School of Physics

Traditional Introductory Physics I
Mechanics
PHYS 2211 A & B

Do not contact your instructor
through Canvas messaging

Welcome to PHYS 2211 A & B!

Check this location regularly for important information.
You are responsible for everything posted here.

Dec 13
Grades & Attendance
You may be interested in the distribution of course grades by class attendance, as determined by TurningPoint. The graph is showing that, for example, 61% of the students with "Good" attendance (greater than or equal to 90%) earned a A. The class GPA for students with Good attendance was 3.5. That for those with Fair attendance (60 to 90%) was 2.9, while that for those with Poor attendance (less than 60%) was 1.9. From another perspective, students with Good attendance were 69% of the class, yet they earned 82% of the A's. Student with Poor attendance were 11% of the class, but they earned 71% of the F's.
Students who attend class earn better grades
If you compare the above graph to the results for Summer 2017 through Summer 2018 posted at the beginning of the semester, you'll see that the trends are always the same! We'd like to thank those students who made the effort to attend class and participate.
Dec 13
Course Grades
Course Grades are available available in the Canvas PostEm Tool. If you think your grade is erroneous, please contact Dr. Murray. On the other hand, if you just wish your grade were different, please do not contact Dr. Murray! Grades are determined by the same standards for all students, and all possible consideration has already been given.
Dec 13
Final Exam Grades
Final Exam grades are available available in the Canvas Gradebook. An adjustment to compensate for a difference in difficulty between the regular and conflict exams was made, so regular Final Exam scores may exceed 100%. Exam forms will not be released through Gradescope, although if you stop by his office, Dr. Murray will be happy to go over your exam with you. Contact Dr. Murray to schedule an appointment, or if you have any questions.
Dec 13
Lab Averages Corrected
Lab Averages posted to the Canvas lecture Gradebook yesterday were very messed up. Corrected Lab Averages are now available. Contact Dr. Murray if you think your corrected Lab Average is still in error.
Dec 12
Lab Averages
Final Lab Averages Lab Avg are available in the Canvas lecture Gradebook. Each student's poorest lab grade was dropped. If your lab grade seems surprisingly low, don't forget the penalty for excessive absences. Contact Dr. Murray if you think your posted Lab Average is in error.
Dec 06
Recitation averages
Recitation Averages are available in the Canvas lecture gradebook. Each student's poorest recitation grade was dropped. Contact Dr. Murray if you think your posted Recitation Average is in error.
Dec 05
"Other" Points
"Other" Points have been calculated and are available in the Canvas gradebook. Recall that "Other" consists of these items, the average for each of which is also in the Canvas gradebook:

  Weight in Course
Regular Homework 5+2%
Practice Homework 4%
Class Participation 4%
Reading Questions 2%
Public Lectures 1 point
If you wish to verify the calculation,
  1. If your Regular Homework average exceeds 100% due to working it on a daily, rather than weekly, basis, temporarily treat it as 100%.
  2. Multiply each component of the "other" grade by the weight above (with Regular Homework at 5%). (Note that the posted Public Lecture score is already in points, rather than a percent. There's no need to multiply it by a weight.)
  3. If the sum of those weighted components exceeds 10 points, discard the excess
  4. If your Regular Homework average was 100% or less, this weighted sum should match the value in the Canvas Gradebook
  5. If your Regular Homework average was more than 100%, divide the excess by 0.2 and add it to the weighted sum. For example, if your Regular homework average was 110%, the amount exceeding 100% is 10%, or 0.1. Then 0.1/0.2 = 0.5, so the value in the Canvas Gradebook should be 0.5 points greater than the weighted sum.
The greatest possible "other" score, therefore, is 12 out of 10. The average "other" score is 10.4! Prof. Taboada and Dr. Murray would like to thank the students who put such serious effort into the course.
Contact Dr. Murray if you have any questions.
Dec 05
Class Participation & Reading Question Grades
Daily Class Participation & Reading Question Grades are available under PostEm in Canvas as percents. Contact your instructor if you believe a particular day's grade is in error.
Class Participation & Reading Question Averages are available in the Canvas gradebook as percents. Note that Class Participation questions were more difficult in section A (Murray), while Reading Questions were more difficult in section B (Taboada). Averages were scaled to compensate, so Class Participation aveages may exceed 100% in section A, and Reading Question averages may exceed 100% in section B. Contact Dr. Murray if you have any questions.
Dec 03
Final Exam
The Final Exam will have four Free-Response problems, together worth about half the points on the exam (so, 13% each). There will be 16 Multiple-Choice questions worth the rest (3% each). Some of the Multiple-Choice may require a bit more calculation than the Multiple-Choice did on the quizzes, but many will be strictly conceptual. We believe that topics in the course are covered roughly evenly — that is, there is no special emphasis on material after Quiz #4.
The same standardized formula sheet that was provided for the quizzes will also be provided for final exam. Additionally, Table 12-2 from your text, Moments of Inertia of Objects with Uniform Density, will be provided. They will be on the last page of your Exam, and should be removed.
Remember that the Final Exam for all PHYS 2211 sections will be administered Monday, December 9, 6:00–8:50pm. Students should go to the following rooms, which are NOT necessarily the same as the rooms used for quizzes. If any student goes to the wrong room, it is likely that there will be insufficient seats and/or exam forms in that room! Because L4 will have students from both sections A and B, there will be a place to indicate your section on the front page of your Exam. The reverse of the front page will be blank, and may be used if the page for a Free-Response problem has insufficient space for your work. If you wish this work to be evaluated, make a note on the problem page, so graders will know to look here for your work. You may remove this page during the Exam if it makes things easier for you.
You may want to review the Quiz and Exam Rules. Don't forget your photo ID.
Remember that calculators that cannot store text may be used on the final exam. Note that if your calculator keypad includes a complete alphabet, that's a very good sign that it cannot be used. Do not expect to be provided with an appropriate calculator if you do not bring your own.
Remember our expectations for your work on the free response problems, which are the same good problem-solving practices you should be using on the homework, anyway.
  • Units should be shown with any value that has a unit
  • Algebraic manipulations should be performed with symbols, not values
  • Consider, but do not obsess over, significant figures
You may find an example helpful.
Dec 03
Diagnostic and Concept Tests
Extra credit earned on the Diagnostic and Concept Tests is available in the Canvas gradebook, under XC (points). The maximum extra credit is one point, which will be added to your course average. If you wish to calculate your extra credit yourself, divide the total points earned on the two Tests by 188 and add a quarter point for each Test on which you earned a non-zero score. Contact Dr. Murray if you have any questions.
Dec 02
Public Lecture Records
Attendance records for the Public Lectures are available under PostEm in Canvas. A "1" indicates that your presence was recorded. Remember that half an "Other" point will be issued for attending one Public Lecture, and one "Other" point will be issued for attending two or more. Contact Dr. Murray if you have any questions or concerns.
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