TEXT: College Physics, Paul Peter Urone, Brooks/Cole Publishing.

LEARNING PHYSICS: Much of what you will learn in this course is counter-intuitive and contradicts preconceived notions we all have had about how the Universe operates. To overcome these notions, it is important to confront them. This requires a lot of practise. If you expect to learn this material simply from coming to class, doing the homework, and going to lab, you are in for a disappointment. You will get some of this practise in the laboratory, but you need to do more. Read the sections of the book listed below before each lecture. Do the homework. Do extra problems. Discuss problems with classmates, the tutor, and the prof. Check my homepage, http://it.stlawu.edu/~physics/koon.html, and the Science Library for ADDITIONAL RESOURCES, including an exam file, http://it.stlawu.edu/~physics/koon/103.104/103xms/103xms.html, and printed lecture notes, http://it.stlawu.edu/~physics/koon/103.104/103_ln.doc.

ATTENDANCE: The instructor reserves the right to subtract one-half of a letter grade for each absence beyond the first three. I do not expect you to learn all of your physics from my magnificent lectures, just as I would not expect you to learn it all simply from reading every sentence of the text, or by doing every homework problem. However, each one of these items you miss diminishes the understanding you are likely to gain of the course material. I will use the Quizzes (See below) to check attendance.

EXAMS: There will be three exams during regular class time during the semester, Friday, Sept. 17, Monday, Oct. 11, and Friday, Nov. 5, plus a Final Exam, Friday, Dec. 17, at 1:30. You may bring with you to the exam a calculator and all the notes you can fit on a 3" x 5" index card (both sides, handwritten).

QUIZZES: There will be a brief quiz once a week on the reading assignment for that day. The quizzes will be brief: the main point of giving them is to encourage you to read ahead before we cover new material in class.

HOMEWORK: This scheme for homework may sound complicated at first, but each feature of it is designed with a specific pedagogical purpose. After the first few weeks, you will get used to the routine.

1. Each Monday I will announce a set of about ten problems, each worth ten points, due at the start of class the following Monday. Write your solutions in pencil. Problems will be taken from the text and from the exam file.

2. A grader will record all the problems which you have made a good attempt to solve, and return the sets by Monday afternoon (in a manner to be announced later). Solutions will be posted at the same time. Homework handed in after solutions are posted can not be accepted for full grade value.

3. You have until Friday's class to submit corrections, in (non-red) ink. I do not want you to merely copy the solution. Try to find your mistakes or explain what it is that is giving you difficulty.

4. The resubmitted sets will be graded as follows: 40% for the original effort, 40% for the correction, and 20% for the degree to which correction was not needed. For example, a problem that was written up completely and correctly the first time (and therefore was submitted without correction) would earn 4 points for the quality of the original work, 4 points for the recognition that correction was not necessary, and 2 points for not needing correction. A problem whose original attempt was unfinished and full of errors but whose correction was complete might earn 1 point on the initial effort, all 4 points on the correction, and zero out of 2 points in the final category becuase a detailed correction was necessary.
To discourage you from doctoring your orignal solutions instead of making corrections in ink, I may photocopy some of the original submissions. Evidence of cheating will be considered a violation of the Academic Honesty Code, and will be prosecuted appropriately.

5. When submitting homework sets,
        Write your name at the top,
        Indicate the number of the set and the original due date,
        Leave enough room for corrections,
        Staple pages together, if needed
        Write legibly, but you needn't be a "neat freak".

6. Your goal in writing a homework solution is to communicate what you understand and what you don't understand about the problem. I encourage you to write (scientists DO use complete sentences) about those points of the problem that confuse or interest you and to make commentary on the plausibility of your answers. You will receive credit for recognizing an answer is wrong and being able to explain why it is incorrect.


GRADING POLICY: Your final average will be calculated from the following:

Homework 25% Three semester exams 30% Laboratory * 20% Final Exam 10% Quizzes 10% Essay 5%

92% and above 4.0 86% and above 3.5 80% and above 3.0 75% and above 2.5 70% and above 2.0 65% and above 1.5 60% and above 1.0

All exams, homeworks, and labs will be counted toward your final average. All cutoffs are exact: I do not round percentages up before calculating the final grade. Should you feel inclined to argue this point with me at the end of the semester, I reserve the right to dock you points for failing the syllabus-reading component of this course.
* Failure to complete the laboratory section of this course automatically results in failure of this course.

THE LECTURES:

Final Exam: Friday, Dec. 17, at 1:30.