Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008MechanicsFrank L. H. WolfsDepartment of Physics and AstronomyUniversity of RochesterFrank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.What are we going to talk about today?• Goals of the course• Who am I?• Who are you?• Course information:• Text books• Lectures• Workshops• Homework• Exams• Quizzes• Units and Measurements• Error Analysis (replaces the Physics 121 lab lecture).Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Goal of the course.• Physics 121 is a survey course forphysics and engineering majors.• Course topics include motion(linear, rotational, and harmonic),forces, work, energy,conservation laws, andthermodynamics.• I assume that you have someknowledge of calculus, buttechniques will be reviewed whenneeded.• I do not assume you have anyprior knowledge of physics.Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Who am I?• I am Frank Wolfs!• I am a professor in Physics in theDepartment of Physics andAstronomy.• I am an experimental nuclearphysicist who is looking for darkmatter in a deep mine in SouthDakota. Did you know that the mostdominant form of matter in ourUniverse is dark matter? We havenever directly detected dark matter!• I consider teaching a very componentof my job, and will do whatever I canto ensure you succeed in this course.Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Who are you?Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Who are you?Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Why are you here?• Most of you will say:• It is a requirement of my major!• I have no clue! I want to be an engineer, and computers do all theengineering calculations.• Some you may say:• I was excited about Physics in high school and I like to learn moreabout the subject.• I like to Prof.Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Why should you be here?• All engineering calculations andmodels are based on physics.• A basic understanding of theprinciples of mechanics and thecapability to determine whethersolutions to problems make senseis a skill that any engineer needsto have.• Remember ….. A computer isonly as smart as the person whoprogrammed it (although somecomputers are smarter thanothers).Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Course Information.• Text Book:• Giancoli, Physics for Scientistsand Engineers. The materialcovered in this course is coveredin Volume 1 (Physics 122 willcover the material covered inVolume 2).• PRS:• We will be using a PersonalResponse System in this coursefor in-class quizzes and concepttests.Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Course Components.• Lecture:• Focus on the concepts of thematerial, and its connections toareas outside physics.• Not a recital of the text book!• The lecture presentation isinterspersed with conceptualquestions and quizzes, solved withand without help from yourneighbors.• Workshops:• Small group meetings with atrained workshop leader.• Institutionalize the “study group”.• You discover how much you canlearn from you fellow students.• Consistent attendance ofworkshops correlates with bettergrades.Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Course Components.• Homework assignments:• Homework is assigned to practice the material covered in this courseand to enhance your analytical problem solving skills.• You will need to struggle with the assignments to do well in thiscourse.• You will need to make sure you fully understand the solution to theseproblems!• Labs:• Give you hands-on experience with making measurements andinterpreting data.• Labs are pretty much separated from the course (not controlled byme), but are a required component.Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Course Components.• Exams:• Test you on your basic understanding of the material and yourquantitative problem solving skills.• There will be 3 midterm exams and 1 final exam.• There is no need to memorize formulas; you will be given anequation sheet with all important equations for the material coveredon the exam.• Final grades:• Calculated in 4 different ways: the highest grade counts.• No grading on a curve: grade scale is fixed and known to you!Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Course Components.• Pre- and post-tests:• At the start of the semester I like to determine your currentunderstanding of physical principles. I determine this by having youtake a pre-test for Physics 121. This test will not count towards yourcourse grade, but provides me with valuable information about yourbackground. The pre-test will take place on Tuesday morning at 8.45am in Hoyt (before our regular lecture).• At the end of the semester I like to determine how much you learnedin this course by having you take a post-test for Physics 121. Thistest will also not count towards your course grade but providesvaluable information to me about your level of understanding. I alsouse it to provide you with feedback on areas of mechanics on whichyou may want to focus in preparation for the final exam. The posttest will take place on Tuesday April 29 at 8.45 am in Hoyt.• Although the tests do not impact your final grade, you are required totake these tests.Frank L. H. Wolfs Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of RochesterPhysics 121, Spring 2008.Course Components.• I am here to help you learn thismaterial, but it is up to you toactually master