College in High School Course Syllabus
Physics - Phys 0174
Basic Physics for Science and Engineering 1
(4 credits)
This is the first term of a two-term introductory lecture/demonstration sequence in physics for science and engineering students.
Calculus is needed and should be taken at least concurrently. The laboratory course associated with this sequence is taken after Physics 0174.
The grade is determined primarily by three exams during the term and a cumulative final exam. Other work, such as quizzes and homework, may make some contribution to the grade.
Approximately half of the class time each week is spent in covering new material. The remaining time is devoted to activities such as problem solving, demonstrating experiments, questions, and discussion.
The recommended text is Fundamentals of Physics Extended , volume one, 8th edition, by Halliday, Resnick, and Walker. If it is not feasible to use this text, one of comparable level should be used.
The following topics should be covered. The order of topics may be altered as long as all of the material listed before each exam is covered before that exam is given.
Measurement
Units of length, time, mass; in particular the SI system
Unit checking
Changing units
Systems of coordinates
Vectors
Vectors vs. scalars
Magnitude, direction, Cartesian components
Unit vectors i, j, k
Addition and subtraction by geometric and algebraic methods
Multiplication by a scalar
Scalar (dot) product
Vector (cross) product
Motion Along a Straight Line
Position and displacement
Average velocity and average speed
Instantaneous velocity and instantaneous speed
Average acceleration and instantaneous acceleration
Kinematics of constant acceleration
Freely falling bodies
Motion in Two and Three Dimensions
Position and displacement
Average velocity and average speed
Instantaneous velocity and instantaneous speed
Average acceleration and instantaneous acceleration
Projectile motion
Uniform circular motion
Relative velocity and acceleration (it is sufficient to do only the one-dimensional case)
Newton's Laws of Motion
Newton's first law and inertial frames of reference
Newton's second law and concepts of force and mass
Newton's third law
Applications of Newton's Laws
Free-body diagrams
Tension and pulleys
Static and kinetic friction
Inclined planes
Uniform circular motion and centripetal force
EXAM I
Work and Kinetic Energy
Work as a scalar product
Work done by weight
Work done by a variable force
Hooke's law and work done by a spring
Kinetic energy and the work-energy theorem
Power
Potential Energy and Conservation of Energy
Conservative forces and potential energy
Examples: mgh and (1/2)kx2
Conservation of mechanical energy
Work done by nonconservative forces and Wnoncon = Delta E
Conservation of energy (including internal energy)
Systems of Particles
Center of mass
Newton's second law for a system of particles
Linear momentum of a particle and of a system
Conservation of momentum
Collisions
Impulse and the impulse-momentum theorem
Elastic and inelastic collisions in one dimension
Collisions in two dimensions
Rotation
Kinematics of fixed-axis rotation
Linear and angular variables
Moment of inertia and rotational kinetic energy
Torque (including definition as a cross product) and rotational dynamics
Rolling; translational and rotational kinetic energy; conservation of energy
Angular momentum of a particle, a system of particles, and a rigid body
Conservation of angular momentum
EXAM II
Gravitation
Newton's law of universal gravitation
Gravitational potential energy and escape speed
Planets and satellites
Kepler's laws and their relation to conservation laws
Oscillations
Simple harmonic motion resulting from Newton's second law and Hooke's law
Position, velocity, and acceleration in simple harmonic motion
Energy considerations in simple harmonic motion
Simple pendulum
Mechanical Waves
Transverse and longitudinal waves
Wavelength and frequency
Speed of a traveling wave
Waves on a stretched string
Speed, energy, and power of a traveling wave on a stretched string
Principle of superposition; interference
Standing waves
Sound waves
Speed of sound
Interference of sound waves
Doppler effect
EXAM III
Kinetic Theory of Gases
Ideal gases
Pressure, temperature, and rms speed
Translational kinetic energy
Internal energy of an ideal gas
Internal energy and the first law of thermodynamics
Distribution of molecular speeds
Specific heats of an ideal gas
Degrees of freedom
Entropy and the second law of thermodynamics
Statistical view of entropy
FINAL EXAM (cumulative)