Final Exam, II

I will be out of town this Friday (4 May) through Monday (7 May). I may be able to monitor email during this time, but not terribly often (maybe once or twice a day).

Your TA (and the rest of the physics help desk staff) is around, though, so go find Mr. Wofsey or another GTA if you have questions between Friday and Monday.

Also: extra weight will be given to particularly clever solutions to the exam problems, even if they aren't quite right. So explain your reasoning and logic as well as you can and you will do far better. Even if you can only explain in words how you *would* solve the problem, but couldn't get it to work, you will receive some degree of partial credit.

Final Exam

As discussed, in class, your final exam is take-home. Here are the rules:

• The exam must represent your own work.
  
• You will sign a statement to this effect.
• You must work 10 of 12 problems and show your work.
  
• No work shown = no credit.
• Partial credit will be given.
  
• You may use a calculator, your textbook, and notes.
• "Notes" includes anything posted by me, e.g., prior exam solutions.
  
• Exams must be returned by 5pm on 11 May 2007
• Exams may be placed in my box in Gallalee or Bevill, or brought to my office.
  
• Scanned exams will also be accepted by email in PDF format.
  

More details will be provided in class today. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask (email or a comment on this post preferred). Any questions that come up (or hints given) will be answered here for the benefit of the entire class.

The exam is available HERE.

Exam III results, overall grades

Today in class you will get exam III back.

The average for the multiple choice section was 78.4%, and 83.15% for the problems. Thus, there is no scaling. The bonus question was worth a flat 5%. Your overall grade is (MC % + PR % + 5% bonus). The overall average was 83.14% - 7 D's, 9 C's, 13 B's, and 13 A's.

You also voted overwhelmingly to make the labs worth more in place of the clicker grade. The final grade breakdown is thus:

Labs: 18%
Quizzes 10%
Homework 10%
QED report 6%
Hour exams 12% each (36% total)
Final 20%

Exam III

As you know, Exam III is tomorrow. The following sections are covered (exclusively):

Ch. 23, Sects. 1-4, 6
Ch. 26, Sects. 5-9
Ch. 27, Sects. 1-3, 5, 6, 8
Ch. 28, Sects. 1-3, 5

The exam will be half problem-based, and half multiple choice. Each portion is worth 50% of the total grade. The multiple choice will cover all sections above, while the problems will be restricted to the sections in Ch. 26-28 (i.e., no problems from Ch. 23).

There will be generous partial credit given for the problems, none for the multiple choice. You will be given a list of 8 problems of equal weight, and you can choose any 4 of them to solve. There will be 12 multiple choice, you should do all of those.

There will be one bonus question, worth about as much as one normal question.

Study example problems, your homework problems, and the quizzes to date (all solutions are now online). In particular pay attention to the conceptual questions within the chapter and at the end of the chapter.

You should bring a calculator and a formula sheet to the exam. The formula sheet can consists of two sides of an 8.5x11" sheet of paper - either two single sides, or one page front and back. It may contain any information on it you like, written in whatever manner you like.

UPDATE: look here

Office Hours Today

I will be around my Bevill office (228) most of today. Give me 30mins heads-up by email or phone (8-0449) if you have questions and want to come by.

Quiz solutions ...

I have posted a solution for quiz 7 in the usual place. Direct link.

The quiz 8 solution will follow soon, hopefully by morning so you can look it over before Thursday's exam. Most of quiz 8 was straight from the homework questions, so you should be OK on that one ...

UPDATE: A quick solution for quiz 8 is now there too ...

Some relativity notes ...

... are online now.

Scanned handwritten notes, in the usual place.

UPDATE: atomic physics, refraction & lenses, more relativity, and some quantum notes are now there too.