Natural Science 122 & 122L: The Nature of Light & Laboratory
COURSE SYLLABUS
March Session 2009

CONTENTS
Description/Text Books
Instructor
Goals
Topic Prerequisites
Topic Outline
Grading
Tests
Paper
Lab Reports
Absences

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Description:
NSCI 122. An introduction for natural science or non-science majors to the field of optics. The question for the course is "What is light?". Different theories that model light as rays, waves, and photons are discussed to explain phenomena ranging from the formation of rainbows and mirages to the operation of lenses, lasers, holograms, and optical fibers. Prerequisite or Corequisite: MATH 105 or higher. Corequisite: NSCI 122L.
NSCI 122L. Laboratory to accompany NSCI 122. Corequisite: NSCI 122.

Texts:
There is not a required text for the course. Materials prepared by the instructor are available on a DVD handed out at the first class meeting.

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Instructor: Dr. John Varriano
Office: CW 116
Phone: 3439 (office)     685-9551 (home)

Office Hours:
Check my posted schedule for official office hours. Feel free to come by at other times to see if I am in.

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Goals:

  1. To see how we do science. To understand the processes involved in building a working science. To see the potential capabilities and shortcomings of a scientific model.
  2. To gain insight into some workings of Nature, particularly those that involve light. To deepen your appreciation of Nature.
  3. To see how we model light. To be able to describe some optical phenomena using a particular scientific model.
  4. To increase your analytic reasoning skills and build your scientific vocabulary so that you can be an active member in today's technical world.

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Topic Prerequisites:
- basic algebra, some basic trigonometry

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Outline:

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Grading:
There are two tests. There is a required short paper discussing some optical phenomena or some application of optics. Finally, each experiment performed in lab requires a brief written report that will be collected. These different components will be graded and weighted as shown below:

Test 125%
Test 225%
Paper25%
Lab Reports25%
Your final letter grade is determined by using the following scale:
0-59.9% - F / 60-69.9% - D / 70-79.9% - C / 80-89.9% - B / 90-100% - A

You will receive the same letter grade for the lecture course (NSCI 122) and the laboratory course (NSCI 122L). Each of the above components are described in more detail below.

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Tests:
The first test will be on April 15 and will cover material from Parts 1 through Part III. The second test will be on May 6 and will cover Parts IV through Parts VI. A set of study questions is available for each part of the course. If you cannot attend class for a test, let me know beforehand so that arrangements can be made to give you a make-up test. If you miss a test with no warning, you can take a make-up but your score will be reduced by 20%. Twenty-five percent of your Test 1 percentage score and twenty-five percent of your Test 2 percentage score go into calculating your course grade.

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Paper:
You are to write a brief paper discussing some optical phenomena or some application of optics. I must approve the topic. I don't want more than one student writing about any particular topic; so if you have a favorite topic, make sure to tell me early! The papers are due at the class final exam time. Late papers will not be accepted. The papers must be typed and double-spaced. Margins no wider than 0.75 inches are to be used. The font should be no larger than 12 point. The text should be at least four pages, but try not to exceed seven pages. If you want to include any diagrams or figures, then the seven-page limit can be exceeded. You must have a list of references at the end of your paper. You should have at least one reference! The CBU library has many books about optics, as well as scientific journals. The web is another great source of information. Your references should follow the formats in the following examples:

Book: R. Baierlein, Newton to Einstein: The Trail of Light. Cambridge University Press, 1992, pp. 59-60.
Journal: V. Kriss, The Physics Teacher, Vol. 34 (1996), pp. 190-191.
Web: www.cbu.edu/~jvarrian (The Home Page of Dr. John Varriano)

The most important aspect of the paper is the discussion of how light is behaving in the phenomenon or how it is being used in the particular application. For example, is reflection or refraction or interference or diffraction important in understanding the behavior of the light? The overall presentation of the paper (organization, clarity, and grammar) will also be used in determining the grade. The paper will be given a letter grade that is worth the following percentage:

A+ 100% B 85% C- 70%
A 95% B- 80% D 65%
A- 90% C 75% F 0

Twenty-five percent of your paper percentage grade goes into calculating your course grade. You can review a list of possible paper topics. Remember to get my approval on a topic before you start writing!

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Lab Reports:
Each of the six experiments that we perform requires a written report from each student. Photocopies of lab partners' reports are not permitted. A report must follow the following format.

See the schedule on the course web page to see when each report is due. Each report is worth 10 points. All of the points that you earn will be summed and divided by 60 to give a percentage. Twenty-five percent of this percentage goes into calculating your course grade. Late reports will be accepted at a penalty of 2 points per day. If you miss an experiment without warning you can make it up, but your report score will be reduced by 5 points. If you do not perform an experiment, you will lose 20 points for that report.

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Absences:
Please make an effort to attend every class. This is especially important since we are meeting only once per week to perform labs and take tests. Policies regarding missed tests and lab meetings are discussed above.

And remember: Optics is fun!

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