J.P. Jacobs-PHYS 141N - Spring 2005
J. P. Jacobs - PHYS 141N - Spring 2005
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Instructor's home page:
Contact the instructor: j.jacobs@umontana.edu
Taught Spring Semester - MWF 10:10 pm - Davidson Honor's College, DHC 117
Download the Syllabus
for this course. (pdf format).
Relativity (Honors Course), 3 credits. Offered spring semester. In this course,
industrious students with a working knowledge of algebra and trigonometry
and a modest exposure to calculus will gain deep insight into the counter
intuitive nature of space and time and will acquire a greater
appreciation for the power and beauty of theoretical physics.
We will begin with a brief historical view of the
study of motion including the works of Aristotle, Galileo, and Newton. We
will explore the necessity of introducing relativity theory to match known
experimental results. Einstein's special theory of relativity is
introduced from a modern, geometrically oriented
perspective, using space time diagrams throughout, and
emphasizing the deep connection between time and space. We will carefully
develop the Lorentz transformation equations and use them to explore
several of the apparent "paradoxes" of the theory. Finally, we will apply
the results of relativity theory to the practical real world problems of
high-energy particle physics, where the use of relativity is essential.
Throughout the course, we will emphasize the logical
structure of relativity to show how the unexpected and
counter intuitive consequences of the theory follow directly and
inevitably from the principle of relativity
("the laws of physics are the same in all inertial
reference frames"). Prerequisites: Working knowledge of high school
algebra and trigonometry. Some exposure to high school physics and
calculus is preferred.
Course Materials for Spring 2005
The following links have been disabled since the course is concluded.
- Handouts
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- Homework
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- (1) Galileo Excerpt. Includes Assignment 1, due Wednesday, January 26th at the beginning of class.
- (2) Newton Excerpt. Includes Assignment 2, due Friday, January 28th at the beginning of class.
- (3) Assignment 3: Read chapter 1 of Moore. Write down any questions you have about the material. Answer end of chapter problems: 1.9, 1.10, 1.11, and 1.12 (to hand in Monday, Jan 31st at the beginning of class). First try to reason out the answers on your own, then try to use the equations in the chapter to solve them. (Of course, your answers for the two methods should agree). Drawing diagrams like the ones I used in class can help.
- (4) Assignment 4: Chapter 1 handout. Due Wednesday Feb. 2nd at the beginning of class.
- (5) Assignment 5: Read chapter 2 of Moore. Write down any questions you have about the material. Answer end of chapter problems: 2.1 and 2.2 (to hand in Friday Feb. 4th at the beginning of class). Be sure to give detailed explanations for how you arrived at your answers.
- (6) Assignment 6: Chapter 2 handout. Due Monday Feb. 7th at the beginning of class.
- (7) Assignment 7: Read chapter 3 of Moore. Write down any questions you have about the material. Answer end of chapter problems: Finishing up chapter 2: 2.9 and 2.10, and Starting chapter 3: 3.1 (to hand in Wednesday Feb. 9th at the beginning of class). Be sure to give detailed explanations for how you arrived at your answers. For the radar method problems please sketch a spacetime diagram.
- (8) Assignment 8: Chapter 3 handout. Due Monday Feb. 14th at the beginning of class. In addition: (1) Write a story/situation mapping out a scenario in which 2 or more events occur (to hand in). Ask questions to illuminate the three kinds of time. Use the examples given in class as a template. (2) Read and study chapter 4. Come to class Monday with questions to discuss. (You can skip sections 4.5 and 4.6 if you want).
- (9) Assignment 9: Chapter 4 handout. Due Wednesday Feb. 16th at the beginning of class. We have an exam on Friday. Exam coverage: chapters 1, 2, 3, and sections 4.1 and 4.2.
- (10) Assignment 10: Chapter 4 handout #2. Due Friday Feb. 25th at the beginning of class. Read chapter 5 and bring questions on Friday.
- (11) Assignment 11: To hand in Monday: Problems 5.1 and 5.2. Read chapter 5 and bring questions on Monday.
- (12) Assignment 12: Discussion questions from muon video/article (to hand in on Wednesday) (1) Briefly describe how muons are detected. (2) Briefly describe how we distinguish between a muon that goes through the detector without decaying to one that does decay in the detector. (3) How did the experimenters select only those muons that were traveling at a velocity of 0.994? (4) Why did the experimenters use less iron shielding at sea level than they did at the top of the mountain? (5) Describe some of the possible sources of error in the experiment. (6) In your own words, describe the significance of this experiment.
- (13) Assignment 13: Chapter 5 handout I. Due Friday March 4th at the beginning of class.
- (14) Assignment 14:
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- Chapter 5 handout II. Due Monday March 7th at the beginning of class.
- Read "Clocks Around the World" handout.
- Read "GPS" handout.
- Start reading chapter 6.
- Discussion questions to consider: (1) According to the "Around the World" articles, the west-going clocks "gained" time the east-going clocks "lost" time, but according to relativity, shouldn't both sets of clocks run slow? (2) Why wasn't one clock sufficient; why did they fly 4 clocks at a time? (3) Explain what is the significance of the
term "RΩ" in most of the equations. (4) Describe what is meant by the "average rate" method. (5) Describe what is meant by the "correlated rate change" method. (6) In your own words, describe the significance of this experiment.
- (15) Assignment 15: Discussion questions to hand in on Wednesday March 9th: (1) According to the "Around the World" articles, the west-going clocks "gained" time the east-going clocks "lost" time, but according to relativity, shouldn't both sets of clocks run slow? (2) Why wasn't one clock sufficient; why did they fly 4 clocks at a time? (3) Explain what is the significance of the
term "RΩ" in most of the equations. (4) Describe what is meant by the "average rate" method. (5) Describe what is meant by the "correlated rate change" method. (6) In your own words, describe the significance of this experiment.
- (16) Assignment 16: Chapter 6 handout I. Due Monday March 14th at the beginning of class. Be sure to find the solution with the graphical method and the Lorentz transformation equations. Show enough steps to make it clear what you are doing. Be careful of sign errors.
- (17) Assignment 17: Chapter 6 handout II. Due Wednesday March 16th at the beginning of class. Be sure to find the solution with the graphical method and the Lorentz transformation equations. Show enough steps to make it clear what you are doing. Be careful of sign errors.
- (18) Assignment 18: Chapter 7 handout I. Due Wednesday March 30th at the beginning of class.
- (19) Assignment 19: Chapter 7 handout II. Due Monday April 4st at the beginning of class.
- (20) Assignment 20: Chapter 8 handout I (intervals). Due Monday April 4th at the beginning of class.
- (21) Assignment 21: Detonator Paradox. Due date Monday, April 11 at the beginning of class.
- (22) Assignment 22: Chapter 8 handout II (asteroid). Due Wednesday April 6th at the beginning of class.
- (23) Assignment 23: Chapter 8 handout III (2-D velocity transformation). Due date: Monday, April 11 at the beginning of class.
- (24) Assignment 24: Read and study chapter 9. Bring questions to class.
- (25) Assignment 25: Chapter 9 handout. Due date: Monday, April 18 at the beginning of class. Also read and study chapter 10.
- (26) Assignment 26: Chapter 10 handout. Due date: Friday, April 22 at the beginning of class. Also read and study chapter 11.
- (26) Assignment 26: Chapter 11 handout. Due date: Monday, April 25 at the beginning of class.
- (27) Handout: Chapter 11 handout. Color version of elementary particle chart handed out in class.
- Exams
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