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Physics 1205:

The goal of this course is to introduce students to a wide variety of topics in Physics, including motion and its mathematical description, Newton's Laws of Motion, work, energy, rotational motion, waves, and hydrodynamics. This will cover approximately chapters 1-12 in the text, as well as the fundamentals of calculus, how to use Mathematica (which generated the animated equipotential surfaces below), as well as a quantitative lab. This is a large amount for one semester. The course will require a substantial investment of time, a minimum of 10 hours per week outside of class for most students.

This course, along with PHYS-1215, lays the foundation upon which the next three years of the physics curriculum is built. A sound understanding of these fundamentals is essential for future success. I will try to teach you physics not as a tool for a particular field, but physics as a physicist thinks about the material.

Physics is an ideal place to learn the art of quantitative thinking: to learn how to turn a concept in words into something that one can calculate and measure. In order to solve a problem, you must critically examine the information available in a given situation, determine an effective method to approach the problem, and carry through to the solution, including a critical examination of the final answer to see if it is rasonable. These skills will serve you throughout your future careers.

For course details, please go to the Desire2Learn website.

Mathematica Files:

Introduction for Physics 1205