Physics
From Teach And Discover Wiki
Physics is the science of matter and energy and how they interact; It is the science that deals with concepts such as force, energy, mass, and charge. Physics is a fundamental, mathematical, and an experimental science.
Physics is one of the oldest academic disciplines, having emerged as a modern science in the 17th century, and through its modern subfield of Astronomy, it may be the oldest of all. Those who work professionally in the field are known as physicists.
Advances in physics often translate to the technological sector, and sometimes influence the other sciences, as well as mathematics and philosophy. For example, advances in the understanding of electromagnetism have led to the widespread use of electrically driven devices (televisions, computers, home appliances etc.); advances in thermodynamics led to the development of motorized transport; and advances in mechanics led to the development of calculus, quantum chemistry, and the use of instruments such as the electron microscope in microbiology.
Today, physics is a broad and highly developed subject. Research is often divided into four subfields: condensed matter physics; atomic, molecular, and optical physics; high-energy physics; and astronomy and astrophysics. Most physicists also specialize in either theoretical or experimental research, the former dealing with the development of new theories, and the latter dealing with the experimental testing of theories and the discovery of new phenomena. Despite important discoveries during the last four centuries, there are a number of unsolved problems in physics, and many areas of active research.
Note about the classroom projects: It is being considered whether or not a student should be allowed to participate in the projects unless he or she performs at a particular standard on classroom work for each unit. Classroom projects are going to be considered part of the grade, but in most cases there are students who never do any classwork and only participate in the projects and activities. Points are also awarded for the successful completion of each project. Therefore, it is possible that a student who does not demonstrate proficiency in each unit will not only miss out on the ability to participate in classroom activities but will also miss out on the points awarded for that project.
Click on the following link to download the course syllabus: Physics Course Syllabus
Contents |
Course Outline
Section One - Introduction
- Physics and it's connection to other sciences - How is physics related to Chemistry & Biology?
- Lab Safety - Following Instruction, Obeying the Rules, First Aid
- Units S.I. Units vs. Standard
- Scientific Notation - The Language of The Large and Small
- The Scientific Method - How do we go about finding new knowledge?
- History of Physics - What did we know and when did we know it?
Section Two - Astrophysics
- Planetology - A tour of our own Solar System (The program Celestia will be our guide, along with a series of Powerpoint Presentations.)
- Lifespan of a Star - What happens to stars in our universe?
- The Galaxy - Our Local Neighborhood
- The Universe - Introduction to Deep-Field Astronomy & Cosmology
- Copernicus & Galileo - The Birth of Physics & Scientific Thought
- Kepler's laws - Planetary Motion
- Newton's Law of Gravitaton - The gravitational attraction between two objects or bodies.
- Project 1 - Astronomy Night - A tour of the night sky, including our local neighborhood (that's a relative term!).
Section Three - Linear Motion
- Kinematics Displacement, velocity, acceleration
- Force Newton's 3 Laws of Motion
- Work, Energy, and Power - Things that make things go!
- Momentum & Its Conservation Elastic and inelastic collisions
- Friction and the Normal Force - Overcoming "Equal & Opposite"
- Project 2 - The Rube-Goldberg Machine - You'll get to work with a partner to create a machine that performs a task using a series of energy conversions (including mechanical, electrical, thermal, and chemical).
Section Four - 2-Dimensional Motion
- Gravity - The Universal Force of Attraction
- Circular Motion - What keeps an object in an orbit?
- Torque - The Fulcrum, and Work at a Distance
- Periodic Motion - The Pendulum
- Waves - Frequency & Wavelength
- Sound - The Possible "Impossible" Barrier
- Project 3 - The Bottle Rocket Competition - You will each build a bottle rocket that will launch with the power of air and water. The highest one wins! (How do we know who is the highest?)
Section Five - Electromagnetism
- Light - Light as a Wave, The Visible & Invisible Spectrum
- Electricity & Circuits Charge, current, electric fields
- Magnetism Magnetic dipoles, magnetic fields
- Electricity Resistance, voltage, capacitance, inductance
- Optics Light, lasers, etc.
- Project 4 - Fingers In The Light Socket - In this project, students will be challenged to design a battery using common household materials and to have it produce the highest amperage and voltage.
Section Six - Properties of Matter
- The Atom - The Foundation of the Universe
- Particles in Nature - Big Bang, Supernovae, The Nuclear Forces, Antimatter
- Thermodynamics Heat and Energy Transfer
- Light - Part II - The Wave-Particle Duality of Light
- Project 5 - Trebuchet Trouble - In groups of two, students will be challenged to construct a trebuchet that will launch a tennis ball the farthest and the most consistent!
Section Seven - Modern Physics
- Special Relativity - Time and Space, Dilation & Contraction, Spacetime Diagrams
- General Relativity - The Fabric of Space, The Black Hole, The Point Of View
- Cosmology - The Structure of the Universe, Dark Matter & Energy
- Quantum Mechanics - Quanta, Electron States, Probability of Matter & Energy
- What else is there? - String Theory, M theory, Theoretical Physics
- Project 6 - Lunar Rovers - You'll get to build a mouse-trap or a rat-trap car and see how far you can get it to move with nothing but it's own power and the power of the trap!
Alternative/Enrichment Projects
- Project 7 - The Wright Way to Fly - Students will be challenged to construct a flying craft out of a balsa-wood airplane kit that will stay in the air for the longest time. (some students have kept it int he air for oever two minutes!)
- Project 8 - Bridging the Gap - Students will work in groups of two to construct a bridge spanning the width between two desks that will hold the most weight. Caution, projectiles may be flying everywhere!
- Project 9 - Do you like your eggs scrambled? - Students will be responsible for creating a device to successfully protect an egg when dropped from the top floor to the bottom floor.
Appendix
- Physical Constants - A table of physical constants, for reference.
The exam
AP Physics is an advanced placement science course that is separated into nine different sections of study: Newtonian Mechanics, Electricity and Magnetism, Fluid Mechanics and Thermodynamics, Waves and Optics, and Atomic and Nuclear Physics.
The exam is administered in two sections, a seventy (70) question multiple choice section and a six to eight (6 to 8) question free response section AP Physics: The Exam. Each section must be completed within a 90 minute time limit. In order to test knowledge as well as skills, the multiple choice section is taken without a calculator. The free response section permits the use of a calculator as well as a list of common formulae. The test is weighted such that each section is worth fifty percent (50%) of the final score. Overall, the exam is configured to approximately cover a set percentage of each of the five target categories:
- Newtonian Mechanics (35%)
- Fluid Mechanics and Thermal Physics (15%)
- Electricity and Magnetism (25%)
- Waves and Optics (15%)
- Atomic and Nuclear Physics (10%)
The AP Physics Exam booklet can be downloaded here: AP Physics Course Description. The file is PDF and is 66 pages long (it's BIG!).
