General Course Information for Physics 184
Fall Semester 1999

Course Outline:

Classical theory of electricity and magnetism, electromagnetic waves, geometric and wave optics.

Web Information:

http://www.pa.msu.edu/~tomanek/PHY184/ contains the updated course information.

Lecturer:

Prof. David Tomanek
Office: 201 Physics-Astronomy Building
E-mail: tomanek@pa.msu.edu
Phone: +1-517-355-9702

Lectures:

Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, from 4:10 - 5:00 pm, 118 Physics-Astronomy

Recitations:

Instead of formal recitations there will be numerous hours scheduled for student assistance at the Physics Learning Center (PLC) in B2 North Kedzie Hall, where students can get individual attention. (I would like to get some feedback from you on how this is working out.)

Textbook:

Fundamentals of Physics by Halliday, Resnick & Walker, 5^th Edition, John Wiley 1997.

Homework:

There will be 15 personalized homework assignments, to be distributed during the lecture. The students are required to use MSU's CAPA system on the internet, and to submit their solutions by the Due Date and Time specified.

Quizzes:

There will be occasional quizzes during lecture time. You will need a pocket calculator to solve them and a "Number 2" pencil to fill out the computer scoring sheet.

After the bubble sheets have been processed in the scoring office, you can check which answers you entered in the bubble sheet of Quiz 1, Quiz 2, Quiz 3, Quiz 4, Quiz 5, Quiz 6, Quiz 7, Quiz 8, Quiz 9, Quiz 10, Quiz 11, Quiz 12.

Exams:

There will three Midterm Exams (preceded by an optional CAPA-style practice exam, worth zero points) and one Final Exam. The Midterm Exams will be followed by CAPA-style correction sets A5, A10, and A14, which will be treated as regular CAPA-style homework. Exam locations will be announced in the class and on the Web.

You are responsible for bringing the following to each one-hour Midterm Exam and the Final Exam:

• A calculator: All exams will require the use of a calculator. Make sure that your calculator's batteries are fresh, as sharing of calculators will not be allowed.
• Two "Number 2" pencils - to be used for filling out the computer scoring sheet.
• Your student picture ID.
• Midterm Exams: You may bring one 8.5"x11" study sheet with formulas, notes, etc.
• Final Exam: You may bring up to two such study sheets.

All exams are closed book exams.

After the bubble sheets have been processed in the scoring office, you can check which answers you entered in the bubble sheet of Midterm Exam 1, Midterm Exam 2, Midterm Exam 3, and the Final Exam. To check your score, enter "term summary" in CAPA.

Absence Policy for Exams, Quizzes, and Homework:

There will be no possibility to make up for missed Midterm Exams, Quizzes, or Homework assignments. In order for a missed Midterm Exam, Quiz, or a Homework assignment to be excused, you must present to the lecturer within one week a written excuse, dated and signed by you, explicitly stating the circumstances that caused you to miss the exam, quiz, or homework assignment. This excuse should be verifiable, i.e. accompanied by a written document from a doctor, dean, etc. Excused absences from the exams will result in your grade being calculated on the basis of your performance on the other exams and homework. The Michigan State University Code of Teaching Responsibilities states that any student missing the Final Exam may not be allowed to pass the course. Click HERE to find out if your excuse has been entered in the database.

Grades:

The final grade will be based on the Homework (35%), Quizzes (5%), Midterm Exams (30%), and the Final Exam (30%). Your minimum grade will be determined from:

Final Grade	4.0	3.5	3.0	2.5	2.0	1.5	1.0	0.0
Minimum Total Point Percentage	>90	>83	>76	>70	>64	>58	>52	>0

The above percentages are based on the maximum total number of points that a student could attain by earning perfect scores on all the exams, homework, and quizzes. These cutoffs may be lowered, but they will not be raised. Using this scheme, you can calculate your minimum grade at any time during the course.

You can check the number of points you have accumulated on the web. After the Final Exam has been graded, you can also check your final grade for this course on the web.

Honors option:

Students can earn an honors degree by providing help to colleague students in the PLC for 2 hours/week. To enroll for this option, contact the lecturer during the first week of lectures. Accepted students will be notified by e-mail about the time slot assignment in the PLC.