42 courses with the subject PHYS, each shown exactly as we captured it from the college's catalog, with every element we hold. Where the wording looks broken, that is our reading of the catalog, not the college's text.
PHYS 113Modern Astronomy I4
This course discusses topics of current interest in astronomy and the physical concepts that lead to our understanding of the Universe. There are three main sections: the Solar System, Celestial Light and Stars, and Galaxies and the Universe. Lectures include the formation of the sun and planets, properties of stars and stellar remnants (like black holes and supernovae), characteristics of our Milky Way and other galaxies, and the formation and fate of the Universe.
Mechanics, heat and sound, including laboratory experiments and demonstrations. This course does not use calculus, has no prerequisites, and is appropriate for students pursuing pre-med or for students looking to satisfy a science distribution requirement. This course does not count toward the physics major or minor. This course is not appropriate for students who intend to major in physics, chemistry, or biology with the biochemistry emphasis. Fall semester only.
PHYS 126 or PHYS 226 . Spring semester only. (4 Credits)
PHYS 130Science of Renewable Energy4
Cross-Listed as ENVI 130 This is a course on the current status of the most promising alternative and renewable energy options from a primarily scientific and technological perspective. Current methods of electricity generation and transportation energy sources will be briefly reviewed (fossil fuels, nuclear fission, and hydroelectric), including discussion of their limitations and environmental consequences. The focus of the course will be on understanding the scientific basis of alternative and renewable energy sources, and their promise and technological challenges for wide scale implementation. Biofuels, wind, photovoltaics, concentrated solar power, hydrogen, nuclear fusion, and geothermal will be considered in depth. Every year.
A study of motion, including Newton’s Law of Motion, conservation of energy and momentum, rotational kinematics and dynamics, oscillations, waves in elastic media and thermal properties of matter. Three lectures and one two-hour laboratory per week. Students cannot receive credit for both this course and PHYS 126.
Cross-Listed as ENVI 350 This course provides an in-depth treatment of the science and engineering the transition to a sustainable, renewable, and carbon-free energy economy. The first part of the course will be a survey of the electric power grid transition to wind, solar, storage and other renewable technologies. The focus of the course will examine carbon-free and sustainable practices and technologies in the built environment including electrification of transportation and heating, distributed energy and energy storage, micro grids, efficiency, water and waste management, and sustainable building design practices. An important theme of the course will be the implications of deep electrification, where the energy economy is based almost exclusively on electrical energy generated by carbon-free and renewable resources. Lab time will be used for local field trips, computer simulations, and laboratory demonstrations/experiments. Three lectures and one two hour lab per week.
Mathematics preparation though elementary calculus (equivalent to MATH 135 ) Alternate fall semesters. (4 Credits)
PHYS 370Computational Physics
This course introduces students to coding and computational methods, focusing on developing computation-based skills that are critical for practicing physicists. Students process experimental data using statistical tools, study the implications of realistic physical models using a toolbox of numerical methods, and visualize information in meaningful formats. The course starts with an introduction to coding (in Python) and a survey of data manipulation tools (e.g., reading, writing, analyzing statistically, etc.). The focus is on skills that help students in labs, research, and anywhere else they need to extract physical insight from data. After the introduction to data analysis, the course transitions into a survey of numerical techniques which facilitate quantitative analysis of theoretical models describing complex physical phenomena, thereby creating a bridge between experimental/observational and theoretical physics. The lab provides hands-on experience in the application of computational skills discussed in lecture to realistic physical models drawn from a wide range of physics subdisciplines. Projects in the lab are implemented using Jupyter notebooks, via the Google Colaboratory environment. Students write documentation in Latex and Markdown. No previous experience with any of these is assumed. MATH 236
PHYS 481 . Alternate spring semesters. (4 Credits)
PHYS 488Senior Research4
Students in the major concentration in physics select a subject for independent investigation and preparation of a senior thesis. Independent reading and experimentation by arrangement.
Permission of instructor and department chair. Every semester. (4 Credits)
PHYS 621Internship1
Prerequisite(s): Junior and senior students with declared majors in Physics. Special arrangements must be made well in advance of the normal registration period. Departmental approval and permission of instructor. Work with Internship Office. Every semester.
Junior and senior students with declared majors in Physics. Special arrangements must be made well in advance of the normal registration period. Departmental approval and permission of instructor. Work with Internship Office. Every semester. (1 Credits)
PHYS 622Internship2
Prerequisite(s): Junior and senior students with declared majors in Physics. Special arrangements must be made well in advance of the normal registration period. Departmental approval and permission of instructor. Work with Internship Office. Every semester.
Junior and senior students with declared majors in Physics. Special arrangements must be made well in advance of the normal registration period. Departmental approval and permission of instructor. Work with Internship Office. Every semester. (2 Credits)
PHYS 623Internship3
Prerequisite(s): Junior and senior students with declared majors in Physics. Special arrangements must be made well in advance of the normal registration period. Departmental approval and permission of instructor. Work with Internship Office. Every semester.
Junior and senior students with declared majors in Physics. Special arrangements must be made well in advance of the normal registration period. Departmental approval and permission of instructor. Work with Internship Office. Every semester. (3 Credits)
PHYS 624Internship4
Prerequisite(s): Junior and senior students with declared majors in Physics. Special arrangements must be made well in advance of the normal registration period. Departmental approval and permission of instructor. Work with Internship Office. Every semester.
Junior and senior students with declared majors in Physics. Special arrangements must be made well in advance of the normal registration period. Departmental approval and permission of instructor. Work with Internship Office. Every semester. (4 Credits)
PHYS 631Preceptorship1
Prerequisite(s): Permission of instructor. Work with Academic Programs. Every semester.
