Southern Utah University

Course Syllabus

Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Fall Semester 2026

College Physics I Lab (Face-to-Face)

PHYS 2015-05

Course: PHYS 2015-05
Credits: 1
Term: Fall Semester 2026
Department: Chemistry and Physics
CRN: 31210

Course Description

A lab accompanying PHYS 2010. Computer data acquisition and hands-on experience with the concepts and topics discussed in the lecture. A minimum grade of “C” (2.0 or above) must be earned in this course before it can be counted in a physical science major or minor or as a prerequisite for any other course. (Fall, Summer) [Graded Letter] Co-requisite(s): PHYS 2010 Registration Restriction(s): Intensive English Program majors may not enroll

Required Texts

There are no required materials. The instructor will provide an instruction manual for each activity.

Learning Outcomes

In this lab course, students will have the opportunity to:

1. Apply fundamental principles of Physics to hands-on experiments.
2. Develop experimental data acquisition skills using a variety of measuring instruments and techniques.
3. Investigate relationships between physical quantities by observing the effects of varying parameters.
4. Perform data analysis using computational tools and evaluate experimental results by comparing to theoretical predictions.
5. Identify, estimate, and propagate sources of experimental uncertainty.
6. Link conclusions to objectives by presenting a technical argument detailing the data acquisition and analysis processes using appropriate scientific conventions.

Course Requirements

Course Mechanics
This lab course consists of weekly experiments intended to accompany, reinforce, and add to the material covered in the lecture. There are eleven experiments and a final presentation project, each of which is accompanied by a lab report or project submission. Students will be given a lab manual handout for each activity containing instructions on how to conduct the experiment and associated exercises. Students must perform the lab activity during their scheduled lab session, complete the exercises, and submit a lab report on time to receive credit. Attendance in person is required to complete the activities. Students will conduct the experiments in small groups and are encouraged to work together on analysis, but each student must complete and submit their own work as their own individual assignment. Each submission must be made as a single document in pdf format in Canvas. Lab reports are due at 11:59 PM Mountain Time six days after the experiment is conducted, usually on the night before the next lab meeting. Late work is not accepted under any circumstances; 11:59 PM is on time, and 12:00 AM is late. There are no makeup lab sessions and no resubmissions.
 
Course Assessment
The semester grade is determined solely by the scores on the lab reports, and each lab report counts equally toward the overall grade. The final presentation project counts as a lab report. The lowest score will be dropped from the overall grade, excluding the final presentation project. The dropped lab report is intended to account for the realities of life that may cause a student to miss an experiment, miss a due date, experience technical difficulties, or earn an unsatisfactory score on a lab report. Makeup lab sessions are not offered under any circumstances.
 
| Category | Percentage
| Lab Reports | 100%

Lab reports are graded based on completeness. In order to be considered complete, lab reports must satisfy the following criteria. Any incomplete items will incur a minimum deduction of five points from the lab report score.

  • Each student must make their own submission, including for the final presentation.
  • Each submission must be a single pdf document. If multiple documents are submitted, only the first document will be evaluated.
  • All items in the handout including questions, plots, and any required figures must be addressed.
  • SI units must be included with all quantities that require them.
  • Any required figures such as plots or diagrams must be included fluidly in order where they appear in the handout. If an item that requires a figure appears somewhere in the bulk of a handout page and the student’s figure is on its own page, the figure may appear on the next page of the submission. Students may electronically process the handout page to break it up such that figures appear in order fluidly. Adding all figures in bulk at the end of the submission is not acceptable; figures included in this manner will not be evaluated.
  • All plot axes must be labeled with appropriate SI units.
  • It is not acceptable to submit photos of computer monitors. Plots that are submitted as photos of computer monitors will not be evaluated.
  • Unless specified by the handout, all plots must be created electronically using data analysis software. Students are encouraged to use the laboratory workstations to save electronic versions of all data and figures to be included in the submission.
  • Data points in plots must not have arbitrary lines connecting them. Some software automatically draws lines connecting data points; such arbitrary lines must be removed from plots. Plots with arbitrary lines connecting data points are incomplete. These arbitrary lines are different from curve fits; curve fits must be included in plots when required by the handout.

Final Grades
The grading scale is:
 
| Letter Grade | Score Range (%) | Description
| A | 93 – 100 | Excellent
| A- | 90 – 92.99 | Excellent
| B+ | 87 – 89.99 | Above Average
| B | 83 – 86.99 | Above Average
| B- | 80 – 82.99 | Above Average
| C+ | 77 – 79.99 | Average
| C | 73 – 76.99 | Average
| C- | 70 – 72.99 | Average
| D+ | 67 – 69.99 | Below Average
| D | 63 – 66.99 | Below Average
| D- | 60 – 62.99 | Below Average
| F | <60 | Failure

Course Outline

Experiment 1: Measurements
Experiment 2: Kinematics
Experiment 3: 1D Motion
Experiment 4: Projectile Motion
Experiment 5: Newton's Second Law
Experiment 6: Friction
Experiment 7: Centripetal Force
Experiment 8: Energy and Power
Experiment 9: The Ballistic Pendulum
Experiment 10: Rotational Dynamics
Experiment 11: Conservation of Angular Momentum
Experiment 12: Hollywood Physics Project

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Late work is not accepted and will not be graded. Submission deadlines are strict; 11:59 PM MT is on time and 12:00 AM is late. It is better for the grade to submit incomplete work on time than to attempt to submit complete work late. All due times are in Mountain Time. If a student is located in a different time zone it is their responsibility to treat the due time as Mountain Time.

Attendance Policy

Attendance to each lab session is required. There is no way to complete an experiment other than by attending the scheduled lab session in person. Students must be present for the acquisition of any data or analysis of data that appears in their submission. Students may not submit data or analysis of data that was acquired in their absence. Attempting to submit data or analysis of data that a student did not acquire constitutes an academic integrity violation. Lab sessions are only cancelled if the University is closed. Lab sessions are held and attendance is required in all other cases including travel warnings and advisories due to adverse weather conditions.

Student athletes or any student with a conflict excused by University Policy 6.30 must arrange for an alternative lab session before the regularly scheduled meeting. Students should notify the instructor regarding their conflict immediately when they become aware of it. It is the student’s responsibility to arrange an alternative lab session at least two weeks before the scheduled meeting.

Additional Course Policies

Habitual disruptions to class are not tolerated. Disruptions can include but are not limited to arriving late to class, talking over the instructor during class (particularly at the start of the session), playing audio from devices, exiting and returning to class, and packing bags early to leave class. Students who develop habits of disrupting class detract from the learning experience of others and will be asked to leave.

Student medical records and information are not to be shared with the instructor under any circumstances. Any accommodations for medical reasons must be made through the Disability Resource Center (DRC). The instructor cannot make medical judgements and can only make accommodations when directed by the DRC. Students should not ask the instructor to make accommodations without DRC approval. The instructor only responds to requests for accommodations if they are made by the DRC. The instructor implements approved accommodations exactly according to DRC instructions. Students who have approved accommodations should not ask or expect the instructor to make accommodations beyond the DRC instructions.

Extra credit is not offered.

Electronic communication etiquette must be observed. Students are expected to stay on top of communication from the instructor through Canvas and email. Students are encouraged to enable email notifications for updates to the course's Canvas page. Messages sent to the instructor through Canvas or email must use common etiquette including subject titles, salutation, clear and thoughtful writing in the body, and valediction.

Course Fees

Course fees are $13.50 per credit hour.
 View SUU's Program and Course Fees.

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Religious / Conscience Belief Accommodation

RELIGIOUS / CONSCIENCE BELIEF ACCOMMODATION: In accordance with SUU Policy 6.7 Student Belief Accommodation, students may request, in writing, that their faculty accommodate their sincerely held religious or conscience beliefs. Students should provide their faculty with sufficient advanced notice, if possible within the first five (5) business days of the semester or session, or thereafter with good cause for requesting an accommodation after the first five (5) business days.

Faculty must provide a schedule accommodation or excuse an absence, in any course, for students to observe or participate in religious holidays or an organized activity conducted under the auspices of the student’s religious tradition or religious organization.

In courses that are required for graduation or for an academic major, a faculty member may accommodate a religious or conscience belief by modifying an assignment or examination if its content conflicts with the student’s belief. Faculty may decline the accommodation if it would fundamentally alter the course requirements. If declined, the student may request review by a neutral arbiter using the Belief Accommodation Request Form: https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv&layout_id=5

Questions go to Assistant Provost Jake Johnson at johnsonj@suu.edu.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.