Welcome to Physics 114, Introduction to Electromagnetism!

location: Library Lecture Hall 205 instructor: Dr. Anna Wang-Holtzen
email: awangholtzen@umassd.edu
office: 208-B SENG
office hours:

  • Monday 3:30-4:30pm SENG 306
  • Wednesday 11am-12pm SENG 208b
  • Friday 12-1:30pm SENG 208b

Description

Electromagnetism is one of the four fundamental interactions of Nature and plays a crucial role in the structure of atoms and molecules. The theory underlies any technology that involves electronics, circuits, magnetism, and thus finds application in every facet of modern life. Electromagnetism is also required to understand the complex behavior of biological systems including the neural circuitry of the brain. The theory explains the nature of light, and provided the clues that led Albert Einstein to his remarkable special theory of relativity.

  • textbook: OpenStax University Physics Vol 2 (E&M starts in ch. 5)
  • homework: We will use Physics LE with OpenStax for our online homework system. It costs $30 per semester. Please purchase a student access code and make an account here.

Tips for success

My number one tip for success is to go to class and actively participate! Go to recitation and office hours, too, even if you think you have a handle on the material. You might learn something unexpected. Doing more problems than the minimum set assigned is very helpful, as is a thorough study of the sample problems given in lecture and in the text. Since each chapter builds on materials covered in previous chapters, it is important that you keep up with the class. Should you fall behind, seek help right away to keep from further falling back.

Accessibility

UMass Dartmouth is committed to providing equal access to all of our students and be compliant with the legal mandates expressed in Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

If you have a documented disability or chronic health condition and require accommodations to obtain equal access in this course, please call the Office of Student Accessibility Services at 508-999-8711 to make an appointment.

Course objectives

  • You will develop an understanding of core concepts underlying the theory of electromagnetic interactions and how to apply them when analyzing a variety of physical scenarios. The overarching ideas are:
    • Electric charge: Sensitivity of materials to electromagnetic interactions
    • Electric fields: Distortions in space that exert electric force
    • Magnetic fields: Distortions in space that exert magnetic force
    • Induction: The dynamical generation of EM fields from one-another
  • You will develop your analytical thinking abilities by learning how to apply key problem solving skills:
    • Applying a systematic approach to thinking through physical scenarios
    • Employing analytical tools: geometry, trigonometry, algebra, calculus

Course components

Lectures and classroom policy

In lecture we will work on building models and concepts. I will present some material in lecture format, and we will work on discussion and problem-solving active learning activities. Your attendance and active participation is required in lecture. In a traditional lecture, you sit and listen to information that the instructor presents, and then do the actual work of learning on your own by doing homework problems. In an active learning classroom, I integrate some of that individual and peer learning work into lecture time, in a structured format. You will not be able to get the same value out of reading the notes later. There are a few structures in place to incentivize your attendance and particpation, outlined in the next section.

  • AI glasses or other recordings are not permitted in class.
  • Laptops are not permitted in class.
  • Please come prepared to take notes, preferably on paper but tablets are allowed. Make sure you bring a pen or pencil for any on-paper quizzes or activities.
  • My goal is for class to begin promptly at 8am. I reserve the right to bar students who are late from entering that particular lecture session.
  • I will ask students who are disruptive to leave the classroom.
  • Do not come to class sick! See participation policy below. If you’re starting to feel under the weather or getting over something, wear a mask!

Participation

A percentage of your grade is based on attendance and participation. I will not require you to attend every single lecture. I understand that there are all kinds of reasons for occasional absences, such as illness, family obligations, sports, and extracurricular activities. (If you expect to have regular absences, please get in touch with me as soon as possible. ) Instead, I will have some kind of graded activity during class time, on random days. These might take the form of short quizzes, homework or exam reflections, or tutorial activities. My goal is for these activities to encourage and evaluate your active participation in class, which is essential for benefitting from the active learning format of the course. Your participation score will be your score on these activities. The three lowest scores on these activities, including missed assignments, will be dropped to account for normal rates of absence and illness.

Labs

Labs are an opportunity to get hands-on experience with many aspects of electricity and magnetism that we will learn about in this course. For detailed information about the lab, contact the E&M lab coordinator.

Participate actively in labs. Lack of engagement or absence will result in a grade of zero for the lab or activity. If your lab score is below 70%, it will result in an overall failing grade for the course.

Homework and recitation

Practicing physics problem solving at both conceptual and quantitative levels is essential for developing a firm grasp of the material in this course. I find this practice is most effective in the following format:

  1. Look at the homework problems and try to do them yourself, without referencing your notes or any other resources.
  2. Take a look at your notes to check your work or resolve any confusion.
  3. Talk to your peers to resolve any remaining questions or confirm your work.
  4. Talk to an instructor to resolve any remaining questions or confirm your work.
  5. Start over at step 1 at some later point in time to review the material.

Recitation sections and office hours are both great places to work on steps 3 and 4. I also strongly encourage you to form study groups and work together on homework.

I strongly discourage you from using AI tools or extensive internet search to solve your homework problem. I am not particularly worried about cheating. The reason I discourage AI use on homework is because letting AI do your homework is like watching someone else lift weights at the gym. You won’t get any of your own gains.

Homework will be due weekly on Friday at 11:59 PM.

Recitations will be a mix of homework (and other) Q&A as well as activities designed to help you practice your problem solving skills and deepen your understanding of the course material. Recitation attendance is factored into your overall grade.

Assessments

The majority of your grade is based on your performance on midterm and final exams. Each exam will have a mixture of conceptual and quantitative questions. The conceptual questions assess your grasp of the principles of physics and their implications. The quantitative questions assess your application of mathematical techniques along with your conceptual understanding of the various topic areas to solve problems having to do with a physical scenario.

Because the exams are such a large part of your grade, and because learning is a highly individual and nonlinear process, you will have the opportunity to submit midterm exam reflections to boost your midterm exam scores by up to 10%. More information to follow the first midterm. There will not be a reflection opportunity for the final exam.

Grading

The grade breakdown will be as follows:

  • 65% exams: 20% for each midterm and 25% final exam
  • 10% participation
  • 10% lab (note: you need to pass the lab to pass the course)
  • 10% homework
  • 5% recitation
Letter Grade Score
A+ 100
A 93-100
A- 87-93
B+ 83-87
B 80-83
B- 77-80
C+ 73-77
C 70-73
C- 67-70
D+ 63-67
D 60-63
D- 57-60
F 0-57

NOTE: I reserve the right to adjust this grading scale should the need arise.

Academic Integrity

The following is copied from the [UMass Dartmout student handbook] (http://www.umassd.edu/studentaffairs/studenthandbookintroduction/studentconductpolicies/academicintegritypolicy/ ):

All UMass Dartmouth students are expected to maintain high standards of academic integrity and scholarly practice. The University does not tolerate academic dishonesty of any variety, whether as a result of a failure to understand required academic and scholarly procedure or as an act of intentional dishonesty.

A student found responsible of academic dishonesty is subject to severe disciplinary action which may include dismissal from the University. The procedure for responding to incidents of academic dishonesty may be found in Section III of this document. You may also refer to the Student Handbook for information about the judicial process.

A high standard of academic integrity promotes the pursuit of truth and learning and respect for the intellectual accomplishments of others. These are values that are fundamental to the mission of this University. Such values are undermined by academic dishonesty.

Academic freedom is a fundamental right in any institution of higher learning. Honesty and integrity are necessary preconditions of this freedom. Academic integrity requires that all academic work be wholly the product of an identified individual or individuals. Joint efforts are legitimate only when the assistance of others is explicitly acknowledged and deemed appropriate by the instructor of the course. Ethical conduct is the obligation of every member of the University community, and breaches of academic integrity constitute serious offenses.

Maintenance of the standards of academic integrity and the successful administration of this policy depend on the mutual cooperation of faculty and students.

Faculty cooperation is essential for successful application of the procedures defined by this Academic Integrity Policy. Faculty members promote academic integrity by making clear on their syllabi their expectations concerning homework assignments, collaborative student efforts, research papers, examinations, computer-based infractions, and the like. Efforts should be made to detect and to prevent cheating and plagiarism in all academic assignments. If faculty members have evidence of academic dishonesty, they are expected to report such evidence promptly.

Students must assume responsibility for maintaining honesty in all work submitted for credit and in any other work designated by the instructor of the course. Students are also expected to report incidents of academic dishonesty to the instructor or dean of the instructional unit.

The intent of this policy is to make clear the standards of academic integrity at UMass Dartmouth.