GENERAL PHYSICS II - PY212 SUMMER 2002

COURSE INFORMATION GUIDE

 

CONTACT INFORMATION

Instructor and lecturer:

B1: Prof. Milos Steinhart            Office/Phone: 242 / 353 5018   Email: stein@buphy.bu.edu

Office Hours:            MW 15:30-17:00, F 14:00-15:00 SCI 242, or make appointment by email or phone

 

Teaching Assistants (Discussion Sections):

B4: Predeep Kumar            Office/Phone: B13 / 353 9536     Email:pradeep@buphy.bu.edu

Office hours:            MW            14:00-15:00 SCI 121

B5: Yiyi Wang            Office/Phone:  B35 / 353 9439     Email: yiyiwang@buphy.bu.edu

Office hours:            MW            15:00-16:00 SCI 121

 

Teaching Assistants (Labs):

B3: Yongsheng Liu            Office/Phone: B21 / 353 9437     Email: liuys@buphy.bu.edu

Office hours:            T            12:00-13:00 SCI 121

B2: Yufeng Zhang            Office/Phone:  B05 / 353 5103    Email: yfzhang@buphy.bu.edu

Office Hours:            T            12:00-1:00 SCI 121

 

COURSE WEB SITE: http://buphy.bu.edu/~stein/py212/py212s2.htm

 

COURSE SCHEDULE

Lectures s. B1:             MTWRF          11:00-12:30               SCI 115

Lab s. B2:                    TR                   8:00-10:30               SCI B23      (the first 7/11)

Lab s. B3:                    TR                   1:00-03:30               SCI B23      (the first 7/11)

Discussion s. B4:       MW                 9:30-11:00               SCI 113      (the first 7/10)

Discussion s. B5:       MW                 1:00-02:30               SCI B58      (the first 7/10)

 

REQUIRED BOOKS

Text Book:      “Physics for Scientists and Engineers”, Vol. 2, by D. C. Giancoli, 3rd Ed..

Lab. guide:            “Physics Intro II – Laboratory Experiments” ISBN: 0-0345-2362B

 

EXAMS:

Midterm Exam 1             Tuesday July 23             11:00-12:30 SCI 115

Midterm Exam 2             Tuesday August 6             11:00-12:30 SCI 115

Final Exam                   Friday August 16            11:00-12:30 SCI 115

 

GRADING SCHEME:

Lecture & Reading (quizzes, attendance, participation)                5%

Discussion Sections (homework, quizzes)                                                20%

Laboratory                                                                                           20%

Midterm Examination  I                                                               15%

Midterm Examination II                                                              15%

Final Examination                                                                              25%

 

CALCULATOR:

You will need a standard scientific calculator for homework and labs. Calculators are NOT ALLOWED on the midterm and final examinations

 

PREREQUISITES:

PY211 (General Physics I) and MA 124 (Calculus)

 

GENERAL INFORMATION

1.      Course information, notices and changes will be posted on the course web page, which will be continuously updated during the course! 

2.      You should be registered for a lecture, a discussion session and a lab section

3.      To register or change a section, fill out a DROP/ADD form (available at the BU registration office or in the Physics Department office) and ask your professor to sign it.

4.      Fix your discussion and lab sections during the first week of the course!

 

 

LECTURES

To benefit from the lectures, it is essential you read over the material ahead of time. The 5% lecture component of the grade includes grades on the surprise lecture quizzes, random checks of attendance in the lecture, etc. Ask any questions you have so the whole class can benefit from hearing the answer. Your instructors welcome questions. When the instructor asks questions of the class you should answer so the instructor can see whether further explanation is needed.

 

HOMEWORK AND DISCUSSION

1.      Homework will be assigned twice a week on Mondays and Wednesdays. They must be solved before coming to the following discussion i.e. on Wednesdays and Mondays. They must by turned in at the start of the discussion.

2.      Each week you will be assigned approximately 12 problems from the textbook. The assignments will appear in the schedule of the course on the web page.

3.      There will be totally 11 homeworks. Turning in fewer than 11 homeworks will result in automatic failure, regardless of your other grades.

4.      Solution of the homeworks will be available from the TAs.

5.      During the last 10 minutes of discussion, you will be given a randomly chosen problem from the assignment you have just turned in. This will be graded and will count for 20% of the final grade.

6.      There will be totally 11 discussions and 11 quizzes. Turning in fewer than 10 quizzes will result in automatic failure, regardless of your other grades.

 

LABORATORY

            Labs are required part of PY212. There will be 7 labs during the course. Each lab section meets for 2.5 hours. Labs are held either in SCI B23 (basement) or in rooms SCI 134 or SCI 136 for the MBL labs (see the schedule). During each lab session, you will perform the experimental measurements and analyze the data. Each report must be turned in for grading at the start of the next lab session. Please, prepare for lab by reading up on the experiment and by answering as many questions as possible in the lab report before coming to the lab session. Reports handed in late will not be graded. Your lab grade makes 20% of the total and it will be based on the scores of your 6 best labs. Turning in fewer than 7 labs will result in automatic failure, regardless of your other grades.

 

LABORATORY REPORT FORMAT

 

The lab report should be viewed as a first draft of a scientific paper. The flow of the argument and evidence should be clear throughout. However, the laboratory report need not be unduly polished: erasures and awkward layout are only natural in recording experimental scientific work. Your data will not always agree perfectly with the theory. Here are some specific guidelines that you must follow:

1.      Prior to handling the report, you must obtain your lab TA’s signature next to your raw data for each experiment. This is to verify your attendance in the lab session.

2.      Theory or purpose: You should state clearly, in your own words, what the purpose of the experiment is. This should not simply be copied from the laboratory manual.

3.      Technique and apparatus: A detailed explanation of the experimental setup and how you can carry out the experiment is not required; a brief but clear summary will suffice. However, it is important that you note the connection between the experimental technique and the basic theory.

4.      Data analysis: It is important that results be neatly tabulated and calculations performed correctly. It is equally important that you explain the point of each measurement and the connection between the data obtained and the theoretical issue under examination. You should explain the limitations of the measurement and give a statement of their effect on the results.

5.      Conclusions should follow from the data! We are less concerned with the results per se than the quality of the argument that is presented. For example, if the data indicates that the momentum is not conserved in two-dimensional collision, the conclusion should state this observation, independent of whether the result agrees with the well-established theory/ Whenever possible, a quantitative estimate of the uncertainty should be included.

6.      You must use proper high-resolution graph paper, which will be provided in the lab, for your graphs. Quadrille paper must not be used.

7.      Students may write their laboratory reports in either a bound quadrille notebook or in neatly stapled looseleaf sheets. If you choose to use the notebooks, you should alternate them at each session so you that have a notebook for preparation activities while your TA is grading the previous lab report.

 

MAKEUP POLICY

            It is your responsibility to take all quizzes, exams and to do all homework and labs according to the posted schedules. There are no makeups and late work will not receive any credit. Missing a midterm or a final exam will lead to a failing grade. If you miss a discussion session or a lab, please make it up by attending the parallel session. Contact both TA to make sure you receive a credit. In exceptional circumstances please contact your professor as soon as possible. The only exception to this policy will be for either legitimate religious reasons or documented illness. 

 

GETTING HELP

            If you have difficulty with any of the material there are many ways to get help. You should ask questions of your TA during discussion sessions. You may also obtain help from any of the PY211 instructors during office hours or contact them by Email.

 

ETHICS POLICY

            You are expected to be familiar with and adhere to the College of Arts and Sciences Academic Conduct Code. In particular, cheating on exams and quizzes or unauthorized collaboration on lab work will not be tolerated. Evidence of cheating will be reported immediately to your Academic Conduct Committee. Students found guilty of cheating on exams may be penalized by suspension or even expulsion.