College Physics 1

Learning objectives

Module 1: Course Introduction

• Describe how the “Big Ideas” in College Physics 1 develop a context that facilitates a deep understanding of key concepts, connections, and interdependencies.
• Explain how the knowledge of Physics fits into the context of our everyday lives.

Module 2: Mathematics Review

• Use methods of Algebra to solve for unknown quantities.
• Use relationships in trigonometry with algebra to find an unknown quantity

Module 3: Introduction to Physics

• Distinguish between a principle, law, model, and theory.
• Explain SI units, and Derived units and be able to write SI unit’s most common prefixes in scientific notation.
• Determine the appropriate number of significant figures in both addition and subtraction, as well as multiplication and division calculations.
• Calculate the percent uncertainty of a measurement.
• Estimate calculations with appropriate rounding, assumptions, and approximations so that results are accurate within an order of magnitude of the exact value.

Module 4: Motion in One-Dimension

• Calculate displacement and distance given the initial position, final position, and the path between the two.
• Define and distinguish between scalar and vector quantities.
• Assign a coordinate system for a scenario involving one-dimensional motion.
• Calculate velocity and speed given initial position, initial time, final position, and final time.
• Interpret a graph of position, velocity, and acceleration graphs.
• Define and distinguish between instantaneous acceleration, average acceleration, and deceleration.
• Calculate acceleration given initial time, initial velocity, final time, and final velocity.
• Calculate the displacement of an object that is not accelerating, given initial position and velocity.
• Calculate the final velocity of an accelerating object, given initial velocity, acceleration, and time.
• Calculate the displacement and final position of an accelerating object, given the initial position, initial velocity, time, and acceleration.
• Describe the effects of gravity on objects in motion.
• Describe the motion of objects that are in free fall.
• Calculate the position and velocity of objects in free fall.

Module 5: Vectors

• Identify the independence of horizontal and vertical vectors in two-dimensional motion.
• Calculate the displacement between the start and end points of a journey.
• Apply the rules of vector addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
• Apply graphical methods of vector addition and subtraction to determine the displacement of moving objects.
• Explain the rules of vector addition and subtraction using analytical methods.
• Apply analytical methods to determine vertical and horizontal component vectors.
• Apply analytical methods to determine the magnitude and direction of a resultant vector.

Module 6: Motion in Two-Dimensions

• Calculate the properties of a projectile, such as acceleration due to gravity, range, maximum height, and trajectory.
• Determine the location and velocity of a projectile at different points in its trajectory.
• Apply the principle of independence of motion to solve projectile motion problems.
• Apply principles of vector addition to determine relative velocity

Module 7: Newton’s Laws of Motion

• Summarize the definition of force.
• Define mass and inertia.
• Analyze situations where a particle remains at rest or has constant velocity under the influence of multiple forces.
• Define net force, external force, and system.
• Apply Newton’s second law to determine the weight of an object.
• Apply Newton’s third law to define systems and solve problems of motion.
• Identify pairs of action and reaction forces and objects on which they act.

Module 8: Applications of Newton’s Laws of Motion

• Write the expressions and calculate normal forces for an object that is stationary or moving on a plane surface or on an incline
• Use trigonometric identities to resolve weight into components.
• Calculate tension forces for an object
• Interpret and apply a problem-solving procedure to solve problems using Newton’s laws of motion.
• Calculate the magnitude of static and kinetic friction.
• Explain Hooke’s law using a graphical representation between deformation and applied force.
• Discuss the three types of deformations such as changes in length, sideways shear, and changes in volume.
• Determine the change in length given mass, length, and radius.
• Describe with examples the young’s modulus, shear modulus, and bulk modulus.

Module 9: Uniform Circular Motion

• Calculate arc length, rotation angle, and radius of curvature for a rotating body.
• Calculate the angular velocity of a body.
• Calculate the centripetal acceleration.
• Explain the centrifuge.
• Calculate the Centripetal Force on a Rotating Body
• Calculate the ideal speed and angle of a car on a turn

Module 10: Energy and Newton’s Laws of Gravitation

• Calculate Mechanical Work
• Explain how relative directions of force and displacement determine whether the work done is positive, negative, or zero.
• Explain work as a transfer of energy and net work as the work done by the net force.
• Apply the Work-Energy Theorem
• Explain gravitational potential energy in terms of work done against gravity.
• Define conservative force, potential energy, and mechanical energy.
• Calculate the potential energy of spring in terms of its compression when Hooke’s law applies.
• Use the work-energy theorem to show how having only conservative forces implies the conservation of mechanical energy.
• Apply Newton’s Law of Gravitation
• Describe the gravitational effect of the Moon on Earth.
• Discuss weightlessness in space.
• Examine the Cavendish experiment

Module 11: Energy and Power

• Define nonconservative forces and explain how they affect mechanical energy.
• Apply the principle of conservation of energy by treating the conservative forces in terms of their potential energies and any nonconservative forces in terms of the work they do.
• Apply the law of conservation of energy.
• Describe what happens to the energy in the system when the reference height changes.
• Calculate power by calculating changes in energy over time.

Module 12: Momentum and Collisions

• Calculate momentum given mass and velocity.
• Describe the effects of impulses in everyday life.
• Calculate average force and impulse given mass, velocity, and time.
• Determine the average effective force using a graphical representation.
• Explain the conservation of momentum with examples.
• Determine the final velocities in an elastic collision given masses and initial velocities.
• Determine recoil velocity and loss in kinetic energy given mass and initial velocity.
• Calculate the angular acceleration of an object.
• Describe the link between linear and angular acceleration.

Module 13: Rotational Dynamics

• Describe the analogy between force and torque, mass and moment of inertia, and linear acceleration and angular acceleration.
• Apply the first condition of equilibrium.
• State the second condition that is necessary to achieve equilibrium.
• Calculate Torque
• State the types of equilibrium.
• Apply various problem-solving strategies in Statics.
• Calculate rotational kinetic energy.
• Apply the Law of Conservation of Energy for rotational motion.

Module 14: Fluids

• Explain the relationship between mass, volume, and density for solids and liquids, and calculate the unknown quantity when 2 of these quantities are given.
• Apply the relationship between pressure, force, and area for solids and liquids to calculate the unknown quantity when 2 of these quantities are given.
• Apply the relationship between pressure and depth in a fluid to analyze situations that involve measuring pressure at a certain depth in a fluid.
• Explain relationships between forces in a hydraulic system.
• Apply Pascal’s principle to calculate the amount of force required to lift heavy weights in machines such as a hydraulic jack
• Calculate gauge pressure and absolute pressure.
• Explain the working of aneroid and open-tube barometers or manometers.
• Explain the relationship between density and Archimedes’ principle
• Explain why objects float or sink.
• Calculate flow rate.
• Explain the consequences of the equation of continuity.
• Calculate with Bernoulli’s principle.
• Calculate using Torricelli’s theorem.
• Calculate power in fluid flow.
• Calculate flow and resistance with Poiseuille’s law.
• Explain how pressure drops due to resistance.

Module 15: Oscillations 

• Explain Newton’s third law of motion with respect to stress and deformation.
• Describe the restoration of force and displacement.
• Calculate the energy in Hooke’s Law of deformation and the stored energy in a spring.
• State the relationship between parameters describing oscillations such as frequency and time period.
• Analyze problems in which mass hangs from a spring and oscillates vertically
• Analyze the motion of a simple pendulum and state the relationship between the length of the pendulum, acceleration due to gravity, and time period/frequency of oscillations.
• Apply the principle of conservation of energy to an ideal simple harmonic oscillator such as a spring-mass system (to derive max speed, max potential energy, and kinetic energy)
• Determine the points and times of maximum potential energy and maximum kinetic energy for a simple harmonic oscillator
• Compare simple harmonic motion with uniform circular motion

Module 16: Waves

• Calculate the wavelength, frequency, velocity, and time period of a wave
• Differentiate between transverse and longitudinal waves
• Calculate the beat frequency of standing waves.
• Apply the principle of superposition traveling waves moving in opposite directions, and describe how a standing wave may be formed by superposition.
• Compare and contrast the effects of constructive and destructive interference
• Define sound and hearing. Determine how sound is created.
• Define pitch.
• Describe the relationship between the speed of sound, its frequency, and its wavelength.
• Describe the effects on the speed of sound as it travels through various media.
• Describe the effects of temperature on the speed of sound.
• Define intensity, sound intensity, and sound pressure level.
• Calculate sound intensity given the power and area or given the pressure variation and the density of material through which sound travels.
• Analyze situations where there is a relative motion between wave source and observer to calculate the apparent frequency emitted by the source as recorded by the observer
• Describe the phenomenon of resonance in waves citing a few real life examples.
• Describe how sound interference occurring inside open and closed tubes changes the characteristics of the sound, and how this applies to sounds produced by musical instruments.

Module 17: Thermodynamics

• Convert temperatures between the Celsius, Fahrenheit, and Kelvin scales.
• State the zeroth law of thermodynamics.
• Calculate the thermal stress on an object given its original volume, temperature change, volume change, and bulk modulus.
• State the ideal gas law in terms of molecules and in terms of moles.
• Use the ideal gas law to calculate pressure change, temperature change, volume change, or the number of molecules or moles in a given volume.
• Use Avogadro’s number to convert between the number of molecules and the number of moles.
• Express the ideal gas law in terms of molecular mass and velocity.
• Describe the relationship between the temperature of a gas and the kinetic energy of atoms and molecules.
• Describe the distribution of speeds of molecules in a gas.
• Calculate the final temperature after heat transfer between two objects.
• Explain the different methods of heat transfer.
• Explain the first law of thermodynamics and identify instances of the law working in everyday situations.
• Calculate changes in the internal energy of a system, after accounting for heat transfer and work done.
• Describe the processes of a simple heat engine.
• Explain the differences among the simple thermodynamic processes—isobaric, isochoric, isothermal, and adiabatic.
• Calculate the total work done in a cyclical thermodynamic process.
• State the expressions of the second law of thermodynamics.
• Calculate the efficiency and carbon dioxide emission of a coal-fired electricity plant, using second law characteristics.
• Describe and define the Otto cycle.
• Calculate the maximum theoretical efficiency of a nuclear reactor