PHYS 1230 Spring 2005

Welcome to PHYS 1230 Light and Color for Non-Scientists! Please click on one of the links below for more information. Some are Adobe pdf files (and are marked as such).

Instructor

Prof. Margaret Murnane
JILA Room 704, Phone 2-7839
Email murnane@jila.colorado.edu

 Office Hours: after class
Lecture Tuesday, Thursday 8am Duane G1B20
Text Seeing the Light: Optics in Nature, Photography, Color Vision, & Holography, by Falk, Brill & Stork  
Grading Homework
Exam 1
Exam 2
Final
TOTAL 		100 points
100 points
100 points
100 points
400 points
Extra credit of 5% for using your clicker in every class. Special project may be substituted for one of the exams or your homework with prior approval.

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Course: Light and Color is a course about the science of light and visual perception. The course is for nonscientists who are interested in what they see in nature, and in how modern technology in homes and businesses works. The course is divided into three parts. The first two parts are covered in-depth and form the bulk of the course.

Part I: We learn that light is electromagnetic radiation with a characteristic speed, wavelength and frequency. We also learn how prisms, mirrors and lenses work to form images. We also learn about rainbows and optical images.

Part II: Here we cover photography and visual perception. We learn how cameras work - how to select lenses, shutter speeds, and f-number. We learn about microscopes, eyeglasses and how the human eye works. We discuss color addition and learn about paints, pigments, dyes, color printing, and new digital image processing. We also learn about optical illusions.

Part III: Here we discuss modern topics as far as time allows - lasers, holography, optical communications, and applications. You can earn extra credit to replace one exam by doing a project on a topic related to the class that is of interest to you.

Homework: There will be ≈ 10 homework sets. There will be no homework during exam weeks. Many of the exam problems will be based on homework problems - so if you do the homework, you will be able to do the exams. Homework is graded.

Grading : Grades are determined from the three exams (3 midterms), and from the homework. A special project may be substituted for one of the exams or your homework with prior approval. Talk to Prof. Murnane if you want to avail yourself of this option.

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CALENDAR:

Part I: Light and Optics

Part II: Cameras, optical instruments, the eye, and visual perception

Part III: Color Perception, Wave optics and modern optics

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Clickers

Clicker Registration and Roster Downloading.
Please register your clickers at the public registration page: http://capa.colorado.edu/cgi-bin/RegisterAFS

Choose your class (PHYS1230) from a pull-down menu and input your name, student ID, clicker ID, and email address. You can register more than one clicker for the same class - for instance, if you lose your first clicker and must register a second one later in the semester. You do not need to be registered in order to use your clickers in class, but you do need to be registered to get credit!!

You can get an extra 5% credit for using your clicker in every class for the Concept Questions

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Useful web links

Useful web links on electromagnetic radiation and resonance:

Useful web links on eclipses and shadows and reflections:

Useful web links on curved mirrors

Useful web links on lenses

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Homework & Solutions

Links to pdf files of some homeworks are included for your printing convenience. All solution files are in pdf format.

HW #1 Problems P3, P11, P12, P13, P15, PM1, PM3, PM9, PM11 on pages 25 and 26 Due January 20 Solutions #1
HW #2 Problems PH1, PH2, PH3 and PH4 on page 70 Due: February 1 Solutions #2
HW #3 P7, P12, P18,  P21, P23, PH11, PM2, PM5 on pages 69-71 of your textbook Due: February 8 Solutions #3
HW #4 P3,P6, P7, P8, P9,P15, PH3 (approx. answers acceptable) on pg 101 Due: February 15 Solutions #4
HW #5 Problems P1, P2, P6, P7,  PM1 on pages 142 and 143 of your textbooks Due: March 1 Solutions #5
HW #6 Problems P1, P7, P11, PH6 on page 158 and Problems P1, P3 on page 179 Due: March 8 Solutions #6
HW #7 Problems P5, P6, PH2, PM4 on page 179 of your textbooks Due: March 29 Solutions #7
HW #8 Problems P7, P8, P11, P14, P16, PH2 on page 205-206 of your text Due: April 8 Solutions #8
HW #9 Problems P9, PH2, PH3,on page 234, and  P2, P7, P14 on page 266 of your textbook. Due: April 19 Solutions #9
HW #10 Problems P20, P21, P30, on page 267; and P1, P18, P22,on page 287 of your textbook Due: April 26 Solutions #10
       

Homework instructions: Place homework in the "in box" in the classroom. Use a stapler to attach the pages together, and be sure to put your name and student ID number on your front page.

TA Office hours:None for now. Will be added if demand exists.

Computer-based help: You can e-mail questions to murnane@jila.colorado.edu. I will try to meet a 24-hour turnaround time.

Answer sheets: Answer sheets will be posted in the hallway in the basement of Duane.

Show your work: You will not get credit for simply stating a word or number for your answer. You must show your reasoning, calculations, and write a paragraph for full credit. If you are asked to make a drawing, be NEAT. Label parts of your diagrams.

Calculator: You will need one. If you add the exponents separately when using scientific notation (powers of 10), you will not need a calculator that uses scientific notation.

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last modified May 2, 2005 11:55 AM

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