29:28 Physics II

Electricity & Magnetism

Spring Semester, 2008

Class Schedule: M, W, F 11:30 AM - 12:20 PM, Lec Rm 70

TEXT & LAB MANUAL

• Text: University Physics: Young and Freedman, 12th edition
• Lab Manual: Experiments in Electricity, Magnetism, & Light
  by John A. Goree

INSTRUCTOR & TA INFORMATION

Instructor

• Usha Mallik
• 503 VAN
• 319-335-0499
• usha-mallik@uiowa.edu

Office Hours

• Tuesday: 10:00 AM - 11:30 PM
• Monday: 1:30 PM - 3:00 PM
• Appointments at other times may be arranged, if necessary

Teaching Assistant

• Alan C DenBleyker
• 658B VAN
• Office Hours: M,Tu,W: 9:30am -10:30am
• alan-denbleyker@uiowa.edu
• Ran Lin
• 409 VAN
• ran-lin@uiowa.edu
• Office Hours: M,Tu,Th : 4:30:00-5:00 PM

DESCRIPTION OF THE COURSE

• Physics II, 29:28 is the second of four, one semester courses which comprise the study of the foundations of physics for physics and astronomy majors. This semester will deal with electricity and magnetism. The level of the discussion and lectures assumes that students have completed a course in differential calculus, and have either completed or are taking a course in integral calculus. Differentiation will be freely used; integration will be employed at an appropriate level. Chapter 21 through Chapter 31 with some parts of Chapter 32 from the text book will be covered in the course. Approximately one chapter will be covered in a week on average. A detailed plan for the semester is given below.
• Although this course is intended for physics and astronomy majors, students with adequate mathematical background from other majors are welcome.

COURSE SCHEDULE

• Course Schedule -- The planned schedule for the semester, together with textbook chapters for the readings, is given in the table below. Weekly homework assignments will be posted here as the semester proceeds.

HOMEWORK

• Homework is a crucial component of this course, and every course in physics. There will be approximately 10 problems and exercises from the textbook assigned every week. The standard assignment will be mostly "exercises" with some "problems". These homework assignments will be collected every Friday. To prevent chaos in the grading scheme, and to be fair to all students in the class, late homework will not be accepted. Students are allowed and encouraged to work together in groups of 2 or 3 (not more). Solutions to the homework sets will be posted after they are collected via the ICON website.

EXAMS

• There will be one hour exams in the regular class period during the week of February xx and the week of March xx.
A sample exam from a previous course can be found in Sample Test for First Exam
• The final exam will be at 9:45 AM, Wednesday, May 14.
• All exams will be in the regular classroom, room 70 VAN.

CLASS MEETINGS AND FUNCTIONS

• Regular lectures will be given from 11:30 - 12:20, MWF in Room 70 VAN. Attendance at all lectures is expected, with allowance for reasonable absences.
• There is a recitation section for the course which meets from 12:30 to 1:20 on Thursday in room 301. Student attendance at these sessions is expected, with allowance for reasonable absences. The recitation section will be primarily concerned with discussion of the homework problems. This is genuinely a recitation class, in which students initiate and conduct the discussion. It will not be just another lecture. Plan on coming prepared.

COURSE LABORATORY

• The verification of theories by experiments in the laboratory is fundamental to the science of physics. Similarly, it is fundamental to the study of physics to see demonstrations of the phenomena discussed in lecture, and to make quantitative measurements which confirm the mathematical descriptions in the textbook. All students must attend and participate in the laboratory exercises, which are held in room 353 VAN at 7:00 - 9:50 PM on Monday (Section A17) or 11:30 AM - 2:20 PM on Tuesday (Section A23). Labs are not held the first week, but will begin on the week of January 28. A preliminary schedule of the laboratory projects is given in the course schedule above. Please Note: Students in the lab should work individually, or with one other student as a lab partner (preferred). Mob scenes of 3,4, or N students working with one setup are verboten. We have enough equipment for all the students in pairs, and the learning environment is improved.

GRADING POLICY

• Grades will be determined by the total score in the three major areas of this class: one-hour examinations, homework, laboratory work. The weight given to these areas is as follows: Homework: 30 % of overall score, Laboratory: 25 % of overall score, Hour Exams: 15 % for each exam, or 45 % for the sum of the three exams. The "benchmark" grading scale, giving the relation between the score as defined above, and the approximate letter grade, is given below.

Score (% possible points)	Letter Grade
85	A
75	B
60	C
50	D
<50	F

• Plus and minus grades will be assigned when the total score is within about 2 points of the grade boundary as defined in the table above (i.e. a score of 86.5 would be an A-).
• A general description of College of Liberal Arts grading policies can be found in the following links. "Plus and Minus Grading" and " Grade Distribution")

COURSE WEB PAGE

• There is a web page associated with this class. It will be maintained as an expanded and updated version of this syllabus. Go to Course Syllabus and Information Clearinghouse

DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICS & ASTRONOMY MAIN OFFICE

• 203 Van Allen Hall
• 319-335-1686
• Chair -- Professor Thomas F. Boggess at thomas-boggess@uiowa.edu

AMOUNT OF WORK EXPECTED

• The College guideline is that one semester hour of credit is the equivalent of approximately three hours of work (class time + out-of-class preparation) each week over the course of a whole semester. In a typical lecture/discussion course, each hour of class normally entails at least two hours of outside preparation for the average student (e.g., in a three-credit-hour lecture course, standard out-of-class preparation is six hours per week). This standard is the basis on which the Registrar's Office assigns hours of University credit for courses.

Registration:

• Changes in course registration including adding, dropping, and changes in sections, will be made by office personnel in Room 203 VAN between the hours of 8-12 and 1-5 Mon-Fri. If you are taking this course as a second grade option, your TA needs to be notified.

Tutoring:

• Teaching Assistants will be available for free tutoring in room 54 VAN during the hours posted (to be published later). Students are permitted to seek help from classmates (maximum group size 2-3) in preparing their homework. While you are encouraged to seek help from TA's, do not expect them to do your homework for you.

 

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Policies and Procedures

Administrative Home
The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is the administrative home of this course and governs matters such as the add/drop deadlines, the second-grade-only option, and other related issues. Different colleges may have different policies. Questions may be addressed to 120 Schaeffer Hall or see the Academic Handbook. www.clas.uiowa.edu/students/academic_handbook/index.shtml

Academic Fraud
Plagiarism and any other activities when students present work that is not his or her own are academic fraud. Academic fraud is reported to the departmental DEO and to the Associate Dean for Academic Programs and Services who enforces the appropriate consequences. www.clas.uiowa.edu/students/academic_handbook/ix.shtm

Making a Suggestion or a Complaint
Students with a suggestion or complaint should first visit the instructor, then the course supervisor and the departmental DEO. Complaints must be made within six months of the incident. www.clas.uiowa.edu/students/academic_handbook/ix.shtml#5

Accommodations for Disabilities
A student seeking academic accommodations should register with Student Disability Services and meet privately with the course instructor to make particular arrangements.
www.uiowa.edu/~sds/

Understanding Sexual Harassment
Sexual harassment subverts the mission of the University and threatens the well-being of students, faculty, and staff. www.sexualharassment.uiowa.edu

Reacting Safely to Severe Weather
In severe weather, the class members will seek shelter in the innermost part of the building, if possible at the lowest level, staying clear of windows and free-standing expanses. (Operations Manual 16.14. i.)

 

Recent update on Jan 24, 2008.
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The Department of Physics and Astronomy is a part of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.