Physics 2415 is a calculus-based introductory physics course covering electricity and magnetism along with a general treatment of waves and wave optics. It is part of the required curriculum for several Engineering School majors.
Lectures: MTWRF 10:30 - 11:30, 11:45 - 12:45
Discussion Sessions: MTWRF 9:00 - 10:00
Location: Physics Room 205
Instructor: Blaine Norum, Room 136 Physics Building, [O] (434) 924-6789, [C] (434) 953-6087, e-mail:ben@virginia.edu.
Office hours: Open, Rooms 136 or B17 or B18 in the Physics Building.
Required text:
Author: Giancoli
Title: Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern Physics 4/E
Publisher: Prentice Hall
Edition: 4
The aim of this course,
which is a continuation of Physics 1425 and has as a prerequisite the material
of that course, is to teach you to understand the physical world and to solve
problems about that world. Both elements are important to you.
Your grade in
the course will depend on your ability to solve problems. You will achieve such
an ability by understanding the basic concepts and by practicing on a large
variety of problems. The lectures are oriented
towards helping you understand why and how we understand what we do about
physics, not simply towards helping you learn how to plug into formulas in order
to get numerical answers. There are
extensive discussion sessions, led by a teaching assistant, where problem
examples will be treated more explicitly. Understanding the concepts
is the best long-term way for you to be able to solve the problems
that an engineer or scientist faces.
Problem solving skills are honed by doing problems. You should
look at more problems than the ones assigned as homework, at least to convince
yourself that
you would know how to handle them. Feel free to consult with each other on how
to do the problems,
but don't put yourself in the position of copying answers from your partner(s).
And, to validate your approach
to any given problem, feel free to consult the TA (or the course instructor).
But be aware that the TA has been instructed not to "do your homework for you."
Note: No make-up tests are given! With a valid excuse before the test, the remaining elements of the course will be appropriately averaged. Without a valid excuse before the test, the test grade will be zero.
The midtem exams will be a mixture of problems (like the ones you do in the homework or in the discussion sessions) and of conceptual, multiple choice questions.
Friday, August 2, 9:00-12:00
Homework problems will be posted on this syllabus and will be due each morning at 10:30. The homework problems have to be worked in full and clearly on paper. The homework should either be pledged or, if you do it in collaboration with some other student, should contain the statement "this homework was done in collaboration with xxyy".
Getting help on the homework:
- Zhongzheng (Jeremy) Tian will hold his Discussion Session between 9:00-10:00 each morning in Room 205. Jeremy will be available for help with problems or lecture material. During these sessions, you will be reminded of the basic concepts you have learned in class and then will be shown how to solve various problems related to the ones assigned as homework. No new material will be introduced in the Discussion Sessions.
Attendance at all lectures is strongly recommended. You are responsible for all assigned material, whether it is presented in lecture or not. You are also responsible for knowing the problem assignments and for any announcements that may be made in lecture of changes in the assignments, schedule, etc.
| Session | Date | Topic | Chapter |
| #1 | Monday, July 8 | Electric Charge and Electric Field | 21 |
| #2 | Tuesday, July 9 | Electric Fields and Gauss's Law | 21, 22 |
| #3 | Wednesday, July 10 | Electric Potential | 23 |
| #4 | Thursday, July 11 | Capacitance, Dielectrics, Electric Energy Storage | 24 |
| #5 | Friday, July 12 | Electric Currents and Resistance | 25 |
| #6 | Monday, July 15 | DC Circuits | 26 |
| #7 | Tuesday, July 16 | Magnetism | 27 |
| #8 | Wednesday, July 17 | Sources of Magnetic Field | 28 |
| #9 | Thursday July 18 | Electromagnetic Induction and Faraday's Law | 29 |
| #10 | Friday July 19 | Catch up & review | |
| #11 | Monday, July 22 | Inductance, Electromagnetic Oscillations, and AC Circuits | 30 |
| #12 | Tuesday, July 23 | Wave Motion | 15 |
| #13 | Wednesday, July 24 | Sound | 16 |
| #14 | Thursday, July 25 | Maxwell's Equations and Electromagnetic Waves | 31 |
| #15 | Friday, July 26 | Light: Reflection and Refraction | 32 |
| #16 | Monday, July 29 | Lenses and Optical Instruments | 33 |
| #17 | Tuesday, July 30 | The Wave Nature of Light; Interference | 34 |
| #18 | Wednesday, July 31 | Diffraction and Polarization | 35 |
Final exam Friday, August 1 9:00-12:00
All problem sets are due at 10:30 each morning.