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Last updated: Fri May 9 01:51:59 pm 2025 (EDT) by Tibor F Nagy

PHY 184/234B Summer 2025

Michigan State University

Personnel

Course Coordinator: Tibor F Nagy
Exam Proctor: ProctorU Live
Teaching Assistant: Riley Rothschild, Sierra C Baldwin

Instructor Information

Professor Tibor F. Nagy
Email: nagytibo@msu.edu
Web: https://web.pa.msu.edu/people/nagy_t/

Teaching Assistants: ???

Course Description

This is an on-line, calculus-based physics course for students majoring in engineering or physical sciences. Topics include: electrostatics, capacitors, DC circuits, magnetostatics, induction, AC circuits, electromagnetic waves, geometric optics, optical instruments, wave optics, special relativity.

Prerequisites

Physics 1: (PHY 183 or PHY 183B or PHY 233B or PHY 193H or LBS 164 or equivalent) and Calculus 2: MTH 133 or equivalent.

Helproom Hours

At any time through the discussion board of LON-CAPA.

Project Information

Honors option is not available for this course.

Exam Information

For the exams you will need pens, pencils, erasers, scrap paper, and a scientific calculator with fresh batteries. Graphing calculators are allowed, but they are not necessary. On the exams students must work individually.

Students with disabilities or other circumstances that require special arrangements should inform their instructors as soon as possible and well ahead of the exams so that proper arrangements can be made. Please present the instructor with your RCPD form.

Exam #1: June 10, Tuesday, 60 minutes online, after 6:00 PM EDT, 23 hour long time window,
Exam #2: July 08, Tuesday, 60 minutes online, after 6:00 PM EDT, 23 hour long time window,
Exam #3: July 29, Tuesday, 60 minutes online, after 6:00 PM EDT, 23 hour long time window,
Final Exam for PHY 184B ONLY: August 12, Tuesday, 120 minutes online, after 6:00 PM EDT, 23 hour long time window.

On the midterm exams a one-sided 8.5 by 11 US letter sized handwritten help sheet is allowed together with the sheets from the previous midterm exams. On the final exam four, one-sided help sheets (three from the midterm exams and a fourth sheet) are allowed.

The midterm exams will have correction as a homework: 30% of the positive difference between the correction and the exam will be added to your exam score as bonus. The final exam will not have correction.

All the students will take the exams online through LON-CAPA. The online exams will be proctored through the web by Meazure Learning/ProctorU (www.proctoru.com). The proctoring fee will be covered by MSU. For web proctoring you will need a modern computer with web camera, microphone, speakers and a reliable high speed internet connection. The proctors will ask you to show your picture ID (MSU student ID or driver's license).

Deadlines

Students with Disabilities: MSU is committed to providing equal opportunity for participation in all programs, services and activities. Requests for accommodations by persons with disabilities may be made by contacting the Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities at 517-884-RCPD or on the web at rcpd.msu.edu. Once your eligibility for an accommodation has been determined, you will be issued a verified individual services accommodation (VISA) form. Please present this form to your instructor at the start of the term no later than the end of the first week of class. Requests received after this date may not be honored.

Grading Information

Percent weights for PHY 184B: Homework: 38%. Three midterm exams: 3x12% = 36%. Final exam: 24%. Pre- and Post-Tests: 1%+1%=2%. Total: 100%.

Percent weights for PHY 234B: Homework: 38%. Three midterm exams: 3x20% = 60%. Pre- and Post-Tests: 1%+1%=2%. Total: 100%.

Homework: Every problem part is worth 1 point.

Maximum score on the midterm exams: 50 points. The midterm exams will have corrections as a homework: 30% of the positive difference between the correction and the exam will be added to your exam score as bonus. The corrections are optional. The corrections can only raise your scores, they CANNOT lower your score. The eXam and the Correction scores are combined together to the Total test score as follows: If C>X, then T = X + 0.3*(C-X), otherwise T = X. For example, if you got 35 points on the midterm and got 46 points on the correction exam, you new total will be 35 + (0.3)*(46-35) = 38.3. In this case, if you got less than 35 points on the correction exam your total would still be 35.

Final Exam for PHY 184B ONLY: Maximum score on the final: 100 points. The final exam will not have correction.

Grading scale:
4.0 >= 92%,
3.5 >= 84%,
3.0 >= 76%,
2.5 >= 68%,
2.0 >= 60%,
1.5 >= 52%,
1.0 >= 44%,
0.0 < 44%.

This grading scale might be lowered, but it will not be raised.

The Spartan Code of Honor: As a Spartan, I will strive to uphold values of the highest ethical standard. I will practice honesty in my work, foster honesty in my peers, and take pride in knowing that honor is worth more than grades. I will carry these values beyond my time as a student at Michigan State University, continuing the endeavor to build personal integrity in all that I do.

Readings


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Wk | HW is due | Reading assignment
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01 | May 18 Su | Syllabus, Homework set #0
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02 | May 22 Th | HW 1: Ch 21: Electrostatics
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03 | May 29 Th | HW 2: Ch 22: Electric Fields
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04 | Jun 05 Th | HW 3: Ch 23: Electric Potential, Ch 24: Capacitors
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05 | Jun 10 Tu | Exam #1: HW 1-3, Ch 21-24, online, after 6:00 PM EDT
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06 | Jun 19 Th | HW 4: Ch 25: Current and Resistance, 26: DC Circuits
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07 | Jun 26 Th | HW 5: Ch 27: Magnetism, 28: Magnetic Fields
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08 | Jul 03 Th | HW 6: Ch 29: Electromagnetic Induction, Ch 30: AC Circuits
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09 | Jul 08 Tu | Exam #2: HW 4-6, Ch 25-30: online, after 6:00 PM EDT
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10 | Jul 17 Th | HW 7: Ch 31: EM waves
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11 | Jul 24 Th | HW 8: Ch 32-34: Optics
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12 | Jul 29 Tu | Exam #3: HW 7-8, Ch 31-34: online, after 6:00 PM EDT
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13 | Aug 07 Th | HW 9: Ch 35: Special Relativity
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14 | Aug 12 Tu | Final: PHY 184B ONLY: HW 1-9, Ch 21-35, online, 6:00 PM EDT.
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Textbook

Recommended text book: Wolfgang Bauer, Gary Westfall: University Physics with Modern Physics. Volume 2. McGraw-Hill. (The 3rd, 2nd, 1st editions will all work for us. 3rd edition: 9781266672620, 2nd edition: 9780077409609, 1st edition: 9780077354794.)

Any other calculus based physics text book will work fine, for example Randall D. Knight, Halliday-Resnick-Walker, Fishbane-Gasiorowicz-Thornton, Young-Freedman (formerly Sears and Zemansky), Giambattista-Richardson-Richardson.

We will use LON-CAPA, MSU's own free and flexible web-based course management system. If your book has a course management system bundled with, don't open it and don't try to access it, because we will not use it.

Scientific calculator. Graphing calculators are allowed, but they are not required. The recommended calculator is the TI-30X IIS for $10-14.