Description:

This is a one-semester, comprehensive physics course intended for students enrolled in the biotechnology certificate program or an associate of applied science degree program. The course will cover all areas of applied physics, including mechanics, heat, thermodynamics, waves, electricity, magnetism, light, optics and some elements of modern physics. Emphasis will be placed on concepts and applications to real-life problems. This course includes an integrated laboratory component the completion of which is a necessary part of the total instructional package. 4 hrs. lecture, 3 hrs. lab/wk.

Supplies: Refer to the instructor’s course syllabus for details about any supplies that may be required.

Textbook(s): For information see - http://bookstore.jccc.net

Course Fees: NONE

Course Objectives:

Upon successful completion of this course the student should be able to:

1. Apply the scientific method to modeling physical problems that occur in nature.
2. Discuss the general concepts of motion encountered in physics.
3. Explain the concept of force and the roll it plays in the motion of objects.
4. Understand the basic principle of gravity as it relates to motion.
5. Apply the concepts of work and energy as they relate to physics problems.
6. Analyze the thermodynamic properties of various systems used in physics and chemistry.
7. Illustrate the properties of electricity and magnetism and their applications.
8. Describe the components and characteristics of wave motion as they relate to sound and light.
9. Describe atomic and nuclear structure and their relationship to radiation.
10. Apply basic laws of physics in laboratory settings commonly encountered in national and private labs.

Content Outline & Competencies:

I. Scientific Method
   A. Apply the scientific method to problems in nature, specifically in
the area of physics.
   B. Perform dimensional analysis to check units of formulas derived from
algebraic principles.
   C. Convert between SI/metric and English units in detailed science
calculations.
   D. Rewrite numbers in scientific notation when performing calculations
involving large and/or small quantities.
   E. Formulate physics problems into mathematical expressions and
interpret the solutions to determine their physical significance.

II. Force
   A. Differentiate between kinematic variables including displacement,
speed, velocity and acceleration.
   B. Develop and analyze models of motion including projectile, circular
and simple harmonic motion.
   C. Construct graphs describing simple motion, both in one and two
dimensions.
   D. Illustrate the concept of impulse as it applies to momentum in
collision processes.
   E. Use Conservation of Momentum to describe the motion of objects
before and after collisions.

III. Force
   A. Distinguish between the concepts of mass and weight.
   B. Construct free-body diagrams to identify external forces acting on
objects, including tension, normal and reaction forces.
   C. Apply Newton’s Laws to structures in static equilibrium to determine
unknown forces.
   D. Apply Newton’s Laws to objects in one-dimensional, two-dimensional
and circular motion to determine their accelerations.
   E. Incorporate frictional properties into motion problems.

IV. Gravity
   A. Illustrate the motion of an object in free-fall, including its
position, velocity and acceleration as functions of time.
   B. Compare uniform circular motion to general satellite motion by
application of Newton’s Law of Gravity.
   C. Describe and illustrate general properties of gravitational fields
generated by astronomical bodies such as the Earth, Moon, Sun and other
planets in our solar system.

V. Work and Energy
   A. Describe the relationship between work and energy.
   B. Define types of energy including kinetic, gravitational potential
and elastic potential.
   C. Apply Conservation of Energy to mechanical systems to determine the
motion of objects.
   D. Identify sources of mechanical energy available for human use.
   E. Define power and show how it relates to simple machines.

VI. Heat
   A. Show the relationship between the thermodynamic variables of
temperature, internal energy and heat.
   B. Compare temperature scales, including the Celsius, Fahrenheit and
Kelvin scales.
   C. Relate temperature changes to linear and volume expansion of
materials.
   D. Illustrate heat flow between different media using the concepts of
specific heat, heat of fusion and heat of vaporization.
   E. Describe methods of heat flow, including convection, conduction and
radiation.
   F. Apply the Laws of Thermodynamics to ideal gases undergoing isobaric,
isovolumetric, isothermal and adiabatic processes.
   G. Compare and contrast devices such as heat engines, refrigerators,
air conditioners and heat pumps and how thermodynamics is involved in
their operation.

VII. Electricity and Magnetism
   A. Describe the concepts, sources and effects of electric force,
charge, fields, potential, current, resistance and power as they relate to
electric circuits.
   B. Design and setup simple DC circuits to measure currents, voltages
and resistances using ammeters, voltmeters and ohmmeters.
   C. Set up simple series and parallel circuits of resistors to
experimentally determine the equivalent resistance and compare to
theoretical calculations.
   D. Extend the ideas of resistors in series and parallel to capacitors
and compare and contrast these different types of circuits.
   E. Describe and illustrate the concepts, sources and effects of
magnetic fields of bar magnets, current-carrying wires and the Earth.
   F. Graphically illustrate magnetic forces on moving charges and their
resultant motion as determined using the Right-Hand Rule.
   G. Explain the relationship between electric currents and magnetic
fields in the operation of electric motors.
   H. Set up simple RC and/or RL circuits to oscilloscopes to visually
observe the time dependence of voltages across such devices.
   I. Describe and illustrate electromagnetic induction and its
application to alternating current, electric generators, transformers and
power production.
   J. Design and set up simple AC circuits to study frequency effects on
current and reactance.

VIII. Sound and Light Waves
   A. Differentiate between transverse and longitudinal waves.
   B. Describe the characteristics of a wave including its amplitude,
wavelength and frequency and how wave velocity is related to these
quantities.
   C. Compare and contrast sound and light waves including their
velocities in different media, their wavelengths and the conditions
necessary to produce each type.
   D. Discuss how sound intensity is measured on the decibel scale.
   E. Describe and illustrate the phenomena of forces vibrations, shock
waves and the Doppler effect observed in sound waves.
   F. Describe and illustrate phenomena dealing with waves including
reflection, refraction, total internal reflection, diffraction,
interference, superposition and polarization.
   G. Describe the electromagnetic spectrum and the properties of color
and what distinguishes visible color from other forms of electromagnetic
radiation.
   H. Illustrate properties of mirrors, lenses and how they are used in
optical devices including cameras, magnifying glasses, microscopes,
telescopes and spectrophotometers.
   I. Discuss types of lens aberrations, including spherical and
chromatic, and how such problems are corrected.

IX. The Atom
   A. Outline contributions made to our understanding of atomic particles
due to the work of Compton, De Broglie, Einstein, Heisenberg, Pauli and
Planck.
   B. Discuss the Wave-Particle Duality of photons, electrons and other
atomic particles.
   C. Describe the currently accepted model of the atom and how our
understanding has progressed from the earlier models of Thomson,
Rutherford and Bohr.
   D. Illustrate applications of atomic physics, including X-rays, lasers
and holography.
   E. Explain the organization of the periodic table and what
distinguishes one element from another on the basis of its nuclear
structure.
   F. Examine the structure of the nucleus of an atom in order to
calculate its binding energy.
   G. Identify and describe the sources and types of radioactivity and the
biological effects.
   H. Describe the concept of half-life of radioactive materials
emphasizing the environmental problems of materials with particularly long
half-lives.
   I. Distinguish between nuclear fission, both natural and artificial,
and nuclear fusion processes.
   J. Describe how radioactive materials are commonly used today in
physics, biology, chemistry and medicine.

X. Laboratory
   A. Use various measuring instruments commonly encountered in
laboratories.
   B. Develop safe and proper laboratory techniques in the setup, data
acquisition and analysis of information obtained from physics
experiments.
   C. Develop teamwork skills working in collaboration with other
physics/science students.

Methods of Evaluation of Competencies:

Evaluation of student mastery of course competencies will be accomplished using the following methods:

Homework/Quizzes 15 – 25%
Laboratories     15 – 25%
Unit Exams       30 – 50%
Final Exam       15 – 25%
Total              100%

 A = 90 -100%
 B = 80 - 89%
 C = 70 - 79%
 D = 60 - 69%
 F - 59% or less

Caveats: NONE

Disabilities:

If you are a student with a disability, and if you will be requesting accommodations, it is your responsibility to contact Access Services. Access Services will recommend any appropriate accommodations to your professor and his/her director. The professor and director will identify for you which accommodations will be arranged.

JCCC provides a range of services to allow persons with disabilities to participate in educational programs and activities. If you desire support services, contact the office of Access Services for Students With Disabilities (913) 469-8500, ext. 3521 or TDD (913) 469-3885. The Access Services office is located in the Success Center on the second floor of the Student Center.