PH213L (Fundamentals of Physics III) Spring 2004

Course Professor: Scott Heinekamp (scotth@wells.edu) Zabriskie 203 ext 3361 (http://aurora.wells.edu/~swh/)
Office Hours: Wed 9:30-10:30 & Thurs 1:00-2:00 or by appt; my teaching schedule is on my door.

Course Description
Fundamentals of Physics III is the third of the three-part introductory physics series, intended for scientists, 3/2 engineers, and pre-health-sciences students.

Electricity, magnetism and optics (e&m&o) are the subjects here; ideas of vector fields and plane waves form the conceptual framework. You will discover that plenty of abstract thinking is needed, including liberal use of vector calculus, which will culminate in Maxwell's equations for the electromagnetic field. You'll need to think in 3d, often with time dependence too. In both theory and application, lab work will shed light on the subtleties of these technologically vital sciences.

Because of the small class size and relatively advanced level of discussion, I encourage questions about the material in class, in what might at times seem to be seminar style give-and-take. In other words, engage the material and work hard at using the class to develop your understanding! I thank you in advance for your efforts.

Textbook and Lectures
Halliday, Resnick and Walker's Fundamentals of Physics (6th ed.) (splits 3 and 4) is our text. As you will see from the Lecture Schedule, where you will find the topics discussed,on which days, we will not always follow the text's order of presentation of the material. We will also not delve into the full details of every topic in the text - let's keep things simple and clear.

Reserve materials and other aids
In the Physics/Chemistry library, you'll find other books:
Calculus-based physics texts by Tipler, by Giancoli, and by Serway; all are excellent
Schaum's Outline Beginning Physics: the classic student resource;
Harcourt/Brace/Jovanovich's Outline College Physics;
Other texts, even if "outdated" (black and white figures! horrors!), can be extraordinarily good.

Basis of grading and expected work in the course
Homework and Class Participation (20%) Here is the regularly updated Homework Assignment Page. The problems will be challenging, and by doing them with energy you'll understand the material, do well on the exams, and generally enjoy the course. Class participation is determined by your expected attendance, questions (at any moment during class), and general level of involvement.
Laboratory (20%) Hands-on experience is one of the best things about PHYS 213L. Usually a short report form will be required, but you will need to prepare two (2) formal lab reports.
Exams (2x20% = 40%) We will have three "hourly" exams, lowest score is dropped.
Final Project (20%) A final project (in lieu of a final exam): a ~15-minute presentation near semester's end, followed by a 7-10 page paper on that subject, due at the time of the final exam.