Synopses & Reviews
The market leader for the first-year physics laboratory course, this manual offers a wide range of class-tested experiments designed explicitly for use in small to mid-size lab programs. The manual provides a series of integrated experiments that emphasize the use of computerized instrumentation.The Sixth Edition includes a set of "computer-assisted experiments" that allow students and instructors to use this modern equipment. This option also allows instructors to find the appropriate balance between traditional and computer-based experiments for their courses. By analyzing data through two different methods, students gain a greater understanding of the concepts behind the experiments.
About the Author
Jerry Wilson received his physics degrees from Ohio University (B.S., Ph.D.) and Union College in Schenectady, New York (M.S.). In addition to co-writing PHYSICS LABORATORY EXPERIMENTS, he is one of the original authors of the first edition of AN INTRODUCTION OF PHYSICAL SCIENCE (published in 1971) and has several other physics textbooks to his credit. Wilson is currently Emeritus Professor of Physics at Lander University in Greenwood, South Carolina.Cecilia Hern?ndez received her M.S. in physics from the University of Puerto Rico, Mayag?ez Campus, in 1993. After teaching for two years at the Mayag?ez and Cayey campuses, she joined the Physics Education Research Group at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln, where research in physics education was conducted with an emphasis on computerized instruction. Professor Hern?ndez has used computerized instruction with hundreds of her students, and she contributes to the computerized-instruction material throughout PHYSICS LABORATORY EXPERIMENTS. In 1998, Professor Hern?ndez joined the faculty of American River College. She also works for PASCO Scientific in Roseville, California, where she helps develop computer-assisted lab activities for college physics and write manuals for new equipment.
Table of Contents
Note: In this Table of Contents, the experiments that incorporate both traditional and computer instruction are denoted with a "TI/CI" abbreviation in front of the title of the experiment. In some instances, the TI and CI components are not the same, so the title for each component is listed separately. The experiments that only involve traditional instruction do not have any abbreviations next to them. Experiments available in the bound volume 1. Experimental Uncertainty (Error) and Data Analysis 2. Measurement Instruments (Mass, Volume, and Density) 3. (TI/CI) Uniformly Accelerated Motion (Includes third method at the end of the traditional and computer components that uses free-fall spark timer apparatus) 4. The Addition and Resolution of Vectors: The Force Table 5. (TI/CI) Newton's Second Law: The Atwood Machine 6. (TI/CI) Conservation of Linear Momentum 7. Projectile Motion: The Ballistic Pendulum 8. Centripetal Force 9. (TI/CI) Friction 10. Work and Energy 11. Torques, Equilibrium, and Center of Gravity 12. (TI/CI) Simple Harmonic Motion 13. Standing Waves in a String 14. The Thermal Coefficient of Linear Expansion 15. Specific Heats of Metals 16. Archimedes' Principle: Buoyancy and Density 17. Fields and Equipotentials 18. (TI/CI) Ohm's Law 19. The Measurement of Resistance: Ammeter-Voltmeter Methods and Wheatstone Bridge Method 20. The Temperature Dependence of Resistance 21. (TI/CI) Resistances in Series and Parallel 22. Joule Heat 23. The RC Time Constant (Manual Timing) 24. (TI/CI) The RC Time Constant (Electronic Timing) 25. Reflection and Refraction 26. Spherical Mirrors and Lenses 27. (TI) Polarized Light; (CI) Malus's Law 28. The Prism Spectrometer: Dispersion and Index of Refraction 29. Line Spectra and the Rydberg Constant 30. (TI) The Transmission Diffraction Grating: Measuring the Wavelengths of Light; (CI) Single-Slit and Double-Slit Diffraction 31. Detection of Nuclear Radiation: The Geiger Counter 32. Radioactive Half-life 33. The Absorption of Nuclear Radiation Appendices A. Material Properties B. Mathematical and Physical Constants C. Standard Deviation and Method of Least Square D. Graphing Exponential Functions Experiments available only in customized orders 34. The Scientific Method: The Simple Pendulum 35. (TI/CI) Rotational Motion and Moment of Inertia 36. Conservation of Angular Momentum and Enery: The Ballistic Pendulum 37. Elasticity: Young's Modulus 38. Air Column Resonance: The Speed of Sound in Air 39. (TI) Latent Heats: Heats of Fusion and Vaporization of Water; (CI) Latent Heat of Fusion for Water 40. Newton's Law of Cooling: The Time Constant of a Thermometer 41. The Potentiometer: emf and Terminal Voltage 42. The Voltmeter and Ammeter 43. Resistivity 44. Multiloop Circuits: Kirchhoff's Rules 45. Earth's Magnetic Field 46. Introduction to the Oscilloscope 47. (TI/CI) Phase Measurements and Resonance in ac Circuits 48. (TI/CI) Electromagnetic Induction 49. The Mass of an Electron: e/m Measurement