Today's lab
was probably a bit hard for you. That is OK. There are really two reasons for this.
1. Scheduling. I chose to do relativity first, the other two classes I have to stay synchronized with lab-wise did not. My way is sort of a pain on the instructor (not following the textbook order for one), but I think the course as a whole ends up more coherent. Also, the PH106 section we're syncing with doesn't even cover relativity at all. As a result, for the first week or so the labs come a bit sooner than I would like. This will be resolved next week.
2. Realism. You walked into the lab knowing only a little bit about capacitors, and then were expected to figure out how they acted in combination - while also knowing next to nothing (on average) about the power supply and meter you were supposed to use. This probably meant you were confused at first, had to read and think a bit, and ask a lot of questions about the equipment. It is frustrating, but this is a much more realistic picture of how real experiments work - many unknowns, all you can do is be systematic and careful. It is more a barely-guided exploration, driven by your inquiring as to how things work, than baking a cake or assembling some Ikea furniture. There is never a complete recipe or instruction manual that will always work. We can't do all the labs like this - just throw you into the fire, as it were - but I think it is a good experience to just turn you loose with minimal preparation and see what you can figure out some times. We will do some 'cake baking' labs too, but doing only those gets boring.
That being said, tomorrow in lecture we'll discuss capacitors, meters, and circuits in detail, and I think in retrospect everything will make sense, and you'll have a better appreciation for what you did today.
Tomorrow's lab is a milder version of the same thing - we're going to turn you loose with various electrical components and see what you can make them do. It will be less difficult than what you did today, but will still involve an element of exploration that is really key to proper experimentation.
1. Scheduling. I chose to do relativity first, the other two classes I have to stay synchronized with lab-wise did not. My way is sort of a pain on the instructor (not following the textbook order for one), but I think the course as a whole ends up more coherent. Also, the PH106 section we're syncing with doesn't even cover relativity at all. As a result, for the first week or so the labs come a bit sooner than I would like. This will be resolved next week.
2. Realism. You walked into the lab knowing only a little bit about capacitors, and then were expected to figure out how they acted in combination - while also knowing next to nothing (on average) about the power supply and meter you were supposed to use. This probably meant you were confused at first, had to read and think a bit, and ask a lot of questions about the equipment. It is frustrating, but this is a much more realistic picture of how real experiments work - many unknowns, all you can do is be systematic and careful. It is more a barely-guided exploration, driven by your inquiring as to how things work, than baking a cake or assembling some Ikea furniture. There is never a complete recipe or instruction manual that will always work. We can't do all the labs like this - just throw you into the fire, as it were - but I think it is a good experience to just turn you loose with minimal preparation and see what you can figure out some times. We will do some 'cake baking' labs too, but doing only those gets boring.
That being said, tomorrow in lecture we'll discuss capacitors, meters, and circuits in detail, and I think in retrospect everything will make sense, and you'll have a better appreciation for what you did today.
Tomorrow's lab is a milder version of the same thing - we're going to turn you loose with various electrical components and see what you can make them do. It will be less difficult than what you did today, but will still involve an element of exploration that is really key to proper experimentation.
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