Welcome to Physics 2305, the first semester of Foundations of Physics I.
Your instructor for the 8 am and 4 pm MWF sessions is:
Dr. Gregory C. Sloan
Robeson Hall, 324A (through 322)
231-8744, gsloan@vt.edu
Course website: http://www.phys.vt.edu/~sloan/phys2305 (you're here already!)
Pre-requisite: Passing grade in Math 1205
Co-requisite: Math 1206
Text: Halliday, Resnick, & Walker, Fundamentals of Physics, 5th Ed., 1997
Optional texts:
Christman, A Student's Companion for Fundamentals of Physics
Christman, Student's Solutions Manual for Fundamentals of
Physics
CD-Physics for Fundamentals of Physics, Version 2.0
Grading
Your final grade is based on:
| 4 exams | 70% | ||
| 6 lab assignments | 15% | ||
| problem sets and quizzes | 15% |
Three exams will be held during the semester, on Fridays at 5 pm on 12 February, 26 March, and 23 April. Each is worth 15% of your final grade. The final exam will be held Monday, 10 May, at 11:05 am, and it will be worth 25% of the final grade. Make-up exams will not be offered. Students with excused absences will have their missing exam score replaced with a weighted average of the other exams.
Laboratory assignments
The laboratory periods are designed to apply the theoretical concepts presented in the lectures to actual situations. This time allows you to develop good observations, data- taking, data-analysis, and result-presentation skills. This component of the course is very important, and the consequences of not completing all six experiments are severe. Your final course grade will be dropped by one-third of a letter grade for each lab not satisfactorily completed. For example, if one lab is missing, a B+ would become a B; if two labs are missing, a B+ would become a B-. Lab manuals will be distributed through the WWW, but you must pay the lab manual fee ($15) in order to access the site. This fee can be paid during the first week of classes (18-22 Jan.) in Robeson 304 from 8 am to 5 pm. Please keep the receipt, as you will be required to show it to your lab TA at your first laboratory session. Complete information about the laboratory procedures and policies will be found in the laboratory syllabus available when you pay your lab manual fee. You should also look at the laboratory website (http://www.phys.vt.edu/~labs/) where you will find the syllabus along with the laboratory schedules and TA office hours and contact information.
Problem sets
Typically, 8-12 problems will be assigned each week. They will be due on Wednesday of the following week (at the end of the day). Assignments submitted after the due date will be penalized 10% of the total possible grade for each day late, and no assignments will be accepted after the problem set has been graded. Only some problems in each set (typically 2-3) will be graded; students will not know which these are in advance.
Problem-solving is the heart and soul of this course. The goal is to teach students the fundamental concepts of physics, and how to apply these concepts to physical situations. As a consequence, it is impossible to over-emphasize the importance of the problem sets. The student who gives each problem his or her full attention will recognize which concepts they didn't understand in lecture or in the textbook, will be able to learn these concepts and how to apply them, and will do well on the exams. The student who relies on help from others before thinking carefully about each problem, or who turns to solutions manuals or to graded assignments from previous semesters will, in the long run, only be cheating him or herself. While these students may save some time during the semester, they will, in all likelihood, do poorly on exams.
Quizzes
Surprise quizzes will occasionally be given in lecture and recitations. While attendance in lecture and recitations is not mandatory, no make-up quizzes will be offered.
Honor Code
Students are expected to know and adhere to the honor code of Virginia Tech. Don't forget that the Commonwealth of Virginia has the death penalty.
HomeLast modified 25 January, 1999. © Gregory C. Sloan.