HW3 is out

I'm sure you've been eagerly awaiting it. Due at the start of Friday's lecture, we will do very similar problems in class on Thursday.

Lab2: falling objects

Tomorrow you'll analyze the motion of a falling object using a motion sensor. Here is the introduction and procedure. We will start at 10am again, and should have enough time for you to get started on your report during the lab period.

Video analysis software

In case you're curious, you can find the video analysis software I demoed in class today here. Or, search in the app store (sorry, iPhone/iPad only) for "Video Physics", the company is "Vernier." Cost is $2.99.

Also, you don't have to use videos taken from your iPad. You can download videos from the web, or use something you've already recorded and analyze that if you like.

As I mentioned yesterday, Dot Physics is a Wired blog that features a lot of video analysis, and written by a UA Physics Dept. undergrad alum, no less (currently a Prof. at Southeastern Louisiana Univ.). Prof. Allain is really an expert on video analysis like the simple example I showed you, and has some amazing (and crazy) examples of what one can do with a little patience.

Lab report template

The lab report template is now ready. This is just a suggested structure, along with information on what we expect in each section and how it will be graded. The overall length is less important than having all the information present ... but I expect they will run 3 pages or so most of the time. If you need more or less than that and can do a good job, no problem.

I will try before the end of the week to write up an example report in this style to give you an idea of what we have in mind, but feel free to ask questions if anything is unclear.

Homework 2

is out now. Four more problems on 1D motion, due at the start of Thursday's lecture.

Homework 1

Here is your first homework, due Wednesday at the start of lecture. You will have a few homework problems due every day, at the start of the lecture. You can turn them in on paper at that time, or by email at any point before lecture starts.

The problems should be relatively straightforward after Tuesday's lecture (and after you've read Ch. 2 in the text), but you will have time to myself or the TAs questions during Wednesday's lab.

Lab 1: uncertainty analysis

For Wednesday's lab, we'll learn to count cards. Please note that we will start the lab at 10am, rather than 9am, since we will not need the entire period.

Actually, we'll use normal and 'stacked' decks to learn about standard deviation and uncertainty, which we'll use throughout the rest of the lab sessions. Please read the procedure (which includes in introduction to basic statistics) before Wednesday's lab session. This one is longer than usual ... future lab procedures will be much, much shorter.

Each week we will do three labs. As noted in the syllabus, your group will write one lab report per week on the experiment of your choosing, due the following Monday. A template for these reports will be provided. Example raw data for the two experiments you chose not to write about should be included as an appendix in your weekly report, and a portion of your grade will depend on your including this data. You do not need to analyze data from the other experiments or write about it, however.

Resources

Here are some things you will find useful soon. I will go over most of these things in lecture today.

1. Math guide. It is by no means "short" as the title suggests, and I do not expect you to read the entire thing in detail. Rather, treat it as a collection of mathematical facts that you might find useful throughout the course.

2. Problem solving template. I will go over this in lecture, but it is meant to give you a structure you can use to assist in solving problems. It will not make the process purely mechanical, but it should serve to guide your thought process in solving problems (particularly as they get more difficult later on). You are not required to use this template for homework, but it is strongly suggested.

3. Wolfram Alpha. If this thing can't solve your math problem, either it doesn't have a solution or you've posed the question poorly. Try this, or this, or this to see a few things it can do.

4. PH125 solved problems. When I taught PH125 last, I used the same book. Detailed solutions for a good number of problems. Even more to see in the root directory here.

Welcome to PH105!

At the bottom of this page, or on the right sidebar, you will find our course calendar, which you should review carefully. If you click on a lecture and show 'more details' you should see the reading for that lecture. We will stick to our schedule rigidly, as our time is quite short over the summer term.

You may also want to look over the course syllabus and other information, which you find in myBama or here. The slides I will use as a course introduction can be found here, they contain most of the basic course information.

Lastly, you can also follow all of the posts here on Twitter, search for the hashtag #ua-ph105. You can also tweet with that tag to ask questions, if that's how you roll.