Class Meeting Time(s): TTH 2:00PM-3:30PM

Instructor: Dr. J. E. Johnson

Physics Department Web Site

Notice: Exam 3 has been moved to Tuesday, November 13.

New: Units Computational Environment

Instructions for answering questions online

  1. Click on this link to access the Online Questions Application.
  2. Register for an account by clicking on "Register for an account". Enter your first name, last name, a login id of your choosing, email address, and a password. The email address must be a valid email address (see step 3).
  3. Check your email and click on the link provided to activate your account.
  4. Go back to the login page.
  5. Log into the site using the login id and password that you provided during registration.
  6. After login, if Dr. Johnson has added you to his class in the application, you will see a link for Dr. Johnson's class.
    Click on that link. If you do not see a link to the class, you have not been added to the class yet. Log out and chack back later.
  7. Click on the link for the question set.
  8. Put in an an answer for each question and click the button next to each answer to submit it. You may change your answer by entering your new answer in the space provided and click on "Update" next to the answer.
  9. Log out once you have answered all of the questions.

Purpose of Physics 201 - 202

This course is not a ‘tech school’ course but a demanding and hopefully enriching major university course developing a broad base of technical knowledge and insights, coupled with new methods of thinking.  Specifically we seek:

  1. To learn the foundational laws of nature and science that underlie, not just Physics, but by virtue of being foundational, underlie also Chemistry, Biology, Geology, Engineering, Biology, Medicine, Health Science, and other scientific fields. Specifically we seek to understand this underlying theoretical structure along with its successes and current limitations.
  2. To learn specifically the fundamental concepts, their definitions, their experimental and theoretical relationships among one another (equations), fundamental values, associated constants and units.
  3. To become experienced in estimation, numerical uncertainty, order of magnitude estimation, and problem solving.
  4. To learn how ‘science’ operates: the interplay of theory and experiment and the linking of a theoretical model with reality, thus the harmony with existing data and prediction of new data.
  5. To experience mathematics as a tool of theoretical modeling, prediction, measurement – ie with mathematics as a language.
  6. To learn how to think analytically and synthetically: what to question and how, and how to identify what should be generally accepted and thus questioned less often. To build ability and an associated confidence in reasoning in new domains.
  7. To learn a sense of history, and the role of science and technology in the historical evolution of man and civilization.
  8. To understand how the human view of nature comprises a limited domain for mass, acceleration, velocity, length, time, gravitation, color of light or frequency of sound, etc. Especially to learn how our senses translate stimulus and register its logarithm.

Recommendation of how to learn the most with the least effort:

  1. Preview material prior to each class: We will follow the text and the syllabus.  Prior to each class, preview the material for the next class even if just for 10 minutes.  That way, you know what is in the book and what things are important about those concepts.  One will get an overview of the material to be covered and this makes it far easier to rapidly assimilate the lecture and to take notes that complement (and do not reproduce) the text. 
  2. Attend all classes for the entire period: I am not impressed with the taking of voluminous notes, but rather the student who listens, absorbs, and assimilates the lecture.  The notes should indicate the areas for concentration, important concepts, things to be ignored, and what will be on the tests. Really listen with full attention.
  3. After class but that same day, create a nice set of notes:  With your class notes in front of you, your text open to the class material, with your memory of your pre-class reading of the text, the class notes on the web site, and the knowledge learned in class, then make a set of clear neat notes that condenses the class lecture and the text. Use the class web site to keep up to date and print out older pertinent exams etc.
  4. Review these condensed notes prior to each exam: Use the condensed notes to review for the exam along with the text. Practice taking the older tests where pertinent.  It is always best to study with other students and share information and to explain concepts to others.  It is a fact that if you explain something and teach someone else, you will learn more in the process than they do, so never hesitate to help others.  In the process of teaching, you will formulate the concepts and relationships more clearly. 
  5. After each of the four tests, classify your errors into types such as (a) arithmetic or algebraic mistake in calculation, (b) forgot formula, (c) could not convert the word explanation or setting into a mathematical setting, (d) carelessness (e.g. marking the wrong question) or alternative. 
  6. Never miss class if possible – attendance is required. Never cut a test if possible; all tests are required.