PHYS 117V – Dynamics and Waves – Syllabus - Fall 2021

Official calendar description

PHYS 117 Dynamics and Waves

Kinematics including curvilinear motion. Forces and Newton's laws of motion. Work-energy theorem, conservation of energy. Conservation of momentum, collisions. Torque, rotational dynamics, angular momentum. Oscillations and waves. Please consult the Faculty of Science credit exclusion list: http://www.calendar.ubc.ca/vancouver/index.cfm?tree=12,215,410,414.

Credits: 3

Pre-reqs: One of PHYS 12, PHYS 100.

Co-reqs: One of MATH 100, MATH 102, MATH 104, MATH 110, MATH 120, MATH 180, MATH 184.

Course description and main learning goals

In this course, we will help you develop your scientific thinking skills as well as your reasoning, team problem solving and sense-making skills. The topics discussed focus on classical mechanics. After taking this course, students should be able to:

• Describe the motion of an object under the influence of forces.
• Explain Newton’s three laws and give examples in both linear and rotational motion.
• List fundamental conservation laws and explain their meaning.
• Use algebra, vector calculus and graphs to solve problem questions.
• Efficiently work in small groups and appreciate the contributions of their classmates

Textbook and other tools used in the course

edX.edge:  Our textbook, pre-class readings, homework, worksheet questions and materials for tutorials are all hosted at our edge.edX course (which you have found, congratulations!). The site contains all reading, all worksheet questions and all homework. You will need to create an account (free) on edge.edX. Please keep track of the username you use on edge.edX. I will ask you for it (so that I can download your marks). The relevant reading and many of the homework problems are taken from the following textbook:

OpenStax University Physics Volume 1:  The textbook is free and has options to view online (recommended), download a PDF, download in iBooks. https://openstax.org/details/books/university-physics-volume-1 Bookmark this site to have access to the full text!

Canvas Learning Management System (canvas.ubc.ca):  On canvas you will find:

• This course syllabus and announcements
• Quizzes
• Additional practice test materials
• Links to lecture slides and lecture recordings
• A link to the course discussion forum (Piazza)

iClicker Cloud: We will be using iClicker Cloud for interactive polling during class. Please visit https://lthub.ubc.ca/guides/iclicker-cloud-student-guide/ for information on creating your iClikcer Cloud account and then click on “iClicker Sync” from within the Physics 117 Canvas course to be able to use this polling software in our course.

Overview of a typical week

A typical week in this course will be as follows:

• Two interactive 80-minute lectures on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Each class will be an interactive lecture. The first 40-60 minutes will be for making sense of the new concepts that you first encountered in your pre-class reading on edX. The next 20-30 minutes of the class will be spent in small groups working on challenging worksheet questions with the support of your Teaching Assistants. After the small group time, we will summarize and revisit any difficulties that came up.
• The Monday tutorials: These will be dedicated to problem-solving activities in smaller groups and getting to know your TA and your fellow students in your tutorial section.
• Pre-class assignments. Preparation for class is important. It is useful to do some reading on edge.edX on the weekly topics and see what you already know. You will find one or two reading questions at the bottom of each section to test yourself. These questions count for marks, but don't worry, you will have many attempts.
• Weekly homework. Your weekly homework assignments are found on edge.edX. We recommend that you complete these homework questions at the end of each week, but if you need extra time, the official due date for these assignments is the day of the final exam.
• Due dates: It is very important to keep up with the course and be prepared for tests and exams. The weekly structure on edge.edX will help you stay organized and be ready for the tests. We decided not to put due dates on the homework. It is your responsibility to do the relevant homework and reading before the relevant quiz, midterm or final exam. To count for marks, your reading and homework questions must be submitted by the day of the final exam.
• Participation. It is very useful to think about a problem and come up with your own ideas to help you figure out how well you understand the material. During class, please contribute your ideas and ask questions. When you get stuck on a homework question, please use Piazza to ask a specific question (we will provide some suggestions for how best to ask questions about homework on Piazza). Participation on Piazza will count towards your overall participation mark. You don't have to do much: just three Piazza activities per week (on average) will give you 100%. As activities, we count (1) asking a question, (2) answering a question, (3) viewing a question.

Tentative Schedule

 

Grade Breakdown

Notes:

• To pass this course, you must have a final overall grade of 50% or higher and earn 50% or higher for your combined grade from the Midterm and Final Exam, as calculated above. If this combined exam score is below 50%, your overall course grade will be 45% or your actual course grade, whichever is lower.
• We will replace your Piazza grade with the final exam mark, in case your final exam mark is better.

Midterm and Final exams: The material on both exams is cumulative (all weeks prior to the exam). The midterm exam will have a duration of 75 minutes and the final exam will be 150 minutes long.

COVID-19 Safety in the Classroom

Masks: Masks are required for all indoor public spaces on campus, including classrooms, as per the BC Public Health Officer orders and UBC policy. For our in-person meetings in this class, it is important that all of us feel as comfortable as possible engaging in class activities while sharing an indoor space. For the purposes of this order, the term “masks” refers to medical and non-medical masks that cover our noses and mouths. Masks are a primary tool to make it harder for Covid-19 to find a new host. You will need to wear a medical or non-medical mask for the duration of our class meetings, for your own protection, and the safety and comfort of everyone else in the class. You may be asked to remove your mask briefly for an ID check for an exam, but otherwise, your mask should cover your nose and mouth. Please do not eat in class. If you need to drink water/coffee/tea/etc, please keep your mask on between sips.

Mask Exemptions: Students who need to request an exemption to the indoor mask mandate must do so based on one of the grounds for exemption detailed in the PHO Order on Face Coverings (COVID-19). Such requests must be made through the Center for Accessibility (info.accessibility@ubc.ca). Mask wearing protects you as well as others in your environment. Let’s do everything we can as a community to stop the spread of this virus. If you do apply for an exemption, your instructors (Joss & Guy) would greatly appreciate it if you let us know through an email.

Vaccination: If you have not yet had a chance to get vaccinated against Covid-19, vaccines are available to you and free. Vancouver Coastal Health is holding a drop-in clinic on September 8th & 9th---no appointment required. Otherwise, the fastest way to get vaccinated is to register at the BC Provincial website. The higher the rate of vaccination in our community overall, the lower the chance of spreading this virus. You are an important part of the UBC community. Please arrange to get vaccinated if you have not already done so.

Seating in class: To reduce the risk of Covid transmission, please sit in a consistent area of the classroom each day. This will minimize your contacts and will still allow for the pedagogical methods planned for this class to help your learning.

Your personal health

If you’re sick, even with mild symptoms, it’s important that you stay home – no matter what you think you may be sick with (e.g., cold, flu, other). 

• A daily self-health assessment is required before attending campus. Every day, before coming to class, complete the self-assessment for Covid symptoms using the BC Self-Assessment Tool.
• Do not come to class if you have Covid symptoms, have recently tested positive for Covid, or are required to quarantine. You can check this website to find out if you should self-isolate or self-monitor.
• Your precautions will help reduce risk and keep everyone safer. In this class, the course delivery and assessment is intended to provide flexibility so that you can prioritize your health and still be able to succeed:
• All lectures will be recorded so you can catch-up on content if you need to miss class. Guy’s section will also be streamed over Zoom so you can continue to engage and ask questions during the live lecture if you need to stay home.
• Homework and worksheets are online via edX and do not have due dates (see below for details).
• Quizzes will be online via Canvas, and all tests during term-time (including the Mid-Term) are redeemable via the Final Exam if you cannot attend (see below for details).
• Be sure to post all of your questions on the course content to Piazza and help answer your peers’ questions regardless of whether you are attending in-person or virtually!

We have tried to make the course content as accessible as possible so no-one feels their learning will be hindered if they need to stay at home for COVID safety reasons. However, engaging the course content with your peers during in-person workshop questions will produce the best learning outcomes for you, so it is in your interest to attend lectures in-person when you are feeling healthy! Communicating physics is an important learning goal and students always say that discussing problems with your friends is one of the best ways to learn.

Instructor health

If I (the instructor) am sick: I will do my best to stay well, but if I am ill, develop Covid symptoms, or test positive for Covid, then I will not come to class. If that happens, here’s what you can expect:

• Guy, Joss or one of the TAs will substitute for me for a regular in-person lecture.
• I will teach the course over Zoom with the TAs in the classroom with you to answer questions, or
• We will run the class completely online.

Policy for missed quizzes, exams, classes, and assignments

We expect you to participate regularly in class, complete the homework in a timely manner, and attempt all questions on tests and exams. This is simply necessary to be successful in physics. However, we do not want to burden you with extra administrative tasks, especially if you need to catch up because you were ill. This is reflected in our policies for missed work:

• Quizzes: Quizzes will be Canvas quizzes, available all of the Friday on the weeks they are scheduled. Any marks lost due to incorrect answers or a missed quiz will be applied to the final exam. As an example, if you answered 80% of the quiz questions correctly on the term, you would earn a full 8% for your quiz grade and your final exam would be worth 37% (35% + 2%) of your final grade.
• Missed midterm: If you miss the midterm, we will replace the grade of your missed midterm test with your final exam mark. In general, the final exam is a bit more difficult than the midterm exam.
• Homework due dates: There is no weekly deadline for any of the materials on edge.edX (homework, tutorials, readings, etc). However in order to keep up with the course we strongly urge you to complete all homework at the end of a given week. There is a hard cut-off for completing homework, which is at the start of the final exam. There will be no exceptions. We strongly recommend against leaving edge.edX materials until the last minute, it is virtually impossible to cover all the material at the end of term.
• Missed final exam: (see https://science.ubc.ca/students/advising/exams): Students are responsible for keeping on top of their exam schedule and sitting their exams during the regularly scheduled period. Students who miss a final exam due to illness or extreme personal distress can apply for a deferred exam and must submit a request for an academic concession within 48 hours of the missed exam. All appropriate documentation must be submitted within 14 calendar days of the missed exam.
• Important: If you miss a large fraction of the coursework, including both term tests, you will not be eligible for academic concession. In other words, you will not be allowed to write a deferred final exam if you have not completed a significant fraction of the course.

Getting help

You are encouraged to ask questions during class, immediately after class, during office hours or on Piazza. For personal questions, you can post a private question on Piazza (visible only to Guy, Joss and the TAs) or send a message to Guy/Joss via canvas or e-mail.

If you need more help, there are tutoring services available. Here are two options:

• Physsoc: Run by physics students at UBC. Free tutoring and private tutoring available. Also a good option if you are considering a major in physics.
• AMS Tutoring: Free tutoring and private tutoring available.

Academic integrity in PHYS 117

Collaboration is a key component of building skills in this course!

• You should discuss strategies and help each other understand and solve tutorial, worksheet, and homework problems.
• Everyone will have their own numbers to plug in on EdX – this should be done on your own and represent your own understanding.

Assessments (term tests and exams) are designed for you to write on your own.

• You will have full access to the textbook, all notes (worksheets, tutorials, homework). We will not use proctoring software. We trust you.
• Do not communicate with anyone else about the content of your quiz or exam before the assessment has closed (including posting it anywhere online).
• If someone asks you about what’s on a quiz/exam, remind them you can’t say.
• There are serious consequences for academic misconduct (see below).

Academic Honesty and Standards: UBC expects you to behave as an honest and responsible member of our academic community. Breach of those expectations or failure to follow the appropriate policies, principles, rules, and guidelines of the University with respect to academic honesty may result in disciplinary action. You are responsible for informing yourself of the guidelines of acceptable and non-acceptable conduct for graded assignments established by your instructors for your courses and of the examples of academic misconduct set out in the calendar (see http://www.calendar.ubc.ca/vancouver/)

Vantage One language policy

You are strongly encouraged to use English as much as possible, both inside and outside of class. In a class comprised of students from all over the world, it is important that everyone uses English as a common language. This is also a mark of respect and a signal for inclusion. Discussing course concepts in English will not only help you to improve your Academic English and understanding of the course material, but it will benefit your overall level of language proficiency as well. There are times when using your first language while doing course work can be beneficial, but attempt to work in English first and only revert to your first language if absolutely necessary.

Policies and resources to support student success

UBC provides resources to support student learning and to maintain healthy lifestyles but recognizes that sometimes crises arise and so there are additional resources to access including those for survivors of sexual violence. UBC values respect for the person and ideas of all members of the academic community. Harassment and discrimination are not tolerated, nor is suppression of academic freedom. UBC provides appropriate accommodation for students with disabilities and for religious, spiritual and cultural observances. UBC values academic honesty and students are expected to acknowledge the ideas generated by others and to uphold the highest academic standards in all of their actions. Details of the policies and how to access support are available here.

General university policies

You will find UBC’s policies and regulations listed in the calendar. UBC wants us to highlight a few of these policies in our course outlines:

1. The calendar states the expectations of the University regarding academic integrity. All UBC students should be familiar with the following sections in the Calendar: http://www.calendar.ubc.ca/vancouver/index.cfm?tree=3,286,0,0
2. Academic accommodation for students with disabilities: http://www.calendar.ubc.ca/vancouver/index.cfm?tree=3,34,0,0
3. Religious accommodations and exams: http://students.ubc.ca/enrolment/exams/exam-policies/religious-accommodations
4. This syllabus does not override any regulation outlined in the Academic Calendar or any University policy. In case of any discrepancy, Academic Calendar regulations and University policy take precedence.