PH231:
An algebra-based course in which students learn to mathematically describe geometrical optics, thermodynamics, and electricity & magnetism through lectures, laboratory assignments, and problem assignments. Topics include sound waves, calorimetry, ideal gases, mirrors, lenses, resistors, capacitors, voltage, current, magnetic fields, and spectroscopy.
Meeting Times, Location, & Course Delivery Details
Contact Information
Upon successful completion of this course…
1. The student will be able to establish an appropriate approach to solving that problem concerning
thermodynamics, electricity and magnetism, or optics.
2. The student will be able to develop appropriate methods for keeping laboratory data and establish
appropriate approaches to preparing lab reports to present that data.
TEXT: College Physics. 10th Edition, Serway, and Vuille, Published by Brooks/Cole, 2015, ISBN #978-1-285-73702-7
Lab Manual. Same as previous term (available in bookstore)
ADDITIONAL MATERIALS: A graphing calculator will be helpful for this class.
IMPORTANT DATES: Last Add Date - January 17; Last Drop Date - March 26; Final Exam - May 7, 2025, 10:15 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVE: The lecture portion of this course (PHYS 231) serves as an introductory course in college physics. It is the objective of this course to give students a strong enough background in physics that, when they are presented with a problem involving simple harmonic motion, sound waves, thermodynamics, electricity and magnetism, or optics, they are able to establish an appropriate approach to solving that problem. The laboratory portion of this course (PHYS 231L) serves to give students experience in a laboratory environment, develop appropriate methods for keeping laboratory data, and establish appropriate approaches to preparing lab reports to present that data.
CATALOG DESCRIPTION: A continuation of PH230. Topics include sound, thermodynamics, electricity, magnetism, and optics. Laboratory. Prerequisite: PH230 or approval
MATERIAL TO BE LEARNED: Topics to be covered include: sound waves, temperature, kinetic theory of gases, the laws of thermodynamics, electric and magnetic forces and fields, optics, electric potential and capacitance, electric circuits. It is our goal to cover chapters 10-25 from the text over the course of the semester.
COURSE OUTLINE:
Chapter | Title | Lecture |
13 | Vibrations and Waves | January 13 |
14 | Sound | January 15, 17, 22, 24 |
22 | Reflection and Refraction of Light | January 27, 29, 31 |
23 | Mirrors and Lenses | February 3, 5, 7 |
24 | Wave Optics | February 10, 12, 14 |
25 | Optical Instruments | February 17, 19, 21 |
10 | Thermal Physics | February 24, 26, 28 |
11 | Energy in Thermal Processes | March 3, 5, 7 |
12 | The Laws of Thermodynamics | March 17, 19, 21 |
| Foucault Pendulum Data analysis | March 24 |
15 | Electric Forces and Fields | March 26, 28, 31 |
16 | Electric Energy and Capacitance | April 2, 4 |
17 | Current and Resistance | April 7, 9 |
18 | Direct Current Circuits | April 11, 14, 16 |
19 | Magnetism | April 21, 23, 25 |
28 | Atomic Spectra | April 28, 30, May 2 |
| Lab Schedule | |
| Topic | Dates |
| Sound waves | January 21, 22 |
| Snell’s Law | January 28, 29 |
| Geometrical Optics | February 4, 5 |
| Diffraction | February 11, 12 |
| Optical Instruments | February 18, 19 |
| Ideal Gases | February 25, 26 |
| Calorimetry | March 4, 5 |
| NO LAB Spring Break | March 8-14 |
| Foucault Pendulum – Data Gathering | March 17-22 |
| NO LAB | March 25, 26, April 1 |
| Capacitors | April 2, 8 |
| Resistors | April 10, 15 |
| NO LAB | April 16 |
| Magnetic Fields | April 22, 23 |
| Spectral Lines | April 29, 30 |
HOMEWORK POLICY
PHILOSOPHY
I assign quite a bit of homework. It is my strong belief that practice at any particular thing is necessary to improve one’s skills. As a result, many homework problems help you to practice and improve your physics skills. Your homework is 15% of your total grade, but it should be the easiest 15%. If you make a real effort at the homework, I will give you full credit irrespective of whether your answer is 100% correct. That being said, a “real effort” is not considered to copy down the answers for the odd numbered problems in the back of the book. Nor is it considered a “real effort” to do the homework well after it is due. Each homework assignment is a tool to 1) generate inclass questions for the next class period and 2) to give you practice before the next test.
LENGTH OF ASSIGNMENTS
I expect you to get practice, I do not expect you to pound your head against the wall. Only work on each assignment for a maximum of 4 hours. This is a four hour class, and thus you should expect to spend at least 8 hours on this class outside of class per week (two hours for each in-class hour). If it is taking you longer than that, either I made too long an assignment, or you do not “get it” and you aren’t getting good practice anyway. STOP AFTER FOUR HOURS. Write on your homework paper that you worked for four hours and only got so far. I will be able to tell if you really worked hard or not. The additional class time will be expected to be spent on the lab reports and preparing for tests and quizzes.
HOMEWORK ASSESSMENT
I will expect each of you to keep your homework assignments organized in a notebook. I do not care if it is a simple spiral notebook, a three ring binder, or something else. I will collect this homework notebook to evaluate during tests. This way, I will not carry your homework with me, and you will have your work back so that you can work on the next assignment in the same notebook. I will not accept the notebook any later than the day I am scheduled to receive it without a doctor’s note. I will expect all work to be shown for each problem.
| Chapter | Pages | Problems |
| 14 | 516-520 | 1, 3, 5, 8, 23, 27, 39, 41, 49, 50, 53 |
| 22 | 794-797 | 1 ,3, 5, 9, 11, 17, 19, 25, 31 |
| 23 | 829-832 | 7, 11, 13, 18, 31, 33, 35, 47 |
| 24 | 864-867 | 1, 3, 9, 17, 19, 31, 33, 37, 39, 41 |
| 10 | 362-364 | 1, 3, 9, 11, 15, 19, 29, 33, 37, 41, 43 |
| 11 | 395-399 | 3, 9, 11, 15, 17, 18, 19, 25, 27, 35, 45, 47 |
| 12 | 439-442 | 1, 3, 17, 21, 35, 37 |
| 15 | 551-555 | 1, 5, 9, 11, 19, 23, 27, 49 |
| 16 | 593-596 | 1, 7, 11, 13, 17, 23, 27, 29, 33, 35, 37, 39, 41, 45 |
| 17 | 621-623 | 1, 3, 10, 15, 17, 23, 27, 33, 39, 44 |
| 18 | 652-655 | 1, 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, 17, 19, 21, 30, 31 |
| 19 | 690-696 | 2, 5, 9, 17, 33, 35, 45, 47, 63 |
| 28 | 967-969 | 1, 2, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15 |
EVALUATION: GRADING SCALE(%):
11 Quizzes (drop one) 45% A > 92.5, 89.5 < A- < 92.5 12
Lab Experiments 10% 86.5< B+ < 89.4, 82.5< B < 86.4, 79.5 < B- < 82.4 5
Laboratory Reports 35% 76.5< C+ < 79.4, 72.5< C < 76.4, 69.5 < C- < 72.4
Homework & Worksheets 10% 66.5< D+ < 69.4, 59.5< D < 66.4, F < 59.4
Instructor Course Policies
More than three unexcused absences will significantly lower your grade. Of course, if you miss many classes, your grade will already be lower naturally. On quizzes and exams, students must show their work in order to receive full credit. If calculators are used extensively, then the student should express in words the process that they are performing with their calculators. In the case of excused absence, the student is responsible for calling or emailing the professor ahead of the class they expect to miss and is also responsible for obtaining a note from a professional documenting the reason for absence and the dates. See the current Student Handbook for the college Attendance Policy especially as it pertains to excused absences.
Any instance of cheating will result in a zero for the assignments, may result in a "F" grade for the course, and could result in referral for judicial review. See the current Student Handbook for the college's Academic Integrity policies as they pertain to examinations, plagiarism, classroom behavior, and the process for handling academic misconduct charges. Cell Phone use in the classroom, including texting, is prohibited. Each instance of texting detected by the instructor during the course of class time will result in an immediate pop quiz for the entire class over the day's material. Such quizzes may recur as often as ten times in one class period.
Structure
In general, one or two class meetings will present material, and the next class session will have a quiz over that material, followed by a lab on the same material. The next meeting after the lab will be the appropriate time to turn in the lab reports from the preceding section.
Lab Reports
I believe that probably the most important thing that a student can get from a physics class is learned in the labs. This learning includes multiple parts:
• Performance of the lab experiment
• Analyzing the data from the experiment
• Utilizing data analysis tools, such as graphs and tables to organize and present data
• Synthesis of data and experiment into a laboratory report.
The lab manual which I have prepared for the course includes not only the instructions for the labs we will perform in class but also includes a section that describes what I expect in a lab report. During the course of the semester, we will perform 12 distinct labs. All students are expected to perform all 12 labs. In addition, each individual student will be expected to write lab reports, as outlined in the laboratory manual, for 5 of those labs. The performance of the labs, as well as the reports will account for 35 % of the course grade.
Institutional and Program-Level Policies
All exams will follow the Final Exam Schedule. Students scheduled to take three or more final examinations on one day may request to arrange their examination schedule, so no more than two exams occur on one day.
Requests for early or late exams are considered only under extreme circumstances. Prior to the exam period, the student must file a written request on the Early/Late Exam Form available in the Student One Stop Center, Academic Records, and on the WC portal. The form must be signed by the Instructor and the Academic Dean, approving the alternate exam time. This process must be completed prior to the scheduled exam period.
Undergraduate: SP25 Final Exam Schedule Graduate:
Out-of-class Work Expectation A minimum of 2 hours of out-of-class student work is expected for each hour of in-class time for traditional face-to-face courses. For online and hybrid courses, the combination of face-to-face time and out-of-class work should be equal to 3 hours per credit hour per week. |
Instructional Course Delivery |
Academic Integrity Policy The use of generative AI is prohibited except where expressly allowed in assignment instructions. |
Class Attendance Policy |
Accessibility and Disability Services
Accessibility and Disability Services
Wilmington College provides accommodations and services for student with a variety of disabilities, including chronic illnesses, psychological, physical, medical, learning, and sensory disability amongst others. If you anticipate or experience barriers based on disability and feel you may need a reasonable accommodation to fulfill the essential functions of this course, you are encouraged to contact:
Spencer Izor, Associate Vice President of Compliance - Title IX/ADA Coordinator at spencer.izor@wilmington.edu or 937-481-2365 or Nathan Flack, Academic Resource Manager at 937-481-2208 to learn more about the process and procedures for requesting accommodations, or by visiting College Hall Room 306a or the Robinson Communication Center, Room 103.
Religious Accommodations
Wilmington College strives for an inclusive climate and welcomes students from all backgrounds, faiths, and experiences. If religious observance impedes your ability to participate fully in classroom activities or a principal holiday from your religious tradition occurs during the semester and conflicts with class meetings or activities, please make the professor aware of this immediately to determine if a reasonable accommodation is possible.