College Physics I Syllabus

Course title                  College Physics I          

Major          Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering,

Software Engineering          

Course type                    Compulsory                 

Semester                           1                       

Credit/Hour                       3/54                    

1. Course Objectives

Through this course, enable students mastering the basic principles, concepts, theorems, and laws in classical Newtonian mechanics, and develop their abilities in applying the course knowledge to solve the problems relating to mechanical engineering. In detail：

1. Master the basic definitions and concepts of the SI system.

2. Master the basic definitions and operations of vectors; Master the calculations by using vectors and scalars.

3. Understand the basic definitions, concepts, and equation in motions; Able to use the vector and scalar language to describe motions; Master the descriptions of projectile and uniform circular motions; Get knowledge of the relative motion. 

4. Understand the basic definitions and concepts in Newtonian mechanics; Master Newton’s three laws for particles; Able to draw a free-body diagram to indicate a force.

5. Understand the basic definitions and concepts in work and energy; Master the work–kinetic energy theorem, principle of conservation of mechanical energy, and law of conservation of energy.

6. Understand the basic definitions and concepts in linear momentum; Master the impulse-linear momentum theorem and law of conservation of linear momentum.

7. Apply Newton’s law of gravitation to relate the gravitational force between two particles to their masses and their separation; Distinguish between the free-fall acceleration and the gravitational acceleration; Distinguish between measured weight and the magnitude of the gravitational force.

8. Course Objectives and Teaching Contents Relate to the Teaching Links

1. Classroom Teaching Contents

2. Measurement: support objectives (1)

   SI system; Base quantities; Most frequently used prefixes for SI units; Change units by using Chain-link conversions for unit change; Definitions for the meter, second, and kilogram.

3. Vectors: support objectives (2)

   Add and subtract vectors; Components of a vector; Magnitude and orientation of a vector; Multiply vectors by scalars; Dot product of two vectors; Cross product of two vectors; Right-hand rulet.

4. Motions for particles: support objectives (3)

   Position vector, displacement, average velocity/acceleration, instantaneous velocity/acceleration; Projectile motion; Uniform circular motion; Relative motion.

5. Newtons’ laws: support objectives (4)

   Several features of forces: unit, vectors, the principle of superposition for forces; Newton’s first law; Inertial reference frames; Newton’s second law; Free-body diagram; Newton’s third law; Newton’s third-law force pair; Gravitational force; Free fall; Weight; Normal force; Friction; Frictional force; Static frictional force; Tension force; Centripetal acceleration.

6. Work and energy: support objectives (5)

   Energy; kinetic energy; Work; Work–kinetic energy theorem; Spring force; Hooke’s law; Average power; Instantaneous power; Potential energy; Conservative force; Nonconservative force; Principle of conservation of mechanical energy; Law of conservation of energy.    

7. Linear momentum: support objectives (6)

   Center of mass; Motion of a system’s com; Linear momentum; Collision; Law of conservation of linear momentum; Inelastic collision; Completely inelastic collision; Elastic collisions with stationary target, and moving target.

8. Gravitation: support objectives (7)

   Law of gravitation; Principle of superposition; Gravitational acceleration; Free-fall acceleration and weight; Gravitation within a spherical shell; Gravitational potential energy; Escape speed.

9. Teaching Arrangements

This course contains mainly theoretical aspects. The teaching is mainly around the basic concepts, basic principles, theorems, and laws of Newtonian mechanics.

Teaching hours:

1. Teaching Methods

2. During classroom teaching, the way combining both multimedia and blackboard-writing is recommended, especially with the applications of basic laws or formula derivations. Appropriate blackboard-writing is helpful to slow down the pace in teaching, facilitating the students’ understand and digestion.

3. Fully take advantage of the real-time merit of internet communication to question-answer and tutor, for improving the teaching efficiency.

4. Pay enough attention to the interaction between teaching and learning. Various approaches can be adopted to get knowledge of the students’ learning effectiveness, including after-class assignment, assignment-feedback, unscheduled class exercises, etc.

5. Course Assessment and Grade Evaluation

The main purpose of course assessment is to check the students’ achievement of the course-objectives. The important part will be the assessment on how the teaching content is mastered by the students. Course grade include four parts: attendance, assignment, mid-term exam, and final exam. The details are as follows,

1. Textbook and Main References

Textbook:

David Halliday, Robert Resinick and Jearl Walker原著, 李学潜和方哲宇改编，Fundamentals of Physics (7th Edition), 高等教育出版社

Main References：

R. Douglas Gregory, Classical Mechanics, 1st Edition, ISBN-13: 978-0521534093, ISBN-10: 0521534097

Enrico Fermi, Thermodynamics, New Ed Edition, ISBN-13: 978-0486603612, ISBN-10: 048660361X

Edward M. Purcell and David J. Morin, Electrictiy and Magnetism, 3rd Edition, ISBN-13: 978-1107014022, ISBN-10: 1107014026

马文蔚，周雨青《物理学》第6版  高教出版社

程守洙等《大学物理学》（第五版）高等教育出版社 2002

马文尉等《普通物理学》（第四版）高等教育出版社1999

张三慧等《大学物理学》（第二版）清华大学出版社1999