Physics 201  -  College Physics

(Texas A&M University, Spring 2007)

Homepage for Sections 509-512



   Announcements (updated regularly)


 

    Lectures

    Tue+Thu  11:10am-12:25pm
    Room:  Heldenfels 107
    (1st class:  Tue Jan 18 (university closed on Jan.16+17,  last class:  Thu Apr 26,
      no classes/Lab/Rec on Mon-Fri, Mar 12-16 due to spring break)
 
 

                      Recitations (HELD-121)    LABS(HELD-220)                   
    Sect. 509:  Wed,          08:00-09:00am                       09:00-10:50am
    Sect. 510:  Wed,          10:20-11:20am                       11:20-01:10pm
    Sect. 511:  Wed,          12:40-01:40pm                       01:40-03:30pm
    Sect. 512:  Wed,          03:00-04:00pm                       04:00-05:50pm

                                         For the Lab Schedule,  click  here
 
 

   Course Instructor

    Dr. Ralf Rapp
    Office        : Cyclotron (Building 434)  Room 211
    Office-Hrs : Tue 2-3pm, Wed+Thu 3-4pm, or by appointment
    Phone       : 845-1411 (ext. 226)
    E-mail       : rapp@comp.tamu.edu
 
 

   Teaching Assistants

      all TA's listed below are either simultaneously responsible for Recitation and Lab
     in the respective sections, or listed separately. For questions on the Lab, Lab-reports
     or homework/quizzes outside the standard Lab and Recitation times, please schedule
     an appointment via email.

      Sect. 509
       Kevin Resil
      Office  : tba
      E-mail:  mystyc@physics.tamu.edu
      Office Hour: by appointment

      Sect. 510
       Lucas Naveira
      Office  : tba
      E-mail:  lucas@physics.tamu.edu
      Office Hour: by appointment

      Sect. 511
       Jose Valadez
       Office : tba
       E-mail: jose_valadez@physics.tamu.edu
       Office Hour: by appointment

      Sect. 512
       Weiping Gou
       Office  : tba
       E-mail : wgou@physics.tamu.edu
       Office Hour: by appointment

 
 

      Supplemental Instruction (Group Sessions)

     The University provides free Supplemental Instruction (SI) sessions to further improve
     your study options. The name of the SI leader assigned to PHY201 is TBA.  His 50-minute
     sessions are open to all PHY201 students, held during the following evening hours:
        -- TBA --
     You are very much encouraged to take advantage of this additional University resource.
 
 

   Personal Tutoring by International Graduate Student

   The physics department provides another learning resource by offering  free personal
   tutoring sessions with an international physics graduate student (GANT).
   For our PHYS 201 course, the name and email address of the GANT is:
      tba       (TuTh 11:10am-12:25pm),             tba@physics.tamu.edu
    The GANT will attend the lectures indicated in the parentheses, and solve the complete
   homework assignments. Therefore, he will be well prepared to help you with any
   class-material related question. Be aware that the GANT is not a native English
   speaker, but he is eager to improve in this respect, also by the tutoring. He is
   available for individual appointments with you for up to 9 hrs per week, Mon through
   Fri during daytime (i.e., before 8pm) in Held 211.
   To schedule an appointment, contact the above GANT at least one day (preferably
   somewhat more) in advance by email.
   Again, you are very much encouraged to make use of this opportunity. I recommend that
   you try out the tutoring soon to see whether it could improve your PHYS 201 skills.    
   Make sure not to miss out on something useful!
 
 

    Required Material

     1.)  TEXTBOOK:
           The course will be based on the book
          College Physics, 8. Edition, by Young and Geller

      2.)  LAB MANUAL:
             Physics 201 Lab Manual (published by Hayden-McNeil)

      3.)  optional:
             Student Solutions Manual;   Student Study Guide
 
 

     Scope

    The course will cover the basic concepts and applications of Newtonian Mechanics,
    Thermodynamics and Waves+Sound, corresponding to chapters 1-16 in the textbook.
 
 

    Course Grade

    The total course grade is decomposed as follows:

      If the grade on the final exam is significantly better than on one of the midterm exams,
     the final-exam grade will be used to replace that ONE midterm-exam grade (note that
     this rule effectively makes the final exam worth up to 38%).
     This DOES NOT apply to a missed midterm exam (which is counted as zero).
 
 

     Exams

   The exams are closed book, and are held in the classroom (HELD107) during standard
    lecture times (except for the Final); you should only bring a pen and pocket calculator,
    capable of evaluating trigonometric functions (sin, cos, tan) and logarithms.
    Formula sheets will be provided. Special preparatory review sessions will be held by the
    course instructor on an evening ca. 2-3 days before each exam, see announcements on top
    of page.  For files of old exams, see  http://faculty.physics.tamu.edu/ford/p201.html  .

    SCHEDULE:
   Midterm I:    Tue Feb 13, in class (Held 107, 11:10am-12:25pm),
                                     material covered: Chap 1-6
   Midterm II:   Tue Mar 27, in class (Held 107, 11:10-12:25pm),
                                     material covered: Chap 7-11
   Midterm III: Tue Apr 24, in class (Held 107, 11:10am-12:25pm),
                                     material covered: Chap 12, 14-16
   FINAL:   Fri May 04 (Held 107, 03:00-05:00pm)
                  material covered corresponds to the entire semester (Chap 1-16)
 
 

    Notes on Lectures

    Attendance in the lectures, as well as taking notes of the material presented, is mandatory.
    Furthermore, you are responsible for all announcements made in class (including
    information on review sessions, etc.).
    The material discussed in the lectures, together with the homework problems, essentially
    defines the scope of the exams. Formula sheets to be used in the exams are handed out
    in the lectures at the time the material is started to be discussed (this will allow you to get
    acquainted with the notation well ahead of the exam).
 
 

    Notes on Homework and Recitation

     For the weekly assignment of homework problems drawn from the textbook, cf. the
    main Syllabus here.
    Cooperative work and discussions are encouraged, but every one of you should
    generate his/her individual solution set. Questions can be addressed to your course
    or recitation instructor, who will be happy to help you (preferably during office hours).
    Recitation attendance is mandatory; each week, a quiz will be given and graded,
    which will determine your recitation grade (the semester-average on your quizzes
    makes up 5% of your total course grade).
    The "Mastering Physics" online homework assignments (which make up 11% of your
    total course grade) are dated. They are ordered by chapters and very similar to the
    problems on the Syllabus. Your access to the online assignments will expire approximately
    one week after the material has been discussed in class. The best strategy is to first do the
    problems on the Syllabus and then the online HW. This will also contribute to an efficient
    midterm-exam preparation.
   

    Notes on Laboratory Experiments

      Lab attendance is mandatory. It follows the recitation session of your section each
      week in which an experiment is scheduled.
       Your Lab-instructor (who is usually the same person as the recitation instructor)
       will advise you on when (typically no more than one week after the experiment)
       and where to hand in the Lab reports which are based on the data you take.
       In certain weeks there are no formal Labs scheduled, but this extra time will be used
       by the recitation instructor to provide additional exam preparation or discussion
       of the solutions after an exam.
       Information on policies on missed labs can be found at
       http://faculty.physics.tamu.edu/ford/lab.html .
 
 

    Strategy

       To pass the course, you will have to keep up with the material of the course by
       attending the lectures (besides the recitation and Lab) and thoroughly work through
       the weekly HW problems (which, in addition, is the best preparation for recitation
       quizzes). Otherwise, pile-up of not understood material is likely to lead to a failing
       grade. It is impossible to get a passing grade without hard work in this course.
 
 

     AGGIE Honor Code

       An Aggie does not lie, cheat, or steal or tolerate those who do.
       Also see http://www.tamu.edu/aggiehonor
       Any type of cheating (copying homework, lab reports,  during exams, etc.) is
       strictly prohibited and seriously penalized.
 
 

    ADA  Statement

       The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal anti-discrimination
       statute that provides comprehensive civil rights protection for persons with
       disabilities. Among other things, this legislation requires that all students
       with disabilities be guaranteed a learning environment that provides for
       reasonable accommodation of their disabilities. If you believe you have a
       disability requiring an accommodation, please contact the Department of
       Student Life, Services for Students with Disabilities, in Cain Hall, Room
       B118 or call 845-1637; for more info see also  http://disability.tamu.edu/
       Department of Student Life, SSD, will review your concerns and determine,
       with you, what accommodations are necessary and appropriate. All
       information and documentation concerning disability is kept confidential.
 
 

       Despite all the above regulations and rules (which are needed for a fair assessment
      of your grades), we hope that you will enjoy this course, and that you will achieve
      knowledge that will both be helpful in your further career and provide deeper
      insights into daily life encounters with physics!
      If you have any questions or concerns, do not hesitate to contact your course/
      recitation instructors who shall be glad to help you!