Instructor: Peter Love
KINSC
Link 105
795-6505 (office)
Course
Requirements:
Three one-hour class meetings and a one-hour recitation
period per week. Class periods
will usually be devoted to lecture and discussion. Evaluation will be based on class participation, three midterm exams, a final, and weekly
problem sets.
Location and times:
Lecture: MWF 9:30 – 10:30 in L205. Attendance and participation are expected. Lecture will begin promptly at 9:35; please be on time.
Office hours: L105 M 2-4, T 1-2, Th 2-4, F 2-3
Exam schedule:
Exam #1 given out Friday, September 28th; Collected Monday, October 1st in class
Exam #2 given out Friday, October 26th; Collected Monday, October 29th in class
Exam #3 given out Friday, November 16th; Collected Monday, November 18th in class
Final exam (self scheduled) covers all the material with some extra emphasis on the material covered after exam #2.
No extensions on exams or variances on exam dates are permitted without a Deans excuse
Thanksgiving:
Class will meet as usual on Monday November 19th, but NOT on Wednesday November 21st or Friday November 23rd.
Assignments
and Tests:
Written work will be due each Monday in class. There will also be assigned readings to prepare you for class discussion. It is essential for your understanding that you stay ahead of class in your readings. Some assignments will include so-called individual problems. It is expected that you work on these problems without collaborating with other students. You may ask questions of the instructor concerning these problems, and any information given to you in response will also be sent to the rest of the class via email.
There will be three time-limited, take-home exams and a self-scheduled, cumulative final. The schedule on this page gives coverage and dates. Exams will cover both concepts and problem solving. Time pressure in exam settings, while not the goal of the instructor, is not entirely avoidable. You should prepare to be able to work efficiently on the material covered and avoid poor time management choices during the exams.
Recitation:
Attendance is expected. We will review problem set material during the recitations
Grading procedures:
Course grade -- will be computed using the following weighting:
Written exercises 20%
Midterm Tests 50% (2 @ 15%, 1@20%)
Final exam 25%
Class participation 5%
Exams: Credit will be given for displaying understanding and for correct execution of problem solutions. Partial completion of a problem will receive credit. Clear explanations of your work are required.
Late
policy -- You may have two ``free
extensions'' of one week during the course of the semester. If you are taking a free extension please simply hand in a
sheet of paper with your name and a note that you are taking a free extension.
Please save them for when most needed, and remember that you do not have to
take your extensions.
No
other extensions will be granted, except for significant illness, serious
family matters, etc.; in such cases, a Deans excuse is required.
Readings:
Texts:
Mandl, Statistical Physics, 2nd Ed. Primary text for the course, available in the bookstore.
Wolfson and Pasachoff, Physics for scientists and engineers, 3rd ed.
Readings and assignments from this textbook will be given in the
first few weeks to provide some more basic supplementary material to
the primary text (Mandl). The materials will also be posted on
blackboard for those of you who may not have access to this book.
Other
useful sources on reserve in Science Library:
Schroeder, Thermal Physics
Reichl, A Modern Course in Statistical Physics
S. K. Ma, Statistical Mechanics
Honor Code Issues:
The important guiding principle of academic honesty is that you must never represent the work of another as your own. The following guidelines should govern your behavior in the course; please request clarification if you find yourself in any doubtful situations.
You may seek assistance for the Instructor or work together with other students (except on individual problems) in doing the weekly assigned exercises and in preparing for class discussions. If working with other students in the course avoid situations in which you are either contributing too much or too little to the collaborative effort. (Neither results in optimal learning, but are not violations of the honor code.) While working together is permitted and even expected and therefore does not need to be acknowledged, merely copying the work of another student without indicating that you have done so is clearly a representation of his or her work as your own and so is a violation of the code.
The exams must be entirely your own work. You must also follow all procedures and respect time limits without deviation.
Accommodations:
Students
who think they may need accommodations in this course because of the impact of
a disability are encouraged to meet with me privately early in the semester.
Students should also contact Rick Webb, Coordinator, Office of Disabilities
Services (rwebb@haverford.edu,
610-896-1290) to verify their eligibility for reasonable accommodations as soon
as possible. Early contact will help to avoid unnecessary inconvenience and
delays.