Grand Scale

How big is big? Take a peek at this video which demonstrates the scale of the planets and stars, starting with the planet Mercury and concluding with Red Supergiant star VV Cephei A, the biggest known thing in the universe.

Why 9th grade physics?

(!) Show this to your parents (!)

An article in Tuesday's NY Times Science Times, "When Science Suddenly Mattered, in Space and in Class", discussed the need for attention to learning science, and addressed when the different areas of science should be taught:

"the typical sequence of high school science instruction: biology, chemistry and then physics. It would make more sense in reverse, these people say, because the principles of physics underlie chemistry, which is crucial for an understanding of biology."

“biology is the most complicated of all subjects, and it is based on chemistry and physics.” And, he added, “there is nothing in chemistry, no fact of chemistry or process of chemistry that if you ask ‘Why does this happen?’ you don’t go back to physics.”

Notes on “The Disappearing Beaker” Investigation

What grade did you get?
Your first report has been marked with comments but has not been graded. The number of comments on your report does not necessarily affect your grade.

Please read carefully the comments we have taken the time to write down and make sure that your resubmitted report addresses all of them.


DUE DATE – In Class on MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2007

You must resubmit the report in class on Monday, with the original report attached at the back. We will again grade it and get it back to you as soon as possible.

Late Reports
Do not submit your report late. Late reports will lose 10 points (one letter grade) every day, including weekend days. DO NOT SUBMIT YOUR REPORT LATE!

Resubmission Policy
Each time a report is returned to you, you will have the opportunity to resubmit the report. You may resubmit a graded/commented report as many times as you want, however you must completely rewrite the report each time.

Resubmission Deadline
You will have up to a week after your report is returned to you to resubmit it. No resubmitted reports will be accepted after that week has passed.

Spelling & Grammar
No points will be taken off for spelling or grammar problems the first time you submit your report. However if you do not correct them when you resubmit your report, you will have points deducted.

Number your pages and make sure your name is on every page.

How Long Should The Report Be?
Longer is not always better. Be clear and accurate. Diagrams & drawings that help explain what you are describing are an important part of physics.

Writing Style
The purpose of the lab report is not to tell a story. Take “You” out of the introduction, materials list and procedures. It is acceptable to discuss your experiences in the observations section as you recall it and also to ask questions in the conclusions section.


Make Each Section Distinct:

• Introduction
• Materials
• Procedure
• Observations
• Discussion
• Conclusions

Your introduction or the summary of your investigation should not include the detailed list of steps (the procedure) that describes how to do the investigation was conducted.

The procedure should not include your observations.

Be sure your conclusions are not part of your observations, and it’s always nice to end your report with a mention of additional things you might want to try based on the results of this investigation.

Find a Friend
Reread your report before you submit it. Have someone in your group read it as well or ask Ms. Purpura or Mr. Barkan to look it over before the due date so you have a chance to redo your report if necessary. We will do this in class on Monday.

He ATE the candle?????

Yes indeed... In today's class observation exercise, Mr. Barkan and Ms. Purpura ate... a candle. The expensive tool used to make the "candle" was the hollow tube of a ball-point pen.

Physics Blog Bonus:
We are going to be looking at some interesting optical illusions.

Extra credit will be earned by the first person in each class to
construct and demonstrate one of these:

Class Roles, Safety Policy

Class Roles:

• STARTER: Group Marshall (the “nudge”), timekeeper
  
• GETTER: Only person to ask questions, get & return supplies
  
• RECORDER: Responsible for all members of group taking consistent and complete notes
  
• REPORTER: Spokesmodel for group, takes notes on how group worked together

If you are late to class or somehow miss a class, it is important that you seek out your group's recorder and get caught up on what you missed. This is YOUR responsibility. Absence from class is not a valid excuse for not handing in or participating in an assignment or project. One way to ensure that you do mot miss anything is to be sure you have ways to contact (e-mail, phone #'s) of members of your group or a member of the class that you can rely on.

Classroom/Lab Safety Policy
You will receive a handout on "Safety in the Physics Laboratory", a written lab policy, which we will discuss in class. You must review with your parent/guardian and retur, signed (by both of you).
Please share your comments, questions or concerns with us by leaving a comment or by writing to Mr. B or Ms. P using the e-mails we gave you in class.

Physics News Assignments:
A written assignment sheet and due dates will be provided shortly.

2007 Class Requirements

Welcome to Freshman Physics with Mr. Barkan and Ms Purpura

Required materials for this course:

"Quad-Ruled" composition book - this will be your science journal. You will probably need more than one of them. Remember to leave the first three full pages (front and back) blank for now.

Calculator (the one you have to get for your math class)

Pen AND pencil, every day

Here's an additional list of helpful things to have. Note that these are not mandatory, but good to have for completing assignments outside of class. They will be provided in class as needed.

• Metric ruler
• Protractor
• Compass
• A set of color pencils, pens or markers
• Double-sided tape for attaching handouts to science journal (stapling stuff into the journal is not recommended)

Bring your science journal to class every day. We will be checking them on a regular basis - keeping a current notebook in the format we require will be a part of your grade, so it's probably a good idea to bring it with you every day. On Tuesday we will guide you through how we want you to organize your journal to ensure your success in the class.

You will be able to see your current grade(s) on TeacherEase in a couple of weeks.