Physics 1408 Web Page

Dr. Charles W. Myles, Professor of Physics. Office: Sc. Rm 18. Phone: 742-3768. Office Hours: MTWTF just after class & 3-4pm MWF + by appointment. E-mail: Charley.Myles@ttu.edu. A distribution list will be developed & we'll have email discussions. It's vital that I have your correct email address, that you tell me if it changes, & that you check your email DAILY!! Here is an important email announcement!!

Textbook

Physics For Scientists & Engineers, by Douglas C. Giancoli, 4^th Edition (Pearson, 2008). A Google search, here, finds 900+ websites about this book! Some contain helpful items: Topic Outlines, Extra Problems, Homework, Help resources & discussions of "What is Physics Good For?". I URGE YOU to take advantage of these resources! Note: This book is available from local bookstores & on-line. It is (I think) available in either hardbound or paperback. An on-line search finds a wide range of prices (I found prices from $80 - $256!!). I urge you to shop around for this book & to find the best price for you. Given the book cost, don't you think it would be worthwhile to actually READ IT???

Course Topics; Objective; Level; Math Pre-Requisites

Topics: (Selected) from Chs. 1-16 of text. Detailed coverage announced as we go. Objective: Survey of 1^stsemester Physics (mechanics, fluids, waves). This is Calculus Based Physics! More details are in the Objectives & Assessments. The pace must be very fast, especially in the summer. (Some call it "firehose Physics"! It goes so fast that learning something is analogous to trying to drink from a firehose!). Course details, discussion of Exams, Homework, Quizzes, grading scheme, etc. are in the Syllabus. Please READ It! Level: Standard introductory, Calculus Based Physics! MathCo-Requisite: You MUST be enrolled concurrently in (or have already taken) Calculus I (Math 1351, or an equivalent elsewhere)! Algebra & Trigonometry (or Pre-Calculus) are also assumed! This ISN'T a math course! It is not my job to teach you math & there's no time to do so!! I must assume that you know it! Major problems students have with this course are the fast pace & the math.

Laboratory Co-Requisite

You MUST be enrolled concurrently in Physics 1408 Lab. Exceptions? Ask the Dept. of Physics office (Sc. Room 101, 742-3767)! Lab Syllabus. NOTE: Monday - Wednesday Labs begin Wednesday, July 9!!! Tuesday - Thursday Labs begin Thursday, July 10!!!!

STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES

Attend as many classes as possible, come to class prepared, do the homework, READ the material BEFORE I lecture on it, & keep up as we go along! Attendance: I don't take roll & I have no attendance policy. However, isn't it obvious that (unless you're a genius!) class attendance is REQUIRED to get a good grade (or LEARN SOMETHING!)? Class attendance & grades are correlated! Skipping WASTES the tuition/fees that you (or your someone) paid! With tuition & fees for a full-time (Texas) student, each meeting costs about $30.83. So, each time you skip, you're throwing away $30.83. After a while this adds up! My lectures may not be entertaining or brilliant, but I do expose you to the material.

NOTE: The weekend does not start Thursday evening or end Monday evening!
Friday & Monday are class days & NOT weekend days!

WHERE TO GO FOR HELP?!

Here is a document with links to Physics Help Resources. Here is another useful Document: "How to Succeed in Physics by Really Trying"! I'll attempt to organize Help Sessions. Details will be anounced later.

Many help resources are available! Please take advantage of them!

Hints: This course is difficult & very fast paced! If you are typical, to get a good grade, you should spend at least 2 to 3 hours/week outside of class studying this course for every hour in class (in the summer, up to 20 hours/week)!!

Curious about Dr. Myles (education, experience, research, personal, etc.)? See his webpages: Homepage, Research & Personal. Curious about Physics? Go to Physics Central. A more advanced link is Focus News from the American Physical Society. To see that Physics can be Fun, click Here.

Lectures & Exams

COPYRIGHT: Lectures & Exams are copyrighted & owned by C.W. Myles! No reproduction or use of them other than by students in this course is allowed!

Click Here to find out how to reduce the # of pages when printing a Power Point file! Click Here to find out how to get Power Point & Word for free or almost free!

Lecture Page: (Under Construction!) Will have Lectures (Power Point). I'll attempt to post Lectures over material shortly before we cover it in class.

A good strategy is to download Lectures BEFORE I cover the material in class. You can print them, several slides/page. (A page linked above explains this.) So, rather than try to take notes on everything in class, you can follow along on the printed Lectures, making extra notes on them. NOTE:Fall, 2007 Lectures are on the Old Lectures Page. A different book was used then & those are based on it. You might look at them for a different treatment of the material. You might also like to look at my Phys 1403 Lectures, which cover the same material & are based on a book by our author that doesn't use calculus. (1403 is like 1408, but with no calculus).

Exam Page: (Under Construction!) Will have Exams (Word) & Solutions (.jpg). I'll attempt to post new Exams/Solutions shortly after each Exam.

NOTE: Fall, 2007 Exams/Solutions are on the Physics 1408 Exam Page. A different book was used, but the material was the same as in our book & the style & content of those is typical of my Exams. Examples of my Exam style & content can also be found on my Phys 1403 Exam Page, where old Exams/Solutions are posted. (1403 is like 1408, but without calculus). You are strongly encouraged to form study groups to study for exams together! This is how professionals work in real life!! Try to solve old Exams BEFORE looking at the solutions. You CAN'T LEARN PHYSICS by copying solutions!

Homework

On-Line Homework will assigned & graded through Mastering Physics. The homework will come (mostly) from end of chapter problems in our text. Doing homework is the most effective means of learning physics, which is impossible otherwise! Once you register on Mastering Physics, you’ll be able to see & work on assignments. I'll ATTEMPT to post assignments about the same time we start a chapter. They typically will be due at 11:30pm about a week later. There will be several homework sets (+ quizzes, see below!). Pay attention to instructions on Mastering Physics about how homework is scored. You may be able to find homework solutions elsewhere. If so, try to solve problems first without looking at solutions! Copying solutions will not teach you physics!
Instructions for accessing Mastering Physics & registering for it are Here. A document on this is Here. Instructions should also be in the Student Access Kit. If you didn’t get a Student Access Kit with your book, please purchase one ASAP at Mastering Physics!! Mastering Physics isn't at TTU & you should give yourself plenty of time before the deadline for submitting answers. Sometimes the network may be slow or down. NOTE: Mastering Physics is fairly new to me also. So, I'm learning about it as we go. Thank you for your patience & understanding about this!

Quizzes

Quiz Page: (Under Construction!) Will have Quizzes (Word) & Solutions (.jpg). I'll attempt to post new Quizzes/Solutions shortly after each Quiz.

COPYRIGHT: Quizzes are copyrighted & owned by C.W. Myles! No reproduction or use of them other than by students in this course is allowed!

To try to prevent the large attendance decreases seen in previous sessions, especially on Fridays, a short (10 min.) Quiz will be given EACH FRI., with problems similar to those in Homework. These are averaged with the Homework grade. The Quiz average counts equivalently to 1 Homework assignment. See Syllabus.
NOTE: Fall, 2007 Quizzes/Solutions are on the Phys. 1408 Quiz Page. A different book was used. But the material was the same as in our book & the style & content of those Quizzes is typical of my Quizzes. Examples of my Quiz style & content can also be found on my Phys. 1403 Quiz Page, where many Quizzes/Solutions are posted. (1403 is like 1408, but with no calculus). Note, however, I've used on-line Homework only recently. Before this, the Quizzes were longer. My current Quiz style & content is somewhere between my old Phys. 1403 Quizzes, & my Phys. 1403 Reading Quizzes. You're strongly encouraged to form study groups to study for exams together! This is how professionals work in real life! Try to solve old Quizzes BEFORE looking at the solutions. You CAN'T LEARN PHYSICS by copying solutions!