Dept-Course-Sect Number:  
PHYS-257, Fall 2007
Section 1
3:35-4:30pm, M,W; Rm 141 Jarvis Hall (Science Wing)
2:30-4:30pm, F; Rm 117 Jarvis Hall (Science Wing)
Section 2
1:25-2:20pm, T,Th; Rm 141 Jarvis Hall (Science Wing)
12:20-2:20pm, F; Rm 117 Jarvis Hall (Science Wing)

Pre-requisites:  not open to those with credit in PHYS-254

Course Texts and Resources:

Earth: Portrait of a Planet, 2nd Edition
by Stephen Marshak
Norton Publishing

Soils in Construction
4^th Edition, Schroeder and Dickenson

On-line Geology and Soil Mechanics Resources
/physics.uwstout.edu/geo/
D2L at Learn@UW-Stout

Instructor: Dr. Alan Scott
Office Phone: 232-2401
E-mail: scotta@uwstout.edu
WWW: /physics.uwstout.edu/staff/scott/
Office: 103G, Science Wing, Jarvis Hall
Office Hours: 9:00-10:00am Wed., Thurs.; 1:30-2:30pm Wed.   (or by appointment)

This course will introduce many scientific concepts that shape our understanding of the physical world. A dynamic and changing Earth has formed every piece of natural landscape around us. However, most of these changes are not noticeable during the span of a human lifetime. They happen over thousands or millions of years.

The first part of this course will examine geological time, the composition and history of rocks/minerals, plate tectonics, hydrological cycle, and weathering. Many of these subjects will be discussed with particular attention given to their relevance within the construction industry. The latter part of the course is devoted to the product of weathering (and plant decay) - soil.

Soil mechanics is the study of how soil will physically behave when subjected to external influences or forces. This course will look at soil characterization (i.e. laboratory and field-testing), settlement/consolidation, compaction, bearing capacity, and OSHA safety requirements for excavations. Mathematical equations will be used when they are fundamentally important to working with a concept. Applications of geotechnical analysis will be emphasized throughout this course. This includes the study of dating techniques, seismic analysis, surface and ground water, slope stability, and the engineering aspects of soils.

Course Grade: Your course grade will be weighted according to the following percentages:

                        15% Class Participation/Attendance
                        22% Applied Geomechanics Activities
                        21% Exam 1 (October 5)
                        21% Exam 2 (November 16)
                        21% Final Exam
                                Section 1 - Monday, December 17, 2007, 12-1:50pm
                                Section 2 - Wednesday, December 19, 2007, 2-3:50pm

I will permit you to request that a portion of your course grade not be based upon class participation and attendance.   If you wish, the 15% for attendance can be distributed onto the exams.  This will make each exam worth 26% and you will not be graded on attendance.  You must request no attendance to me in an email or a written note no later than September 14, 2007.  Percent scores will be tallied for all the items above.  (Percent scores for class participation/attendance is mentioned later.)  Letter grades will be given to these activities by the following percent scale:

I reserve the right to boost all student scores by an equal amount.  For example, if the class average for exam 2 was 52% and, in my judgment, the scores did not accurately reflect student effort and performance, I could add 12% to all the second exams.

The exams will be 50% multiple choice and 50% short answer problems.  The topics covered on the exams will be announced in lecture prior to the exams.    

All but one of the geomechanics activities will be take home assignments.  (One is scheduled for in-class.)  They will consist of numbered exercises. One of the exercises, within each geomechanics activity, will be graded on a 5 point scale. If all the other exercises have been completed one additional point will be given to the score. The in-class activities will be due at the end of the class period. The take home assignments are due at the beginning of class time on their due date.

To receive credit for class participation and attendance for each lecture, you must sign or initial a name roster that will be past around the class each lecture.  If it is not past to you during class, please sign it immediately after the class is over on the front table.   You will be expected to be present for the entire class presentation and participating.  Your percent score for class participation/attendance will be determined using the numbers in the table below.

Missing class and having someone else sign your name to avoid missing points is academically dishonest.  Academic misconduct procedures will be initiated for those students involved.

No late geomechanics activities accepted and no makeup class participation except in extenuating circumstances (documentation required).  If an exam is unavoidably missed, with a legitimate excuse, then an essay makeup exam will be given. Only in cases for extenuating circumstances are exceptions made.

Link to Dr. Scott's policy on cell phones in the classroom and other electronic devices (please read).

Recommendations:

About 95% of the class presentation materials (lecture notes, Powerpoint slides) can be accessed on the web.  I would recommend that you read the lecture notes on the web before it is presented in class. By doing this you will know what is or is not on the web and can ask questions about topics that you didn't clearly understand.  This way you can follow along with the lecture without being pre-occupied with writing the lecture notes down. Be careful - having the lecture notes on the web will either enhance your ability to learn the material or make it easier to procrastinate and fall behind. Nothing can be learned without taking time to concentrate hard on the subject matter - be it out of a book or on the web. 

After the presentation has been given, I plan to place my PowerPoint slides onto the D2L web pages for this course.  Some of the graphics are copywritten material from books and some have been developed by me.  So do not download and freely distribute.

Keep up with your reading and assignments. If you are having difficulty with a particular concept or problem, please come and see me. I will be glad to help out! 

I encourage you to work together on assignments and exams. However, do not copy verbatim (or mostly verbatim in my judgment) another person's work. Academic dishonesty will be dealt with harshly.  Copying another student's solutions for geomechanics activities and placing your name on it is dishonest!  [UW-System Academic Student Code]  I would be glad to provide assistance via email on your geomechanics or reading.  If I don't respond within two working days to an email assume I didn't get your email or have forgotten to respond.

If you have a special circumstance such as a visual or hearing impairment, please stop into my office and we'll discuss ways in which your learning environment can be optimized.

Additional textbooks that may be useful: