Syllabus for PHY251
Fall 2014
LABORATORY REQUIREMENTS
- Lab Manual: All of the lab write-ups can be downloaded (for free) from the PHY251 course schedule webpage here . You must print out the write-up (at least the questions section) ahead of time and bring it with you to lab each week. You will NOT be allowed to print copies on the lab printers. The questions must be printed full-size (don't shrink them to 2 or 4 pages per sheet). If the questions are too small to read the instructor may refuse to grade them, giving you 0.0 points for the questions. The write-ups are available on the lab room computers or you may use a laptop or tablet while performing the experiment (but not during the quiz).
- Cell phones are NOT allowed during lab: Cell phones must be turned off and stored in your backpack/bag. Anyone with a cell phone out during lab will receive a 0.0 for that experiment.
- Absolutely NO food or drink are allowed in lab!
- Pens: Pencils are not allowed, ink is required.
- PHY252 on the Web : http://www.pa.msu.edu/courses/2014fall/PHY251
- Cover Page: Fill out this cover sheet each week and bring it with you to lab.
- Calculator: Trigonometric and logarithmic functions are required. Statistical functions might be useful, but are not required.
- USB Stick: The files on the computers are volatile...that is, if the computer is restarted your files will have been erased. It is a good idea to have a USB stick inserted that you backup to periodically during the lab in case the computer crashes.
SCHEDULE
Laboratories will begin on August 27
PREPARATION
You will find it very helpful to prepare (i.e. read and
study the materials for the laboratories) before you come to class. Being prepared before you
come to your lab session will enable you to finish on time, enjoy the lab more
and help you get a higher grade. During the first 7 minutes of every lab period
a closed book quiz will be given aimed at testing your readiness to perform that day's experiment.
(Quizzes will start on September 8 with the first experiment on "Introduction to Computers and Uncertainties".)
Please arrive on time or you will miss the quiz and the points.
The quiz cannot be started when there is less than 1 minute to go in the 7 minutes allotted time.
All materials to be graded must be completed during your lab period and handed in to the instructor before you leave the lab; there will be ABSOLUTELY NO EXCEPTIONS. The lab report consists of a cover sheet (that can be downloaded from here) plus any spreadsheets (both data and formula views from Excel) and plots requested. Please print out and fill in the cover sheet (except for your lab partner's name) each week BEFORE coming to lab. At the bottom of any graph must be a statement of what is being plotted, and if a straight line fit is done, a quote of its parameters (e.g. slope and its uncertainty). In addition, the questions from the end of the lab write-up should be turned in with your data.
PRACTICAL
During practical labs, no outside notes, use of the Internet, calculators or discussions with
other students are allowed. Students making use of unauthorized help on any lab (or practical)
will receive a 0.0 for that lab and an Academic Dishonesty Report will be filed.
For practical labs each student will perform one of the experiments that was done earlier in the semester by him or herself.
The experimental write-up for the practical will be posted on the course website the week before the lab.
It will be worth 20 points and you'll have 45 minutes to complete it. During the week of a practical,
half of the class will do the lab during the first 45 minutes and the other half during the last 45
minutes of the lab period. A schedule will be arranged a week before the practical. There will be
2 practical labs.
GRADES
All labs, including the practicals, will be graded by your instructor on a
20 point scale and will be handed back at the beginning of the next lab.
The points will be distributed roughly as follows: quiz (3 pts), acquisition of data,
including accuracy (5 pts), graphs and calculations (7 pts), and answers to questions (5 pts).
The specific points breakdown will vary depending on the important points of individual experiments.
Your grade will be based on the total number of points for the labs and quizzes. Since the instructors for the various sections do not necessarily grade identically, the scores for a given instructor's sections will be considered as a group for grading purposes. Each of the groups will receive approximately the same average grade in the course, so that there is no advantage to having one instructor over another. Within a group, the grades will be assigned strictly in order of points achieved. The grade will be determined by a curve, not a "straight scale". In the past the average for the course has been no lower than a 3.0. Please obtain from your instructor and save your graded lab reports and quizzes. You will need all of these if, at the end of the semester, you think your grade was incorrectly calculated.
Plagiarism or copying will not be tolerated. Lab partners are expected to turn in copies of the same Excel spreadsheets and graphs BUT answers to the questions and comments on graphs are not to be the same. Lab partners turning in identical answers (or slightly modified versions) will BOTH receive 0.0s for that lab. Any lab report that copies directly from the lab manual will receive a 0.0. Lab reports from previous semesters may not be used as reference material during the lab. If an instructor sees a student looking at a previous version of the lab (either electronically or on paper) during class the student will receive a 0.0 for that lab. In all cases an Academic Dishonesty Report will be filed as required by the university for any penalty grade given (see MSU's policy on Academic Integrity at https://www.msu.edu/~ombud/academic-integrity/index.html).
MISSING/MAKE-UP LABS
Because personally participating in each laboratory is an essential part of this course,
you must be present for each session. Should you find yourself in a position
where you must miss a session, you should contact your instructor beforehand and
provide an explanatory note with suitable documentation. Make-up labs will be limited to attending
another lab section during the same week (as the equipment changes each week) that has less than
20 students enrolled. Please note that most sections are currently full so it may not be possible to
find room in another section for a make-up lab. If you miss a lab for an unanticipated reason,
such as illness, you must notify your instructor no later than 24 hours after the missed lab and
provide suitable documentation (i.e. a note from your doctor). To arrange a make-up you must go to the
Registrar's Schedule of Courses webpage and find a section that has
less than 20 students enrolled. Then email BOTH your TA and the TA for the section you would like to
attend asking for permission to do a make-up lab. Keep in mind that even though the scheduler says there
is an opening in a section that opening may have already been taken by another student needing a make-up.
Do not show up for another section without prior arrangements or you will not be admitted.
To ease the burden on students who miss a lab due to a legitimate reason, we will
drop the lowest lab score of the semester (which can be one of your practical labs) before computing
your grade. Absences that are not excused will receive a 0.0 for that lab and it cannot be used as
your dropped score. Students will not be allowed to make-up more than 2 labs during a given semester.
If you find yourself needing to make-up more than 2 labs you must contact the course coordinator,
Prof. Tollefson, to make arrangements.
PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES
Students with disabilities and/or any other special needs should identify themselves to the
instructor during the first week of class. You must provide a copy (or an email) of your
Verified Individualized Services and Accomodations (VISA) form from the RCPD office
to both your instructor and the lab coordinator (Prof. Tollefson) by the end of the
second week of class. Individual arrangements will be made to accommodate
those needs on a case-by-case basis. It may not be possible to honor VISAs that are presented to
the instructor after the second week of class. For example, you will not be allowed extra time on the
practical lab if you did not give your VISA to the instructor at the beginning of the semester.
CONCERNS/PROBLEMS
Your lab instructor (the TA) is in charge of all aspects of laboratory procedures.
Please confer with him/her if you have a problem, since they can ordinarily
solve most of them. Communications regarding the day-to-day operations (such as a missed lab)
should be directed to your TA, NOT the lab coordinator. Your TA will provide you with their
email address and office hours at the beginning of the semester. If you have concerns about a score
on a lab you must make an appointment to meet with your lab instructor outside of lab time.
TAs will not respond to questions concerning individual lab grades while a lab section is in session.
A list of the TAs by section and their email addresses can be found here.
If there are issues that your TA cannot address, you should contact the lab coordinator Prof. Tollefson. Please arrange an appointment by emailing tollefson@pa.msu.edu.
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS:
· Bring a USB memory stick so you can save your files as you work.
There is no space on the computers in the lab for your files.
· SAVE YOUR DATA OFTEN!!!
There are no student data back-ups and all data is deleted when you
log-off the computer at the end of the lab period. · All the necessary computer software
and spreadsheets will be on the computer when you start, so you should not
have to search for items. · No food or drinks of any
kind are allowed in the laboratories....there are NO exceptions.