Physics 8-31-21 The Tortoise & the Hare

PHYSICS: You did a great job with the tortoise and the hare problem today! Have you reached the point where you can do these by yourself without looking? Don’t give up! You’ll get there!!

Updated info on The Physics Classroom. After you register using the class code on the syllabus, look under your Tasks & Courses. The practice for today is under the Kinematics section. When you get to the practice, click on Launch Concept Builder. You’ll need to complete all three levels. The activity saves your progress and automatically sends me your grade.


flickr photo by Marxpix

Chemistry 8-31-21 Conversion Factor HW & the Big Donut Problem

CHEMISTRY: Lots of great practice today using conversion factors! How did you do on your homework? And what about the big donut problem? If you were absent, be sure and watch this vodcast to make sure you are doing the problems correctly. You must show correct work to get credit.

HOMEWORK UPDATE for Tuesday: Only do #13- 15 tonight for homework. For now omit #58 – 60. We’ll do scientific notation in class tomorrow and I’ll assign these again later – probably for Thursday night’s homework.

Were you able to think through the longer conversion factor problems? Remember, you’re not just trying to get an answer. Most importantly, you are learning to express a logical progression of thought – from one unit to another. Keep practicing until you can do it by yourself with no help!!


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Chemistry 8-30-21 Conversion Factors

CHEMISTRY: Great job with our start on using conversion factors to work problems! Hopefully this was a review from your earlier academic life. We’ll crank it up a notch tomorrow!! 😉

Remember, this isn’t just about getting an answer – some of you can do that in your head. This is about being able to convert from one unit to another using the Q-formula. (And yes, you have to do it that way!)

Make sure you practice using your notes tonight, it’ll help you remember the steps we followed today in class!

UPDATED with AUDIO 🙂


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Physics 8-30-21 Cars, Swimmers, & Emily, etc., Velocity Problems

PHYSICS: Great job thinking through the problems today! Here’s a look at the cars from #38, the swimmers, and a look at a unique solution of the Emily problem. I’ll show you what I did with this one tomorrow.

Remember a few things: You weren’t born knowing how to do these – give yourself a little time. On the really good ones, just one formula won’t work – begin with writing what your know. These are some of the hardest problems we’ll work in physics – not because the formulas are hard, but because knowing how to reason through them is so challenging.

You are doing a great job! Some good advice – go work them again! I promise, it will be good for you. Remember, don’t open the solutions you wrote in your notes! Try them without it!! If you have to, peek, but then don’t stop until you can work the entire problem through without looking!


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Hon Chemistry 8-30-21 Finding Relationships Between Data

HON CHEMISTRY – You’ve learned to gather the “pieces of the puzzle”, now it’s time to put them together so they can have meaning! Here’s our overview of direct and inverse proportions and a quickish review of graphs. Just brief info for the test for now, and we’ll put it to practice in a couple of activities after the test.

Speaking of putting things together, how’d you do with the density homework. We hit some of the bigger problems today after our discussion of graphs.

So we finished the chapter today! Ready for the test? As you study, remember, don’t just read your notes – practice your notes, practice the problems, practice the memorization!! By the way have you had a chance to check out the Chapter 2 Stuff to Know sheet and the chapter 2 study suggestions sheet? They are under the Test Info tab.


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Hon Chemistry 8-27-21 Using Density

HON CHEMISTRY – Here’s a pic of some “high density” koi that I saw in Hawaii (at the Dole Pineapple Plantation, of all places!). Great applicaitons of density today! Remember, in chemistry we use math as a tool, therefore we might work problems a little differently in chemistry than you do in your math class.

When working these problems, don’t forget to follow the problem solving steps we discussed today:

  • Analyze – write down what you’re given and what you’re looking for
  • Plan – write a formula where you isolate the unknown on one side by itself
  • Compute – plug in your data, numbers and units; then cancel the units, and if they cancel correctly, go on to the calculator. Be sure and give your answer what the correct units.
  • Evaluate – does your answer make sense, have you used the correct units, do you have the correct sig figs?

Hon Chemistry 8-26-21 Conversion Factors, Pt. 2

HON CHEMISTRY: Great job using conversion factors to work more advanced conversions! It’s good to able to convert from one unit to another, but can you use that info to solve a real world problem?

Remember, this isn’t just about getting an answer – some of you can do that in your head. This is about being able to convert from one unit to another using the Q-formula. (And yes, you have to do it that way!). Now go forth and conquer!

HOMEWORK UPDATE: For Thursday night, do Tuesday and Thursday night’s HW: Pg. R100 – 103: 1a,1c, 2g, 2h, 12a, 12c, 12e, 13 – 16, 59d-e, 60d-e AND Pg. 66: 58 and R100-105: 50, 68, 91; Skip a line between each and SHOW Correct Work


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Hon Chemistry 8-25-21 Scientific Notation & Conversion Factors

HON CHEMISTRY: Can estimate out how fast you can drive in at least one parking lot in Guatemala – and can you show me how you solved the problem? Even better, can I trust the validity of your work?

Good job on remembering how to use conversion factors! Remember, this isn’t just about getting an answer – some of you can do that in your head. This is about being able to convert from one unit to another using the Q-formula. (And yes, you have to do it that way!)