Phys104 - How Things Work
University
of Maryland, College Park
Fall 2009
Professor:
Ted Jacobson
Room 4115 (Physics
Bldg.), 301-405-6020, jacobson_at_umd.edu
Office hours: After
class, or by appointment.
Class meetings: MWF 2:00-2:50pm, Room PHY 1410
Grader: Jennifer Czaplicki, jczap2_at_umd.edu.
E-mail:
I
encourage students to make use
of e-mail for quick correspondence with me regarding lecture material,
homework problems, or whatever. I will also use e-mail to communicate
with the class at large. I can often be reached
at night or on weekends
by email. Students are responsible
for making sure I have their
correct
email address
and checking their email daily. Important messages will
sometimes
be sent to the class by email.
Homework
Policies:
- Usually assigned once or twice weekly, usually due Monday and/or
Friday.
- Please make sure you
include your
name and the homework and course numbers, and staple the pages
together.
- Late homework accepted only
under dire
circumstances: if you know it will be impossible to turn in an
assignment on time
you
must discuss this with me in advance
of the due date. Medical reasons accepted only with
a doctor's note.
- Homework must be turned in to Dr. Jacobson (not to our grader).
<>You are encouraged to discuss the homework with fellow students,
with Jennifer (our grader/tutor), or with Dr. Jacobson.
Discussing physics helps enderstanding!
- Beware: if you just copy
someone's answers, you won't be well prepared for the exams!
Exams:
Two mid-terms and
a final exam (Thursday, Dec 17, 1:30pm-3:30pm). The final will
just be a third "mid-term".
If you know
ahead of time that you will miss an exam you must notify me before the exam. For
emergencies, I will
accomodate those with valid, doumented excuses and
who have given me timely notification.
Grading: The
course grade will be based on the homework and exams. The lowest
two homework scores will be dropped.
The exam grades will be uniformly
"shifted
upwards" if I deem necessary. The relative weights will be
adjusted at the end
of the semester to maximize the total for each
student, with the homework in the range 15-25% and each of the
mid-terms in
the
range 15-35%. In practice, this means that your weights are either 25%
for hw and 15,25,35% for your exams, or
15% for hw and 15,35,35% for exams, whichever assignment of weights
maximizes your total score. The
letter grades
corresponding to numerical scores will be
determined after reviewing the class performance as a whole.
Tips for
doing well :
- Freely
ask questions in class.
- Read the textbook.
- <>Do all of the homework problems. This is mostly where you
learn,
and there is a strong correlation between
<>homework and exam grades.
- Seek help immediately if you don't understand the material.
Academic
honesty: The University of Maryland, College Park has a
nationally recognized Code of Academic Integrity,
administered by
the Student Honor Council. This Code sets standards for academic
integrity at Maryland for all undergraduate
and graduate
students. As a student you are responsible for upholding these
standards for this course. It is very important
for you to be
aware of the consequences of cheating, fabrication, facilitation, and
plagiarism. For more information on the
Code of Academic
Integrity or the Student Honor Council, please visit
http://www.shc.umd.edu.
The University has adopted an Honor Pledge, which is a statement
undergraduate and graduate students are asked to write
by hand and sign
on examinations, papers, or other academic assignments not specifically
exempted by the
instructor.
The Pledge reads: "I pledge on my honor that I have not
given
or received any unauthorized assistance on this
assignment/examination."
In this course it is assumed that all students have entered the
University
agreeing to the
honor principle which would apply in general to all
campus
activities, so usually no specific statement is required.