PHYS 2311 "Physics I" - Fall 2025

CRN: 34432 (sec 4), 32415 (sec 5)   Credits: 3.0
Department: Mathematics and Physics
Class Home page: https://jpastro.net/PHYS2311/syll-phys2311.html  (this page!)
Class time and place:  MWF, 11:00-11:50 am, SA 207 (Section 4)
Class time and place:  MWF, 12:00-12:50 pm, SA 207 (Section 5)

Instructor: Dr. Jason Pinkney
Office hours in 111 Science Annex on Tues from 12 to 1 pm, Mon and Wed from 2-3 pm, and Fri at 1-2 pm.
Email j-pinkney@onu.edu or call 419-772-2740.
Instructor's Home page: https:jpastro.net

Course Description:
This course is a calculus-based introduction to physics. Topics include motion in 1, 2, and 3 dimensions, forces, Newton's laws, energy, momentum, rotational motion, oscillations, and thermodynamics. A tentative calendar of topics is outlined below .

Course Objectives
At the end of the course, students will be able to:

• Analyze the motion of particles in space and time, according to Newtonian mechanics.
• Apply the concepts of force, work, and energy to solving mechanics problems.
• Analyze the rotational motion of a rigid solid.
• Analyze the oscillatory motion of basic systems.
• Explore thermodynamic systems at the macroscopic and microscopic level using the laws of thermodynamics.

Lab:
The lab for this class is Physics 2341. You should be signed up for one of the many sections of PHYS 2341, although it can be taken in a future semester.  The lab is graded independently of the lecture class. The labs are held on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Please attend the first week because you will have a short, informational meeting with your instructor. Please bring $15 (exact change) to your first lab meeting for the lab manual and notebook. All lab sections are held in Meyer 121.

Textbook:
Physics for Scientists and Engineers, 5th Edition.  By Giancoli.
(Print ISBN-13: 9780134378060, eText ISBN-13: 9780137488179) You need chapters at the beginning and end of this textbook, so don't just get the "volume 1" or "volume 2" versions.
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NEW STUFF      (Watch this spot for outlines and extras.)

Advice on homeworks
Week 1 Powerpoint   -Units and Measurements (PDF) Updated 9/4/24
Practice quiz - Units, significant figures, etc.

Grading:

Your final letter grade is calculated roughly as follows:

I will not grade any "harder" than the above. However, if the class mean drops below 75, or the distribution of scores is very narrow so that, for example, noone has above 90, I will grade more leniently. I want at least the top 15% of the class to receive an A.

Schedule (tentative):

Course Policies:

Canvas will only be used sparingly for this class. My web page for the class will provide links to new material each week, much like Canvas does. I may use Canvas to make announcements, but e-mail is more likely. I will primarily use Canvas to show you your test scores. Disregard any of the letter grades or score averages that Canvas automagically computes as it is not aware of the grading methods I use in my own spreadsheet. I may also use Canvas to deliver an exam to save class time, but hopefully that won't be necessary.

Attendance will be recorded periodically and can affect your grade both directly and indirectly. Attendance is crucial on test days. Also, I will sometimes call on people to answer questions, or have everybody solve practice problems on a sheet of scratch paper. If you miss such an in-class activity, there is no make-up, per se. Let me know in advance (e-mail is good) if you plan to miss an exam for a valid reason (e.g. your team is on the road, you are sick, you have a family emergency).  If you miss an exam because of an unforeseen emergency, let me know as soon as possible, and provide proof of the emergency.  Only then can you schedule a make up (more below). The name and phone number of a relevant authority figure (perhaps a parent) or a cell phone picture (e.g, of you and your broken down car) can be provided as proof. Do not book flights or make other plans that conflict with the final examination time.

Cancelled Class. If a class has to be cancelled due to weather or myself being absent, I am required to do something to advance the curriculum. I will notify the class through an email. If it is a weather cancellation, I will most likely hold a Google Meet session during the regular class time. If I am ill or attending a meeting, I will most likely assign material (e.g., powerpoint slides or practice problems) for you to do independently.

Homework will consist of working problems from the textbook and studying material on the web page.  Because of the new large class sizes, I will not attempt to collect and grade homework. I will provide answer keys to the homework after you have had about 5 days to try them. Only answers to the odd problems are given in the back of the textbook. Problem solving is a major part of physics; you must practice physics to really know physics.  I will also provide some practice multiple choice questions from a test bank nearly every week. These generally require less writing to solve than a textbook problem and do not have to be turned in.  

In-class problems.  These are like pop quizzes which do not count towards your grade. You solve problems on your own note paper. I generally explain the answers immediately afterwards. Do not attempt to "make up" these problems if you miss one, but you should ask me or a student for a copy of the problems so that you can try them on your own.