PHYSICS 352/354
Course
Expectations 2006/2007 (Kolena)
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TEXTS
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Physics, 3rd edition by Walker
The Way Things Work, by Macaulay
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CLASS
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taught by John
Kolena email: kolena@ncssm.edu office:
Bryan 443
phone: (919)416-2767
The pace of the class will
be brisk, partly because I will assume that you already
know a good
deal of physics (because you have done the assigned daily
readings and
have studied the worked examples suggested).
We will solve problems from Walker virtually
every class day, so please bring
your Walker text to class each day.
You are required to have two lab journals. We
might be taking lab data on any
day, or we
might be discussing lab work already in your journals, so you need
to
have your journals with you every day, except of course when they have
been handed in for grading.
I expect you to have your working (!) graphing calculator with you
every day.
Please obtain
printing privileges , some labs require printing from the 4th
floor.
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EXPECTATIONS
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READING
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The course syllabus
is a rough guide to the order of the topics that we will
study this trimester. Refer to it
often; you are allowed to read ahead!
The course web site address is
www.phy.duke.edu/~kolena/physics06.html
It is your responsibility
to make sure that you know what is expected of you for
the next class
in the way of textbook reading, homework, and labwork.
Assignments will be available on the web. Please get into the habit
of checking
the web site daily.
I will try to have any relevant messages and assignments
posted by 6 pm.
I
cannot emphasize enough how important reading the relevant text
sections
and studying the worked examples in advance of my talking
about them are to
your success in this class. Reading a physics book
or studying worked
examples is quite unlike reading a novel or a
social studies text.
More about this sometime in class.
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WRITING
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Assigned written homework
problems (typically 3 each M W F) ) will usually be
due
by 5 pm in the black box on the table outside my office (Bryan
443).
I encourage you to turn the homework in during that day's class, so
that you
don't have to return later to hand it in. BUT, if you should forget to
turn it in
on time, you do need to turn it in asap,
as late work may receive some credit.
See the Late Work Policy below.
After completing the
assigned reading, you should attempt 1 or 2 conceptual
questions or non-asterisked problems from the back of the chapter in Walker.
If you
cannot solve them pretty immediately, it means that you need
to re-read
the appropriate sections and re-study the worked examples more
carefully. As we dig deeper into subject, you should also be working
extra
problems of the * or ** type from Walker.
Keep all these extra worked
problems
organized in your notebook; they may be traded in for extra
class commitment
credit if a test performance is below expectations.
You should be solving at
least as many
problems on your own as I assign!
Homework MUST be stapled if
more than one page. There is a stapler mounted
on the 4th floor Bryan
wall
across from room 441.
Lab instructions should be available a day or more before we
actually do lab.
Please read them
beforehand. Links to the instructions will
be on the class
website. Lab
expectations are available in the Physics 352/354 Lab Guide.
Tests will happen 2 to 4 times each trimester & usually on lab day.
Since tests
will often cover 2 or 3 chapters of material, cramming for
them the night or
weekend before will be of minimal value. If you have
kept up with the reading
and succeeded in completing the homework by yourself
every day, tests will
seem easy.
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TUTORIAL
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Physics teachers and senior
tutors will be available most every M - Th
for at
least an hour. Use this opportunity! Check
the posted tutorial schedule on the
physics hallway. If you need
physics assistance, you are expected to use
tutorial as one of the primary sources of assistance outside of class
time.
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OFFICE HOURS
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My teaching blocks are CDG
this trimester. You are welcome to visit me in my
office (Bryan
443) during your free periods, to talk
about physics or anything
else. I will particularly try to be available
in the afternoons after school.
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HONESTY
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You will receive a copy of
the Physics
Department Honesty Policy ;
it is also posted in the
classroom.
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TARDY |
Of course, I expect you to
be on time for class. "Tardy" means not being in your
seat at the time when class is scheduled to begin. Because
Physics
classrooms
have radio-controlled, accurate clocks, it will be easy for everyone to
know
whether you are Tardy or not. You will be considered Tardy even
if you arrive
on
time, but have to return to your room because you are inappropriately
dressed, do not
have your calculator, or do not have your lab materials (lab
book, prelab,
...) on days when lab is scheduled.
The Physics
Department Tardy Policy addresses the consequences of being
Tardy. The Tardy Policy is also posted in physics
classrooms. In
addition, each
of you will receive a copy to read, sign, and return during the first
week of
class.
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LATE WORK
POLICY
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Homework
is due on the date and time assigned by the teacher. Homework
that
is up to one day late will be accepted for a maximum grade of 50%.
Homework
that is more one day late will not be accepted. Note that major
assignments are
due on the day they are due regardless of last-minute illness! Contact
me
before
the due date in case of sustained, major illness or other unavoidable
conflicts.
If you miss 2 of any combination of assignments (homework, lab, class
presentation), you will report to Saturday morning Restricted Study
(new this
year). Any additional miss after the first 2 missed assignments
will result in
additional
Saturday sessions.
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CLASS COMMITMENT
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Since tests in this class
may occur less frequently than in some of your other
classes, they
will count proportionally less toward your total grade than in
many
other classes. What this really means, of course, is that you will be
tested
every day in class in a variety of ways; examples of such are in
the following
(non-exhaustive) list:
- coming to class and turning in your work
on time
- showing enthusiasm in your learning
- working problems beyond the ones required
for turn-in
- taking useful notes
- asking questions of your own and answering
mine in class
- challenging explanations or examples that
leave you confused
- convincing me that you did the assigned
daily reading
- being prepared for and taking leadership
in labs
- following verbal and written instructions,
especially in lab
- helping your classmates where appropriate
- re-doing returned tests or labs that do
not earn at least a grade of C+
- taking initiative in getting missed notes
& assignments from a classmate
(or the web) after an absence
- taking initiative in completing and
turning in assignments (homework and
lab) before a planned absence or
asap after an unplanned one (including
assignments due in class)
- getting extra help from me outside of
class and at tutorial if appropriate
- posting problem solutions on hallway
bulletin boards before tests
- presenting 2 problems to the
whole class each trimester
Your class commitment grade is my assessment of how committed
you are to
making this class a successful learning experience not only
for yourself, but
also for the rest of the class. You are welcome to talk with me at any
point
about your class commitment
grade.
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GRADING
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Pre-final-exam Trimester
grades will be based on
20% for Class Commitment
40% for Homework/Labwork
(minimum
20 homework assignments, including online; minimum 12 labs)
40% for Tests (2 - 4 in number)
In determining the final trimester grade, your final (trimester) exam
will
count
15% - 25%.
The following grading scale
applies to all work in this class
A: 83 -- 100
B: 70 -- 82.99etc
C: 60 -- 69.99etc
D: below 60
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