Physics 214: The Nature of Physics Spring 2004

Lecturer: Professor D. Koltick

Office: Room 335 Physics Building
Phone: 494-5557
Email: Koltick@purdue.edu
Web: http://koltick.physics.purdue.edu/
Office Hours: Right after class

Textbook: “The Physics of Everyday Phenomena:

A Conceptual Introduction to Physics (Fourth
Edition)” by W. Thomas Griffith (MacGraw-Hill).

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

 Fundamental goal of this course:
To understand the physical world around us.

Topics:

• falling bodies • light

• projectiles, satellites • optics
• gravity
• atoms
• energy, momentum
• heat, temperature • nuclei
• electricity & magnetism • relativity…
• waves

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

 INFORMATION:
Check Course web page for homework and reading
assignments :
http://koltick.physics.purdue.edu/phys214/physics214.html
• Powerpoint Lecture Notes
• Assignments, schedules, policies…
HELP:
• Ask Questions in Class. If you have a question most
likely others have the same question.
• Physics Help Center. Room 237 Physics Building.
• Discuss with other students in the class.
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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

 PHYS 214 Grades in Fall 2002

The distribution of final grades? 50

45 43.1
If you do average work, you will
40
probably get a C.
35

I would like to give all A’s and 30 28.1

B’s 25
Percent
Everyone can get an A if all the 20

material is learned! 15 13.1 12.4

10

5 3.3

0
F D C B A
Final Grade

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

 Grading Procedures

Your final grades will be determined by five different

components:

Evening Exams (3) 300

Final Exam 200
CHIP Homework 100
Reading Quizzes 50
Lecture Quizzes 50
TOTAL 700

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

 C. CHIP Homework

Homework problems are assigned for every lecture day of

the semester. The problems are taken from the “Exercises”
section at the end of each chapter, as well as a few from the
“Challenge Problems” sections. The assignments are listed
on the PHYS 214 web pages under “Problem Sets”.

These homework assignments must be done using the CHIP

web-based system. You must connect to the CHIP homepage
for PHYS 214, using a standard browser. Instructions can be
found via the link to CHIP on the PHYS 214 web page.

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

 C. CHIP Homework, cont.

Each problem will initially be awarded 10 points. You can

make five attempts to get the correct answer. That is, you will
be notified if the answer you submit is incorrect, and you can
resubmit your answer for a total of five attempts without
penalty. To get full credit, the solution must be submitted by
7:30 am on the due date. Half credit will be awarded to late
solutions submitted within a week of the deadline; no credit
will be awarded past that date.

At the end of the semester, the final homework grade will be

normalized so that a perfect score would be 100 points. That
is, your homework score is equivalent in weight to one
evening exam.

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

D. CHIP Reading Quizzes (“Pre-Lecture Quizzes”)

You must also log in to CHIP and take a “Pre-Lecture Quiz”

before each lecture. This will be a single, multiple choice question
based on the posted reading assignment for that day. You can take
this quiz only during the two days preceding the lecture. You have
only one attempt, and will have only five minutes to submit an
answer. You should read the assigned material carefully before
taking the reading quiz.

Reading quiz scores will be normalized at the end of the semester

to make a maximum score equal to 50 points. This is equal to half
of one exam, and is more than enough to raise or lower a student’s
final grade. Having read the assigned material is essential for the
discussions and lecture quiz for each lecture.
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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

 E. Lecture Quizzes

Lecture quizzes be taken with the Audience Response System in

Room 112. These questions are designed to test your
understanding of the material, to stimulate discussion with your
fellow students, and give you an opportunity to improve your
understanding of the underlying physical principles. After you
have answered a question, you may be asked to defend your
answer to your neighbors, or to decide that perhaps they had a
better answer. You would then be quizzed again on the same
question. These will also be worth 50 points towards your final
grade. Answers will be weighted so that some credit is earned
for incorrect answers also, rewarding all who attend and
participate and penalizing those who do not.

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

 How to use CHIP (see Handout)
• go to CHIP web site for PHYS 214
• After clicking on Homework enter:
• USER NAME first 4 letters of last name, last 4
numbers of SSN: char5432
• PASSWORD 214mn, where “mn” are the 4th and
5th digits of SSN.
Follow instructions in handout for changing your
password (highly recommended)

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

“Active Learning” & the Audience Response System (ARS)

Research: Lecturing/passive listening does not work well.

Active engagement is needed: Observe phenomena, discuss and
defend your answers to quiz questions.
1. Lecture Demonstrations
2. Lecture Quizzes

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

 This can only work if you are prepared, by reading the
assigned material in advance. You MUST do the reading
assignments!

“Penalty” for this system: less material can be covered in

class. You will have homework problems and exam questions
on material from the reading, that may not have been
discussed in class.

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics

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PHYS 214: The Nature of Physics