College Physics I Syllabus for 2022-2023
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Course

PHYS-1401-001 College Physics I

Prerequisites

Prerequisite: Math 1316

Course Description

Fundamental principles of physics, using algebra and trigonometry; the principles and applications of classical mechanics and thermodynamics, including harmonic motion, mechanical waves and sound, physical systems, Newton's Laws of Motion, and gravitation and other fundamental forces; with emphasis on problem solving. Laboratory activities will reinforce lecture content.

Student ResourcesStudent Resources Website

Department Expectations

Occupational License Disclaimer

Notice to Students enrolled in an educational program for preparation of issuance of certain occupational licenses:

Students enrolled in an educational program in preparation for obtaining certain occupational licenses are potentially ineligible for such license if the student has been convicted of an offense. For further information, please contact:

Melodie Graves
Justice Involved Advocate
Student Service Center 117
mgraves24@actx.edu
806-371-5995
Make appointment at https://melodiegraves.youcanbook.me

You can also contact the Legal Clinic, or the faculty member in charge of the educational program that you seek to enroll in. The further information you will receive will include notification to you of your right to request a criminal history evaluation letter from the licensing authority in order to clarify your particular situation.

Hours

(4 sem hrs; 3 lec, 4 lab)

Class Type

On Campus Course

Syllabus Information

Textbooks

OpenStax Textbook:

College Physics, 1st ed, by Kim Dirks and Manjula Sharma

• The textbook is free for everyone to access online from OpenStax.
• You can also purchase printed copies from the AC Bookstore.
• New and used copies can be purchased on Amazon.

OpenStax Tutor:

The homework will be online and accessed through OpenStax Tutor, a companion service to the textbook. You will need to register for OpenStax Tutor using the link the instructor will provide on Blackboard. OpenStax Tutor cost $10/student to register. This is significantly less costly than similar services. If the student opts to use the digital version of the textbook, $10 this will be the only materials charge for the course.

Lab Manual:

Posted on-line, accessed bia Blackboard

Supplies

Laboratory Binder: You will need and clear and organized method to store your lab manual materials. The instructor recommends using a 3-ring binder with dividers to clearly organize your labs. For each lab, you will have printed lab manual instructions provided by the instructor, any notes or data that you need to record for the labs, and then copies of your group's lab report. 

Graphing Calculator: TI-83, TI-83 Plus, TI-84, or TI-84 Plus. You are required to bring your calculator to every class. The Math Department policy is that no TI-89's, TI-92's or TI-Nspire calculators may be used on tests. 

Feel free to take notes however you wish (paper/pencil or on a computer). You will be responsible for office supplies/materials for taking notes. If cost of office supplies is a barrier to your success, notify the instructor privately or visit the Amarillo College Advocacy & Resource Center (ARC).

Student Performance

Welcome to PHYS 1401 - College Physics I. Physics helps us to understand how the world around us works, from can openers, light bulbs, and cell phones to muscles, lungs, and brains; from paints, piccolos, and pirouettes to cameras, cars, and cathedrals; from earthquakes, tsunamis, and hurricanes to quarks, DNA, and black holes. From the prosaic . . . to the profound . . . to the poetic. . .

Physics helps us to organize the universe. It deals with fundamentals, and helps us to see the connections between seemly independent phenomena. Physics provides quantitative and analytic skills needed for analyzing data and solving problems in the sciences, engineering, and medicine, but can also be applied to economics, finance, management, law, and public policy.

Physics is the basis for most modern technology, and for the tools and instruments used in scientific, engineering, and medical fields. Manufacturing is dominated by physics-based technology. Doctors and other medical professionals that don’t understand physics can be dangerous. Medicine without physics technology would be barbaric.

So get ready for a fun and challenging semester where we begin to unravel how the universe works.

Learning Outcomes Lecture

Upon successful completion of this course, students will:

1. Determine the components of linear motion (displacement, velocity, and acceleration), and especially motion under conditions of constant acceleration.
2. Apply Newton’s laws to physical problems including gravity.
3. Solve problems using principles of energy.
4. Use principles of impulse and linear momentum to solve problems.
5. Solve problems in rotational kinematics and dynamics, including the determination of the location of the center of mass and center of rotation for rigid bodies in motion.
6. Solve problems involving rotational and linear motion.
7. Describe the components of a wave and relate those components to mechanical vibrations, sound, and decibel level.
8. Demonstrate an understanding of equilibrium, including the different types of equilibrium.
9. Discuss simple harmonic motion and its application to quantitative problems or qualitative questions.
10. Solve problems using the principles of heat and thermodynamics.
11. Solve basic fluid mechanics problems.

Learning Outcomes Lab

Upon successful completion of this course, students will:

1. Demonstrate techniques to set up and perform experiments, collect data from those experiments, and formulate conclusions from an experiment.
2. Record experimental work completely and accurately in laboratory notebooks, and communicate experimental results clearly in written reports.
3. Determine the components of linear motion (displacement, velocity, and acceleration), and especially motion under conditions of constant acceleration.
4. Apply Newton’s laws to physical problems including gravity.
5. Solve problems using principles of energy.
6. Describe the components of a wave and relate those components to mechanical vibrations, sound, and decibel level.
7. Use principles of impulse and linear momentum to solve problems.
8. Solve problems in rotational kinematics and dynamics, including the determination of the location of the center of mass and center of rotation for rigid bodies in motion.
9. Solve problems involving rotational and linear motion.
10. Demonstrate an understanding of equilibrium, including the different types of equilibrium.
11. Discuss simple harmonic motion and its application to quantitative problems or qualitative questions.
12. Solve problems using the principles of heat and thermodynamics.
13. Solve basic fluid mechanics problems.

Students Rights and Responsibilities

Student Rights and Responsibilities

Log in using the AC Connect Portal

In order to receive your AC Connect Email, you must log in through AC Connect at https://acconnect.actx.edu .

If you are an active staff or faculty member according to Human Resources, use "Exchange". All other students, use "AC Connect (Google) Email".

Expected Student Behavior

Respect: You are expected to behave in a professional manner towards the instructor and your peers. We will treat each other with respect.

Policy on Cheating and Plagiarism:  Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated in this class.  Cheating includes, but is not limited to, copying from another student's paper, copying from the homework solutions manual, or using any unauthorized sources of information while taking an exam or quiz.  On the first day of class, you will be required to sign and date a Course Contract.  Included in the contract is the following statement:

I fully understand that if I cheat, or attempt to cheat, on any test I will receive an automatic "F" in the course.  This grade will go on my permanent transcript and cannot be removed.  Cheating includes the use of cell phone calculators, the illegal use of books, notes, cell phones, and copying.  Cheating also includes helping, or attempting to help, other students to cheat on a test.

CLASSROOM EXPECTATIONS: You paid good money to take this course, as did your peers. Be considerate of your fellow classmates and help the instructor build an environment suitable for learning. Disruptive behavior will not be tolerated. If you are a distraction to other students, you will be asked to leave the classroom.

LABORATORY EXPECTATIONS: Students will be respectful of all lab equipment used for conducting experiments. It is our privilege to use this equipment which Amarillo College has purchased for our education.

• Be on time
• Be prepared for class
• No disruptive behavior
• Personal Electronics: Cell phones will be silenced during class. If you must take a personal call, step outside the classroom. Personal laptops will be allowed for taking notes if you prefer. If personal electronics usage (cell phone or laptop) becomes a distraction, you will be asked to leave the classroom.
• Life Happens: The instructors understands that you may have to step outside the classroom to handle personal business or use the restroom. There is no need to ask, just quietly excuse yourself. Also be quiet when reentering the classroom. 
• Food and Drink: Amarillo College is proud of it's campus and classrooms. Food will not be allowed in class to avoid messes. Food can also be a distraction to other students. Drinks will only be allowed in sealable cups/bottles (must have a lid). Please do not spill and force to the instructor to not allow drinks.
• Guests/Children:  It is the policy of Amarillo College that only students enrolled in this course attend this course.
• Videos/Photos:  Students must receive instructor consent before taking pictures or videos of the instructor's work or lessons.  You may not take pictures of the white board in lieu of taking hand written notes.  Studies show that handwriting notes is much better for memory retention.

Grading Criteria

GRADING WEIGHTS

The final grades will be computed as the average of the earned grades as follows:

• Homework and In-Class Quizzes....................20%
• Major Exams (3)..............................................45%   (15% each)
• Laboratory Assignments..................................15%
• Final Exam......................................................20%

The scale used to determine your final performance grade is:

• A..........90 to 100
• B..........80 to 89
• C..........70 to 79
• D..........60 to 69
• F..........0 to 59

HOMEWORK

You will have homework each week. The homework will be online and accessed through OpenStax Tutor (which you will access through Blackboard). The instructor will link each homework in Blackboard as well.

The questions will typically be multiple choice, but there will be a free response portion before you answer the multiple choice question. This will give you an opportunity to answer the question in your own words before answering the multiple choice question. Studies show that this can help with learning retention. For every missed multiple choice question, the instructor will review the free response answer. If it looks like the student understood the concept but made a simple math error, he will award partial credit on the problem.

There may be in-class grades such as “pop” quizzes or in-class exercises that will be averaged into the homework grade. If there is a pop quiz, it will be given during the first 5 minutes of class and cannot be made up so please be on time.

LABORATORY ASSIGNMENTS

There will be 10 laboratory experiments throughout the semester. These will be group assignments completed as part of a lab team, and the deliverable will be a lab report. You will not pick your group, the instructor will assign the teams. Each team will turn in one report for each experiment, and all members will share the same lab report grade. Each student will also turn in Teamwork Evaluation for their group members. The report grade may be corrected for an individual student based off the Teamwork Evaluations submitted by the other students on the team. For example, if one student in your team does not show up for a lab, they will receive a zero on that lab report.

Each member of the team will keep their own lab manual that contains copies of the reports and data collected. The lab manual format and contents will be posted to Blackboard.

For each student, the lowest lab report grade will be dropped. That means each student can miss one lab experiment and have that report dropped. If you attend and complete a report for all 10 labs, you lowest lab report will be replaced with a 100% instead of being dropped.

EXAMS

There will be three major exams and a comprehensive final exam. All exams will be administered in class (in which case they must be completed by the end of class). Tests will be closed book, closed notes. If necessary, an equation sheet will be provided with the test. The tests will be completed by hand with a pencil. Tests must be completed neatly and legibly. Partial credit will be received for proper recognition of the problem and solution setup. Partial credit can be given even if you do not finish the problem or solve the problem incorrectly. If in doubt, write out all steps to receive partial credit.

If you are unable to attend class on a test day, you must let the instructor know AS SOON AS POSSIBLE to determine if you're eligible for a make-up test. Unexcused absences on test days will result in an exam grade of ZERO unless there is prior notification of the instructor with approval granted or there is an emergency that could not be circumvented. Students who miss an exam because of Amarillo College or business-related activities should notify the instructor before the absence occurs.  Make-up exams will be given only under rare, extenuating circumstances and at the discretion of the instructor.

TUTORING POLICY

If you receive below a 70% grade on any exam, you must complete 1 hour of tutoring from the Math Academic Success Center (Math Outreach Center) correcting your exam. You must return your corrected exam to the instructor before taking the following exam. You may also meet with the instructor during office hours (or schedule a time to meet outside of office hours) to correct all missed problems on the exam.

NOTE: For each exam, there will be optional reading assignments posted onto OpenStax Tutor. These are guided reading assignments for the chapters for each exam. It will require you to read the book chapters and answer short questions after each section. If the optional reading assignment is completed before the associated exam, the instructor will give 10 bonus points on that exam (5 bonus points for the final exam).

Attendance

Attendance:  Regular attendance is necessary for satisfactory achievement.  Therefore, it is the responsibility of the student to attend class and be on time for daily attendance check.  Nonattendance will be recorded as an absence and no differentiation will be made as to excused or unexcused absences.  Students arriving more than 10 minutes late or leaving class early, prior to instructor dismissal, will be marked absent.

If you are absent for any reason, you are responsible for obtaining the assignments and notes.

Students now have to visit with the instructor and complete a drop request form before being allowed to withdraw from a course.  It is the student's responsibility to obtain additional signatures and turn the form into the registrar once the instructor has signed it before the withdrawal deadline.  If you stop attending class and your average drops below a 60 due to missed assignments and you do not officially drop the course by this deadline, you will receive an F for the course. Note:  Late drops will NOT be given under any circumstances.

Calendar

Additional Information

FREE TUTORING PROVIDED BY AMARILLO COLLEGE

Academic Success Center-Math (Math Outreach Center)

Located at Durrett 104. Phone: 806-371-5119

• Monday - Friday:  8am-8pm
• Saturday:  9am-8pm

Remote Online Tutoring 

Available Via Zoom at https://zoom.us/j/541139851

• Monday:  8am-8pm
• Tuesday - Friday:  8am-11pm
• Saturday:  9am-11am
• Sunday:  2pm-6pm

Amarillo College Advocacy & Resource Center (ARC)

Located Ware Student Commons Suite 108 for walk-in services. For any questions, please call 806-371-5446 or email thearc@actx.edu. Website located at https://www.actx.edu/arc/student-resources.

Provides assistance and resources for:

• Caregiver Resources
• Childcare Resources
• Parenting Assistance
• Housing Assistance
• Food Assistance
• Affordable Clothing
• Transportation Assistance
• Substance Abuse Resources
• Mental Health Resources
• LBGTQ+ Resources
• Veteran Resources
• and more

If there are any barriers to you succeeding in this course, privately let the instructor know. I am here to help you succeed.