General Science 101

Physics, Chemistry, and the Human Experience HHS 2210

Syllabus

Professor: Dr. Jason T. Haraldsen Office: HHS 2104 Office Phone: 540-568-4173 Office Hours: Tuesdays/Thursdays 9:30am – 10:30pm and Tuesdays 3:30pm – 4:30pm Wednesdays 1:00pm-2:00pm or by appointment

E-mail:

[email protected]

Text: Physics and Technology for Future President, Richard Muller, ISBN 0691135045 I will also be at the Science and Math Learning Center

What are the exams Like?

Making up 70% of your overall grade, exams are critical. You have four exams that are weighed equally. They’re mainly multiple choice (a, b, c, d), but will also have a few longer problems, and possibly some short answer.

The final exam will be cumulative with an emphasis on the last series of chapters. This isn’t the SAT’s - I don’t deduct points for wrong answers, so make sure you put something down for everything.

Make sure you bring a pencil or pen, as well as a calculator!

Syllabus

Attendance is not mandatory except for exams. While attendance is otherwise not required, it is highly recommended as there is a strong correlation between doing well on the exams and regularly attending class. Keep in mind that all information discussed in lecture is fair game for the exams. All material in the textbook is fair game for the exams regardless of whether or not it is discussed in lecture.

James Madison University has many computer labs, learn them and use them. Remember Murphy’s Law: “Anything that can go wrong, will!” Your computer is fallible and can easily turn on you. Therefore, know where the computer labs are located, because your computer is not reliable and you may need them sometime. Also, backup your files on a flash drive, CD, 3.5” Floppy, tape drive, or stone tablet (not recommended!). Arrive on time! If you must be late, come in quietly! Don’t chat/text or disturb the class in any ways!

Syllabus

Schedule of Classes and Tentative Topics

This is a general guide. Topics may shift due to time and availability.

Dates Content and Events

20-Mar 25-Mar 27-Mar 1-Apr 3-Apr 8-Apr 10-Apr 15-Apr 17-Apr 22-Apr 24-Apr 29-Apr 1-May 8-May 14-Jan 16-Jan 21-Jan 23-Jan 28-Jan 30-Jan 4-Feb 6-Feb 11-Feb 13-Feb 18-Feb 20-Feb 25-Feb 27-Feb 4-Mar 6-Mar 11-Mar 13-Mar 18-Mar Introduction, Scientific Method, Ch. 1 Ch. 1: Energy and Power and the Physics of Explosions Ch. 2: Atoms and Heat Ch. 3: Gravity, Force, and Space Ch. 3: Gravity, Force, and Space Review Chapters 1, 2, and 3 – Research Hypothesis Due

Exam #1

Ch. 4: Nuclei and Radioactivity Assessment Day (No Class) Ch. 5: Chain Reactions, Nuclear Reactors, and Atomic Bombs Ch. 5: Chain Reactions, Nuclear Reactors, and Atomic Bombs Ch. 6: Electricity and Magnetism Ch. 6: Electricity and Magnetism Review Chapters 4, 5, and 6

Exam #2

Planetarium (Miller Hall – Dr. Virani) Spring Break Spring Break Ch. 7: Waves including UFOs, Earthquakes, and Music Ch. 8: Light – Preliminary Research Data Due Ch. 9: Invisible Light Review Chapters 7, 8, 9

Exam #3

Ch. 10: Climate Change Ch. 11: Quantum Physics Ch. 11: Quantum Physics Ch. 12: Relativity Ch. 12: Relativity – Research Projects Due Ch. 12: Relativity Ch. 13: The Universe Ch. 13: The Universe Review Chapters 10, 11, 12, and 13 Final Exam - Cumulative with an emphasis on Ch. 10, 11, 12, and 13 (8:00 am)

Scientific Method

Ask a question – Observe the world and question those observations.

Do some background research – Investigate what could occur.

Construct a hypothesis – Determine a testable explanation for the question you pose.

Test your hypothesis – Construct an experiment that will test your hypothesis.

Analyze your data – Examine your results. Report your Results – Write a report detailing the what, why, and how your experiment worked. Answer what you conclusions are and how they relate to your hypothesis. It is okay to be wrong!

Definitions:

y



mx



b

x is multiplied by the factor m.

The terms mx and b are added together.

Example:

y



x a



c

x is multiplied by the factor 1/a or x is divided by the factor a. The terms x/a and c are added together.

Percentages: Example: You put $10,000 in a CD for one year. The APY is 3.05%. How much interest does the bank pay you at the end of the year?

$ 10 , 000  1 .

0305  $ 10 , 305 The bank pays you $305 in interest.

The general rule is to multiply by

n

100 where the (+) is used if the quantity is increasing and (–) is used if the quantity is decreasing.

Proportions:

A



B A

 1

B

A is proportional to B. The value of A is directly dependent on the value of B.

A is proportional to 1/B. The value of A is inversely dependent on the value of B.

Example: The area of a circle is

A

 

r

2 .

The area is proportional to the radius squared.

A



r

2 The proportionality constant is  .

Scientific Notation & Significant Figures

This is a shorthand way of writing very large and/or very small numbers.

Example: The radius of the sun is 700,000 km.

Write as 7.0

 10 5 km.

When properly written this number will be between 1.0 and 10.0 Example: The radius of a hydrogen atom is 0.0000000000529 m. This is more easily written as 5.29

 10 -11 m.

Significant Figures

• • • •

My height is 6

’

5.37694365833893

”

height to the 14 th decimal place) (right, I know my The methodology of sig figs lets you report values that are correct to the accuracy that you know One set of rules applies to addition and subtraction Another set of rules applies to multiplication and division

• • • • •

Significant Figures

Nonzero digits are always significant.

Final or ending zeros written to the right of the decimal point are significant.

Zeros written to the right of the decimal point for the purpose of spacing the decimal point are not significant.

Zero written to the left of the decimal may be significant, but the could be insignificant space holders.

Zeros written between significant figures are significant.

Significant Figures

44.56005 s + 0.0698 s + 1130.2 s = 1147.82985 (Not correct!) = 1147.8 (Round to the proper decimal) 45.26 m/s x 2.41 s = 109.0766 m (Not correct!) = 109 m (The smallest number of sig figs!) 45.26 m/s x (2.41 s +1.1 s) = 158.863 m (Not correct!) = 160 m (Correct…sort of!) -> 1.6 x 10 2 m (correct!)

Scientific Notation

• • • • •

We will have some pretty crazy-looking numbers at certain times in this course (e.g., the Earth

’

s mass is 5.98 x 10 24 kg) Scientific notation has three advantages: 598000000000000000000000 can be written much more conveniently (see above) 0.0000000000667 can be written much more conveniently (as 6.67 x 10 -11 ) The number of significant figures can be determined more easily

Beware the Metric Prefixes:

yotta (Y): x 10 24 zetta (Z): x 10 21 exa (E): x 10 18 peta (P): x 10 15 tera (T): x 10 12 giga (G): x 10 9 mega (M): x 10 6 kilo (k): x 10 3 centi (c): x 10 -2 milli (m): x 10 -3 micro (

m

): x 10 -6 nano (n): x 10 -9 pico (p): x 10 -12 femto (f): x 10 -15 atto (a): x 10 -18 zepto (z): x 10 -21 yocto (y): x 10 -24

Importance of Units

Dimensions are basic types of quantities that can be measured or computed. Examples are length, time, mass, electric current, and temperature.

A unit is a standard amount of a dimensional quantity. There is a need for a system of units. SI units will be used throughout this class.

The quantities in this column are based on an agreed upon standard.

A derived unit is composed of combinations of base units.

Example: The SI unit of energy is the joule.

1 joule = 1 kg m 2 /sec 2 Derived unit Base units Units can be freely converted from one to another. Examples: 12 inches = 1 foot 1 inch = 2.54 cm

Approximations

Approximations are sometimes need in everyday life.

It depends on how accurate you need to know something.

Bowling Ball vs Beach Ball

Problem Solving Techniques

•Read the problem thoroughly.

•Draw a picture.

•Label the picture with the given information.

•What is unknown?

•What physical principles apply?

•Are their multiple steps needed?

•Work symbolically! It is easier to catch mistakes.

•Calculate the end result. Don ’ t forget units!

•Check your answer for reasonableness.

Example Problems

An asteroid is moving at approximately 25 km/s. Express in m/s and mile/hr. How many m in km?

1000 m = 1 km Therefore, 25 km/s *(1000m/1km) = 25000 m/s or 2.5 x 10 4 m/s How many miles in km?

0.621371 miles = 1 km How many seconds in hour?

3600 s = 1 hr Therefore, 25 km/s * (0.62371 miles/ 1 km) * (3600 s/1hr) = 56133 mph = 5.6 x 10 4 mph