Program Overview

Phys 101 Course Description

The Phys 101 course covers various topics in physics, including particle kinematics and dynamics, conservation of energy and linear momentum, rotational kinematics, rigid body dynamics, conservation of angular momentum, gravitation, simple harmonic motion, and the statics and dynamics of fluids.

Textbook

The textbook used for this course is "Principles of Physics" by Halliday, Resnick, and Walker, 10th Edition, published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc. in 2014.

Teaching Method

The course material is presented in 3 hours of lectures per week, with problem-solving techniques shown in 1 hour of recitation per week. Laboratory work is also an essential part of the course, with 3 hours of lab sessions per week. All classes, including lectures and recitation, start from the first week, while labs begin from the second week.

Course Learning Outcomes

Upon successfully completing the course, students can:

1. Solve kinematic problems involving motion of a point particle in one, two, and three dimensions, including vector operations.
2. Formulate and apply Newton's laws that govern the mechanics of a point particle.
3. Understand the concepts of mechanical energy and linear momentum and apply their conservation laws to analyze simple mechanical systems.
4. Solve kinematic and dynamic problems involving rotation of a rigid body about a fixed axis and smooth rolling motion.
5. Extend the rules of basic mechanics of translational motion to circular and orbital motions.
6. Solve problems related to static equilibrium of extended bodies under the action of forces and/or torques.
7. Analyze and solve basic static and dynamic fluid problems.
8. Explain the oscillatory motion in one and two dimensions and solve problems for simple mechanical systems.
9. Operate basic laboratory equipment, collect and plot data, write results, and draw conclusions in a concise report.

Attendance Policy

• A DN grade is given to a student with 3 or more unexcused absences in the lab.
• A DN grade is given to a student with more than 12 unexcused absences in lecture and recitations.
• A W grade is given to a student with a total of more than 20 absences (excused and unexcused), provided the number of unexcused absences is less than 13.
• A W grade is given to a student with 4 or more absences in labs, provided the unexcused absences are 2 or less.
• One extra point is given to a student with 5 or less unexcused absences in lecture and recitation.

Assessment

The grading policy is as follows:

• Class Work: 15%
• Lab Work: 15%
• First Major Exam (Chapters 1-6): 20%
• Second Major Exam (Chapters 7-11): 20%
• Final Exam (Comprehensive covering Chapters 1-15): 30% Total: 100%

Lab Policy

• The lab grade constitutes 15% of the Phys 101 course grade.
• The grade is based only on the evaluation of submitted lab reports.
• Students' lab reports should be graded and returned within one week of submission.
• The final lab grade will be normalized to 12/15.

Lab Schedule

The lab schedule is provided, with specific dates and topics for each lab session.

Office Hours

Office hours for instructors are provided, allowing students to seek help outside of class time.