Physics I |
Physics aims to understand the natural world and universe around us, and how it works. In this course we will cover the foundational principals that are invaluable to any physicist. This includes classical mechanics, waves and optics, which specifically address how solid bodies, fluids and light travels and behaves. While this course addresses the more classical side of physics, it is the groundwork upon which more modern physics is based (quantum mechanics is nothing without an understanding of waves, and relativity cannot be attempted without a firm grasp of classical mechanics). By the end of the course students should be able to calculate if a roller-coaster is too extreme for passengers, how satellites stay in orbit, and why wind can destroy a bridge made of steel and concrete!
Physics I would to take place twice a week over a half a semester. We followed the textbook Essential University Physics by Wolfson.
PDFs of lecture slides can be found in the PHYS1 folder at this url. Note these slides were used in classes I taught 2021 and have not been updated since.
Class 1: Intro and mathematics overview
Class 2: Motion in 1D and dimensional analysis
Class 3: Motion in 2D and 3D
Class 4: Newton's laws and circular motion
Class 5: Types of forces
Class 6: Work and energy
Class 7: Conservation laws
Class 8: Momentum and collisions
Class 9: Rotational motion and oscillations
Class 10: Wave motion
Class 11: Fluid dynamics
Class 12: Reflection and refraction
Class 13: Mirrors and lenses
Class 14: Interference and diffraction
Class 15: Exam