includes the supplement. In some areas, I will supplement the text with additional material and problems.

 

Homework

Well, homework is a big deal. That is simply because, working through homework problems is the best learning tool that we have. Knowing how to do homework problems is the best way to prepare for tests. The key is to have a good approach. We will discuss the advantages of studying in groups and the most effective way to interact in the lecture. The most important thing to remember is the importance of developing your own framework to solving problems. There will be noone to help you during exams.

Right now, homework will be due on Tuesdays. We will also schedule midterms on Tuesdays. Activities involving class participation, excercises, etc. will be often on Thursdays.

Project/contests

During the semester, we will have three projects or contests. The first round of competition will be during the lab periods, with the second round during the lecture period. There will be prizes for the winners. I will give you more details of these contests later.

Exams

There will be two midterms and a final in this class. The dates of the exams are indicated on the class schedule below. Please note that the midterm dates may change depending on potential conflicts. On the other hand, the final exam date and time is “set in stone” by the University. You should be sure that you have checked your final schedule for all of your classes to be sure that there are no conflicts.

Now, what to bring to exams. I think that limiting you to pens and pencils is probably easiest. I may decide to include calculators, but then we need to limit those to ones that we provide.  For sure, no PDA’s, cell phones, MP3 players or other electronic devices can be used.

Web page

There will be a course web page. I am planning to start out using Blackboard and links to all class materials will be through there. Let me know if you need help in logging into Blackboard.

Grading

The elements of the grade in this class are the midterm and final exam, class participation, homework, and laboratories. The class participation grade will come from attendance, filling out requests for feedback, projects.

I want feedback on how everybody feels about the course. What was interesting and what was not. What you may not understand. Any­thing that you think would improve the course.

The participation grade will be really easy if you 1) show up at all lectures and labs, 2) pro­vide feedback, 3) ask questions, and 4) generally get involved. Did I say show up? I really want you to show up for lectures. This is definitely not the type of course where you blow off the lec­tures and cram for a final. Because of the Architecture schedule, I am planning to make the Thursday lectures less dependent on preparation, and there will be no deadlines to meet on Thursdays. Nevertheless, it will be very important to be in class on Thursdays as well as Tuesdays.

 

The percentages for the final grade will be:

midterms          20%

final                  30%

laboratory         20%

homework        10%

participation      20%

Office hours

I really want to see students during office hours. The office hours are currently on Monday and Wednesday 12:00 to 2:00. I will take a poll early in the semester and change those hours if that is needed. If these hours don’t work for you, please let me know and we will adjust them. In any case, you can always email me or call me to schedule an appointment.

 

 

The Calendar

Tuesday and Thursday from 10:00 to 11:50

Week

Reading

Homework assignment

Lab activity

Remarks

 

 

Conceptual questions

Excercises

Problems

 

 

Jan. 12

Chap. 1 Chap. 2

 

2: 1,4,15,37,49

 

2: 5,16,18,21

 

2: 3, 13,14,31

Video analysis of motion.

Be sure to attend the first lab session. There will be an experiment there to work on.

Jan. 19

Chap. 3

Chap. 4

3: 10,11,21,24

4: 1,2,5,6

3: 2,11, 22

4: 1,5

3: 2, 4, 12,25, 28

4: 3, 5, 9

Errors in measurements.

 

Jan. 26

Chap. 4

Chap. 5

4: 8,9,10,15,22

5: 5, 10, 19

4: 8, 11, 12

5: 9, 14

4: 11, 13, 18

5: 24

Forces and torques in equilibrium

 

Feb. 2

 

Examples of static equilibrium problems.

Homework assignments will be distributed in class

Elasticity

This is where the physics methods for dealing with static equilibrium are covered. The statics problems are probably the most complex that we will have this semester.

Feb. 9

Chap. 6

Chap. 7

6: 9, 19, 28, 30, 38, 40

7: 6, 8, 12, 16, 28, 44,

6: 13, 16

7: 6, 18, 23

6: 2, 4, 10,19,24

7: 4, 9, 19, 29

Cantilever contest

This week we cover a lot of material. Hang on!

Feb. 16

Chap. 8

 

8: 2, 4, 13, 16, 18, 30, 44

8: 2, 5, 9, 10

 

Springs and simple harmonic motion

 

Feb. 23

 

 

 

 

Ideal-gas law

Midterm on Tuesday, Feb. 24. Covers chapters 1-8 and statics problems. Thursday lecture on properties of materials.

Mar. 1

Chap. 11

Chap. 12

Chap. 13

11: 22, 23, 29, 31, 40, 42

12: 5, 9, 29, 51, 57

13: 9, 11, 16, 24, 28

 

12: 5, 14, 19

13:15, 16, 21

 

 

13: 6,15,29,30,38

Thermal conductivity and insulation

Pressure, temperature, ideal gas law, density.

Thermal energy, heat

Mar. 8

Chap. 14

 

14: 9, 10, 18, 22, 24,

14: 8, 10, 13

14:610, 10,13,14

Make-up on Fri. Mar. 12

 

Mar. 15

 

 

SPRING RECESS

Mar. 22

Chap. 15

Chap. 16

15: 2,4,12,14,16,29,41

16: 4, 9,

15: 4, 10,18,

15: 19

16: 5, 14, 28

Earthquake contest

 

Mar. 29

Chap. 17

 

 

17:

17:

Properties of light

 

Midterm on Tuesday Mar. 30

Covers material through Chap 16

Thurs. lecture and Fri. lab will cover properties of light.

April 5

Chap. 18

Chap. 19

 

 

 

Geometric optics

 

April 12

Chap. 20

 

 

 

Solar energy contest

Pending weather. Plan B in case of bad weather is to do Simple electric circuits.

April 19

Chap. 21

Chap. 22

 

 

 

Simple electric circuits

 

April 26

Review

         

 

 

Make-up on Fri. April 30

Last class on Thursday April 29

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Final exam, Thurs. May 6 from 11:00 – 1:00.

 

 

Questionnaire

 

Name:________________________________ email:____________________________________

 

Year:_____________________________________

 

 

1. What is your math level? (Pre calc., algebra, calculus etc.)______________________________________            

 

2. Have you taken any physics courses in college or high school?___________________________________            

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

3. Describe any other background you have in science_____________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

Have you ever done any of the following activities? Please describe:

4. Worked with wood tools. (Built something, repaired something, hobbies, etc.)_______________________            

 

____________________________________________________________________________________            

 

5. Worked with electronics:_________________________________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

6. Worked with engines: (Car repair repaired a lawn mower engine, etc._____________________________            

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

7. Describe your hobbies:__________________________________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________