Syllabus for Relativity and Intro Quantum (Modern Physics)

Class meets MTThF 1:15-2:30

• Week 1: Rotational Motion and Equlibrium
• Week 2: Maxwell's Equations
• Week 3: Justification of and Kinematics of Special Relativity
  • Exam #1 distributed Friday 9/6, due at the start of class Monday 9/9
• Week 4: Energy in Relativity; Oscillations and Waves
• Week 5: Experimental Justification of Quantum Mechanics
  • Exam #2 distributed Tuesday 9/24, due at the start of class Thursday 9/26
• Week 6: Models of the Atom
• Week 7: Wave Properties of Matter
  • Finals: Self-scheduled final exam.

Notes:

• In the first semester we will possibly cover the first five chapters with a visit to rotation and oscillations and waves from the General Physics text.
• Class meetings will consist of both lecture, group problem-solving, and homework problem-solving.
• There will be regular video lectures to be watched outside of class, as much as 100 additional minutes each week.
• Office hours will be OPEN: feel free check if I am free, drop in any time, or make an appointment for any time (evenings and weekends are okay). You can view my schedule.
• There will be a homework assignments most class days. 3-5 homework problems and/or reading will usually be assigned to be due the next class (or later). Homework and solutions will be mostly from the text (onExpert TA) and will be posted on Moodle.
• There will be two exams during the semester plus a final. Dates of the exams are above. For now, I am planning on semester and final exams being timed, closed-book (but allowing limited notes), and self-scheduled over two days.  
• Grading and policy are described at this link.

Moodle will be used for homework assignments and solutions, exam hints and solutions, schedule changes and guidelines (such as those listed here), so that you can access them anytime. This syllabus is on the web (and linked from Moodle) so that you can access it any time.

Objectives:

• Students will understand the role and nature of theory explaining and predicting events and phenomena.
• Students will understand about the reliability of scientific knowledge and its constant scrutiny and refinement
• Students will understand the assumptions, influencing conditions, and limits of empirical knowledge.
• Students will engage in problem-solving, and will apply physics to solve practical problems.
• Students will understand the contributions of physics to society, including its social, cultural, and economic significance.
• Students will understand the relationship of physics and other sciences to mathematics, the design process, and technology
• Each section of the text introduces another step or discovery in the historical development of physics, so the student will understand the historical development of scientific concepts and scientific reasoning