Physics 231C Announcements

 

April 23, 2013

The final exam will be on WEDNESDAY, May 1 from 8:00PM until 10:00PM in Biomedical and Physical Sciences room 1410.

There will be a seating chart on the screen at the front of the room and you should sit in the row designated by your last name.  Sit only in even numbered seats; students seated in odd numbered seats will have to move before the exam is handed out.
 
The exam will be handed out promptly at 8:00PM; students arriving after 8:00PM will not be permitted to enter the room until after the students who arrived promptly have started the exam.

The exam is comprehensive.  Good places to concentrate your studying efforts are the midterm exams, the practice exams and the homework.  Some of the problems will be conceptual in nature and some will have numerical answers.  There are 100 possible points on the exam.
 
The exam is closed book, but you may use four 8-1/2 inch x 11 inch or smaller sheet of original hand-written notes and equations.  You may use both sides of your note sheets.
You should bring a few sharpened number 2 pencils, your student ID (or driver's license) and a calculator (graphing calculators are OK).  However, the use of cell phones, PDAs or computers for any reason is NOT permitted.  Pencils and calculators will NOT be provided.  Also as a courtesy to your fellow students, you should turn off all cell phones and pagers before entering the room.

When you enter the room, pick up a bubble seat and sit in the row assigned to you based on your last name and the course (seating assignments will be displayed on the screen at the front of the room). Make sure you follow the chart labeled as the online course.

The exam will be handed out once all students arriving promptly are in their assigned rows.  DO NOT open the exam until you are told to do so by an instructor.  You can however, complete the student information section of your answer sheet.  Make sure you include your student ID number and your name on the answer sheet.  Make certain that your exam has your name and picture on the cover sheet -- if it does not, you have the wrong exam!  When you are finished with the exam return both your answer sheet and your exam to an instructor or a TA.

The cover page for the exam will contain the same information as the cover pages on each of the midterm exams.

There are 29 responses on this exam.

Best of luck on all of your finals,
Richard Hallstein

April 22, 2013

Dear PHY 231C students,

Student Instruction Rating System (SIRS Online) collects student feedback on courses and instruction at MSU.  Student Instructional Rating System (SIRS Online) forms will be available for your students to submit feedback during 04/15/2013 - 05/15/2013 or until class grades are posted.

You can find information concerning SIRS at https://sirsonline.msu.edu

You are required to complete the SIRS Online form OR indicate within that form that they decline to participate.  Otherwise, final grades (for PHY 231C and for all courses using SIRS Online) will be sequestered for seven days following the course grade submission deadline for this semester.
 
Rating information collected by SIRS Online is reported in summary form only and cannot be linked to your individual responses. Your anonymity is carefully protected.

Richard Hallstein

 

April 4, 2013

The correction exam will open for you to complete as a homework assignment at 9PM this evening. The correction exam is in a separate folder labeled correction exam. If after 9PM tonight, the correction exam folder is not showing up in lon-capa, exit lon-capa, close down *all* windows of your web browser and then re-log into Lon-Capa.

Only students taking the original exam either here on the MSU campus or off-campus with a proctor will have access to the correction exam.

As with any of the regular homework assignments, you can post discussion on any of the problems and are encouraged to do so. The correction exam is due on Tuesday, April 9 at 11:59PM. 30% of the *positive* difference between the correction exam score and the original exam score will be added to your original exam score as bonus. The correction exam can only help your score on the exam and under *no* circumstance will your performance on the correction exam lower your exam score. So, it is in your best interest to take this opportunity to add points to your midterm exam score. To get full credit for the correction exam, you must complete all questions -- even those you answered correctly on the original exam.

I should have the results for exam 3 available by midday on Tuesday, April 9.

Homework set 10 is due on Tuesday, April 16 at 11:59PM.

Richard Hallstein

 

April 2, 2013

The third exam will be on Thursday, April 4th from 6:10PM until 7:00PM in the Biomedical and Physical Sciences Building (BPS) room 1410.

 

The exam will be handed out promptly at 6:10PM; students arriving after 6:10PM will not be permitted to enter the room until after the students who arrived promptly have started the exam.

 

The exam will concentrate on all material covered since the SECOND midterm exam this includes online lectures 9 through 12 (homework sets 8 and 9). It will be based on the readings, the online lectures and the homework.  As stated in the syllabus, the exam will also include a modified problem taken from exam 1 plus one modified problem taken from exam 2.  Some of the problems will be conceptual in nature and some will have numerical answers. There are 50 possible points on the exam.

The exam is closed book, but you may use one 8-1/2 inch x 11 inch or smaller sheet of original hand-written notes and equations. You may use both sides of your note sheet.

 

You should bring a few sharpened number 2 pencils, your student ID (or driver's license) and a calculator (graphing calculators are OK). However, the use of cell phones, PDAs or computers for any reason is NOT permitted. Pencils and calculators will NOT be provided. Also as a courtesy to your fellow students, you should turn off all cell phones and pagers before entering the room.

 

When taking the exam, all baseball caps or brimmed hats must be removed or turned backwards.  Furthermore, all caps or hats covering the ears must be removed.

 

When you enter the room, pick up a bubble seat and sit in the row assigned to you based on your last name (seating assignments will be displayed on the screen at the front of the room).  Sit in only even numbered seats and fill the right side end of the room first (from a student's perspective).  The seat on either side of you should be empty.  The seat at the far left end of every row is reserved for left handed writers only.

 

The exam will be handed out once all students arriving promptly are in their assigned rows. DO NOT open the exam until you are told to do so by an instructor. You can however, complete the student information section of your answer sheet. Make sure you include your student ID number and your name on the answer sheet. Make certain that your exam has your name and picture on the cover sheet if it does not, you have the wrong exam! When you are finished with the exam return both your answer sheet and your exam to an instructor or a TA.

 

You will have fifty minutes to complete the exam.

 

We will assign the whole exam again as a homework assignment as a Correction Exam. The Correction Exam is optional. If you don't touch it, you will NOT lose any points from your in-class exam. If your performance is better on the Correction Exam than on the in-class exam, then 30 percent of this positive difference will be added to your in-class exam score. The best strategy is to solve the Correction Exam perfectly to maximize your gain. The Correction Exam will be available Friday, April 5th in the afternoon and will be due on Tuesday, April 9th at 11:59PM.   Only students taking the in-class exam or off-campus with an exam proctor will have access to the Correction Exam.

 

The cover page for the exam will contain the same information as is displayed on the practice exam's cover page. Some useful information is included on the cover page. Note: the exam cover page is for all of the mid-term exams and not all of the useful information listed here is applicable to this exam. There are a total of 11 problems; some of them are multi-part totaling 14 questions on this exam.

 

The due date for Homework set 10 is Tuesday, April 16th at 11:59PM.

 

 Richard Hallstein

 

 

March 10, 2013

The second exam will be on Thursday, March 14th from 6:10PM until 7:00PM in the Biomedical and Physical Sciences Building (BPS) room 1410.


The exam will be handed out promptly at 6:10PM; students arriving after 6:10PM will not be permitted to enter the room until after the students who arrived promptly have started the exam.


The exam will concentrate on all material covered since the first midterm exam – this includes online lectures 6 through 8 (homework sets 5, 6 and 7). It will be based on the readings, the online lectures and the homework.  As stated in the syllabus, the exam will also include a modified problem taken from exam 1.  Some of the problems will be conceptual in nature and some will have numerical answers. There are 50 possible points on the exam.

The exam is closed book, but you may use one 8-1/2 inch x 11 inch or smaller sheet of original hand-written notes and equations. You may use both sides of your note sheet.


You should bring a few sharpened number 2 pencils, your student ID (or driver’s license) and a calculator (graphing calculators are OK). However, the use of cell phones, PDAs or computers for any reason is NOT permitted. Pencils and calculators will NOT be provided. Also as a courtesy to your fellow students, you should turn off all cell phones and pagers before entering the room.


When taking the exam, all baseball caps or brimmed hats must be removed or turned backwards.  Furthermore, all caps or hats covering the ears must be removed.


When you enter the room, pick up a bubble seat and sit in the row assigned to you based on your last name (seating assignments will be displayed on the screen at the front of the room).  Sit in only even numbered seats and fill the right side end of the room first (from a student’s perspective).  The seat on either side of you should be empty.  The seat at the far left end of every row is reserved for left handed writers only. 


The exam will be handed out once all students arriving promptly are in their assigned rows. DO NOT open the exam until you are told to do so by an instructor. You can however, complete the student information section of your answer sheet. Make sure you include your student ID number and your name on the answer sheet. Make certain that your exam has your name and picture on the cover sheet – if it does not, you have the wrong exam! When you are finished with the exam return both your answer sheet and your exam to an instructor or a TA.


You will have fifty minutes to complete the exam.


We will assign the whole exam again as a homework assignment as a Correction Exam. The Correction Exam is optional. If you don't touch it, you will NOT lose any points from your in-class exam. If your performance is better on the Correction Exam than on the in-class exam, then 30 percent of this positive difference will be added to your in-class exam score. The best strategy is to solve the Correction Exam perfectly to maximize your gain. The Correction Exam will be available Friday, March 15th in the afternoon and will be due on Tuesday, March 19th at 11:59PM.   Only students taking the in-class exam or off-campus with an exam proctor will have access to the Correction Exam.


The cover page for the exam will contain the same information as is displayed on the practice exam’s cover page. Some useful information is included on the cover page. Note: the exam cover page is for all of the mid-term exams and not all of the useful information listed here is applicable to this exam. There are a total of 12 problems; some of them are multi-part totaling 14 questions on this exam.


The due date for Homework set 8 is Tuesday, March 26th at 11:59PM.


 Richard Hallstein

 

February 8, 2013

The correction exam is now open for you to complete as a homework assignment. The correction exam is in a separate folder labeled correction exam. If the correction exam folder is not showing up in lon-capa, exit lon-capa, close down *all* windows of your web browser and then re-log into Lon-Capa.

Only students taking the original exam either here on the MSU campus or off-campus with a proctor will have access to the correction exam.

As with any of the regular homework assignments, you can post discussion on any of the problems and are encouraged to do so. The correction exam is due on Tuesday, February 12th at 11:59PM. 30% of the *positive* difference between the correction exam score and the original exam score will be added to your original exam score as bonus. The correction exam can only help your score on the exam and under *no* circumstance will your performance on the correction exam lower your exam score. So, it is in your best interest to take this opportunity to add points to your midterm exam score. To get full credit for the correction exam, you must complete all questions -- even those you answered correctly on the original exam.

I should have the results for exam 1 available by midday on Tuesday, Feb 12.

Homework set 5 is due on Tuesday, February 19 at 11:59PM.

Richard Hallstein

February 7, 2013

Dear PHY 231C students,

I have had a couple of inquiries about the exam note sheet. I want to emphasize your note sheet MUST be original and hand-written. This was clearly stated in both the syllabus and the exam announcement.

If you show up to the exam with anything other than a hand-written set of notes, you will have to take the exam without notes.

Richard Hallstein

February 1, 2013

The first exam will be on Thursday, February 7th from 6:10PM until 7:00PM in the Biomedical and Physical Sciences Building (BPS) room 1410.
The exam will be handed out promptly at 6:10PM; students arriving after 6:10PM will not be permitted to enter the room until after the students who arrived promptly have started the exam.
The exam will cover everything through and including online lecture 5 (homework set 4). It will be based on the readings, the online lectures and the homework. Some of the problems will be conceptual in nature and some will have numerical answers. There are 50 possible points on the exam.

The exam is closed book, but you may use one 8-1/2 inch x 11 inch or smaller sheet of original hand-written notes and equations. You may use both sides of your note sheet.
You should bring a few sharpened number 2 pencils, your student ID (or driver’s license) and a calculator (graphing calculators are OK). However, the use of cell phones, PDAs or computers for any reason is NOT permitted. Pencils and calculators will NOT be provided. Also as a courtesy to your fellow students, you should turn off all cell phones and pagers before entering the room.
When taking the exam, all baseball caps or brimmed hats must be removed or turned backwards.  Furthermore, all caps or hats covering the ears must be removed.
When you enter the room, pick up a bubble seat and sit in the row assigned to you based on your last name (seating assignments will be displayed on the screen at the front of the room). The exam will be handed out once all students arriving promptly are in their assigned rows. DO NOT open the exam until you are told to do so by an instructor. You can however, complete the student information section of your answer sheet. Make sure you include your student ID number and your name on the answer sheet. Make certain that your exam has your name and picture on the cover sheet – if it does not, you have the wrong exam! When you are finished with the exam return both your answer sheet and your exam to an instructor or a TA.
You will have fifty minutes to complete the exam.
We will assign the whole exam again as a homework assignment as a Correction Exam. The Correction Exam is optional. If you don't touch it, you will NOT lose any points from your in-class exam. If your performance is better on the Correction Exam than on the in-class exam, then 30 percent of this positive difference will be added to your in-class exam score. The best strategy is to solve the Correction Exam perfectly to maximize your gain. The Correction Exam will be available Friday, February 8th in the afternoon and will be due on Tuesday, February 12th at 11:59PM. The results of the in-class exam will not be available until after the due date for the Correction Exam. Also, only students taking the in-class exam or off-campus with an exam proctor will have access to the Correction Exam.
The cover page for the exam will contain the same information as is displayed on the practice exam’s cover page. Some useful information is included on the cover page. Note: the exam cover page is for all of the mid-term exams and not all of the useful information listed here is applicable to this exam. There are a total of 11 problems; some of them are multi-part totaling 14 questions on this exam.
The due date for Homework set 5 is Tuesday, February 19th at 11:59PM.
 Richard Hallstein

 

January 22, 2013

PHY 231C reminder: off-campus proctored exam #1 arrangement deadline 1/25/2013

Dear PHY 231C students,
If you are living or traveling far from MSU on the date of the first exam (February 7), you can arrange to take your exam with an appropriate proctor at or near your location. You must have a travel time of greater than one hour in order to qualify for an off-campus exam. The deadline for getting me your proctor’s information is January 25th at 5PM – this Friday. If I do not have your proctor’s contact information prior to this deadline, you will have to take the exam here at MSU on February 7 at the scheduled time. Arrangement details and the deadline are in the exam section of the syllabus.

January 15, 2013

Dear PHY 231C and 232C Students,
I have received two emails this week from students having the same lon-capa access issue.  In each case the problem was caused by leaving a browser window and/or not logging out of lon-capa while not using lon-cap for an extended period of time.

If you stay logged onto capa for an extended period of time (overnight or 24 hours -- I'm not sure which), Lon-Capa will automatically clean up your connection due to inactivity and you will be unable to access the course.  What you will need to do is log out of capa and close all browser windows (this latter step will ensure you do not have some other capa window open) and then re-login.

The lon-capa tech support people *strongly advise* you log out of capa every time you finish using it for the day.  Doing this has the added benefit of seeing any updates made to the course since your last log on (i.e. exam results, newly bonus questions, etc.).

Richard Hallstein

 

January 7, 2013

Welcome to the Spring semester of PHY 231C.  exam
You are receiving this message because you are enrolled in PHY 231C section 730 or section 731.  Please read this message carefully; it contains a significant amount of important information about the course.  A copy is posted in the announcement section of the syllabus.


The required text book is Rex & Wolfson: Essential College Physics, Volume 1.  It is sold at the MSU bookstore and at SBS on Grand River. 
This class will use LON-CAPA. LON-CAPA is a computerized homework and exam management system developed right here at MSU. We will NOT use Angel whatsoever in this course.  Since this is an online class, you are not required to purchase an i-clicker. 


Please visit www.loncapa.msu.edu and log in using your MSU Net ID and password. Select the "PHY 231C, Spring 2013" class. The first item on the top is the syllabus.  You can also review the syllabus without logging in to Lon-Capa here: http://www.pa.msu.edu/courses/2013spring/PHY231C/  Read all sections of it carefully. This is the official syllabus of the class. 


The next item is a folder containing the lectures for the course.   The “Online Lectures” folder contains the lectures specifically designed for this online course; they are in the form of narrated PowerPoint presentations with example problems.  A high speed internet connection (i.e. not dial-up) and a computer with the ability to view flash video are required.  All of the online lectures for the course are currently available.  Embedded within the online lectures are bonus homework questions.  These questions are optional and can only help your score in the course.  Most of these questions, relate at least in part to the assigned reading and/or the online lecture immediately preceding the question.   These questions are programmed in exam mode (multiple choice) with correct/incorrect feedback disabled; the correct answer will be available after the due date.  In addition, the discussion board on these bonus questions is disabled.


The next folder will contain the homework for the course.  There are weekly homework sets that are due on Tuesdays at 11:59PM.  The first homework set is due next Tuesday, January 15th at 11:59PM.  All homework sets are currently available, so if you know you have a conflict at some point in the semester, you can work ahead.  Additionally, you should not wait until the last minute to do the assigned homework -- extensions on homework will not be granted.      
If you are living or traveling far from the MSU campus at the time of the exam, beyond a reasonable commuting distance, or if you are traveling with an MSU-sponsored program, you may be able to arrange a proctored off-campus exam. Arrangements must be made well in advance of the exam – requests made after the deadline will not be accommodated and you will have to take the exam at MSU.  For arrangement details and arrangement deadlines: see the link in the exam section of the syllabus.


You are encouraged to come to the Strosacker help room with your questions.  Our Teaching Assistants will be more than happy to answer your questions. The Strosacker help room is in 1248 BPS and is open from 9:00AM to 9:00PM Monday through Thursday and from 9:00AM to 6:00PM on Fridays. You are welcome to go to the help room during any of its open hours, but there will be appointed times when TAs specifically for PHY231/231C will be available.  Starting next week, the help room will be open and will be staffed with TAs specifically assigned to PHY 231/231C on Mondays and Tuesdays from 9am to 9pm. 
You are also encouraged to use the discussion board inside LON-CAPA. If you don't understand a problem or you need help, just click on the "Post discussion" link and post your question. If you are seeking electronic help on a homework problem, use the post discussion option (do not use email for homework help questions).  More likely than not, others will have the same question and unlike email, everyone can then benefit from your question and subsequent response(s).  If you know the answer to somebody else's question, just post your answer. Don't forget: The best way to learn is to teach. (Doscendo discimus).
Richard Hallstein
(BPS 1253, (517) 884-5509, hallstein@pa.msu.edu)


 

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Last updated: December 14, 2012