A qualitative study of stellar, galactic, and extragalactic astronomy and cosmology surveying what is known and how it is known.

A qualitative study of the history of astronomy, the origin, evolution, and functioning of the solar system surveying what is known and how it is known.

Use of telescope, planetarium, and other laboratory equipment commonly used in astronomy together with selected descriptive experiments in astronomy. Prerequisite: AS 101 or AS 102 or consent of instructor.

A scientific investigation of the question "Are we alone in the universe?" Course content includes the origin and properties of stars and planets, the requirements for life, and the emergence and sustainability of civilizations. Students will complete a variety of interactive assignments and a term project. Prerequisite: None.

Photographic procedures and techniques peculiar to astronomical photography. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

A review of the key ideas and discoveries in astronomy at the intermediate level. Prerequisite: AS 101 or AS 102, and MA 116 with a grade of C or better, or consent of instructor.

Research in any of the fields of astronomy/astrophysics. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

Material to be chosen according to student interest from any one of a number of astronomical subjects. Offered on demand as teaching schedules permit. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

An overview of the fields and practice of physics and engineering. Students will participate in weekly readings and discussions, and complete at least one written piece and at least on presentation. Specific content will change each time the course is offered.

Introduction to the professional role of an engineer with an orientation to the academic requirements of engineering studies, responsibilities of engineering students and professionals, discussion of various engineering careers, job site duties, professional development and registration and engineering ethics. Included are problem definition and solution, engineering design and terminology and the role of technology and its influence on society.

Elements of geometry of engineering drawing with emphasis on spatial visualization and applications. Freehand sketching, dimensioning, and graphs. Computer aided design and engineering analysis.

Vector notation; resultants of force systems; analysis of force systems in equilibrium including beams, frames and trusses; analysis of systems involving friction forces; determination of centroids, centers of gravity, second moments of areas, moments of inertia. Prerequisites: MA 151 and PS 281.

An overview of the fields and practice of physics and engineering. Students will participate in weekly readings and discussions, and complete at least one written piece and at least one presentation. Specific content will change each time the course is offered. Prerequisite: upper-division standing

Designed to introduce concepts and applications of engineering to STEM educators. Course will explore various experimental, analysis, and design situations to develop knowledge about how objects work together to perform a function. Experiments will develop an understanding of basic engineering concepts such as motion, solid mechanics, fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, electricity, and magnetism. Analysis of experiments will provide recognition of experimental variables and their relationships to mathematical equations. Significant emphasis is on conceptual understanding of how mathematics and physics work together to solve engineering problems. This course does not satisfy any engineering prerequisite/requirement outside of the STEM education program. Prerequisite: BI 319 Biology for STEM Educators with a “C” or better; concurrent enrollment in MA 320 Mathematics for Middle School Teachers.

Displacement, velocity, and acceleration of a particle; relation between forces acting on rigid bodies and the changes in motion produced; translation; rotation; motion in a plane; solutions using the principles of force, mass and acceleration, work and energy, and impulse and momentum. Prerequisites: EG 250 and MA 152.

Elementary theories of stress and strain, behavior of materials, and applications of these theories and their generalizations to the study of stress distribution, deformation, and instability in the simple structural forms that occur most frequently in engineering practice. Prerequisites: EG 250 and MA 253.

Special emphasis on the observation of the phenomena of erosion, mountain formation, and stream and glacial action. Lecture-recitation and some field trips.

For students interested in the history and evolution of the planet Earth. Lecture and in-class laboratory work will include exercises with commonly found fossils and geologic-topographic maps. Will provide information about the environment of the early Earth and changes through time.

For non-majors. Recommended for partial fulfillment of the graduation requirement in natural science. Selected topics from the field of classical and modern physics are studied and discussed in terms of their impact on modern society without mathematical emphasis.

An overview of the fields and practice of physics and engineering. Students will participate in weekly readings and discussions, and complete at least one written piece and at least on presentation. Specific content will change each time the course is offered.

Introduces basic physics and chemistry with an emphasis on the understanding and significance of accepted fundamental principles. It provides an opportunity to develop critical thinking suited to pursuing any science, as well as giving a larger perspective than can be obtained by study of a single science. Explores contemporary issues as well as the methods, limitations, and societal implications of scientific advancement. Students will be encouraged to explore the relationship between science and everyday life. For non-majors. Recommended for partial fulfillment of the graduation requirement in natural science. Prerequisite: MA 112 Essential Mathematics or MA 116 College Algebra or higher, or concurrent enrollment.

The Earth’s atmosphere and basic circulation patterns including types and classification of clouds and air masses, the formation of fronts, winds aloft computations, principles of forecasting, energy considerations and other associated physical processes. Prerequisite: MA 095 or higher.

This course provides an introduction to the fundamentals of physics and chemistry, for the pre-service elementary school teacher. Course activities are inquiry-based, serving to improve confidence in both scientific process and content learning, with methods applicable to elementary curricula.

A one-semester course covering classical and modern physics, designed primarily for students in the health professions. Typical subjects include the laws of motion, gravity, heat, sound, light, electricity, and magnetism. Subjects are treated conceptually along with the use of basic data. Recommended for partial fulfillment of the graduation requirement in natural science. Not applicable toward credit for physics major requirements. Students will not receive credit for both PS 101 and PS 131. Prerequisite: MA 112 Essential Mathematics or MA 116 College Algebra or higher, or concurrent enrollment.

A laboratory exploring classical and modern physics, designed primarily for students in the health professions. Experiments in motion, gravity, heat, sound, light, electricity, and magnetism are designed to teach physics concepts and basic laboratory techniques. The course is designed to introduce students to laboratory techniques used in physics emphasizing instrumentation, data acquisition, and analysis. One three-hour laboratory period per week. Recommended for partial fulfillment of the graduation requirement in natural science. Not applicable toward credit for physics major requirements. Prerequisite: PS 131 Biological Physics for the Health and Life Sciences or concurrent enrollment. Concurrently enrolled students may not drop PS 131 and remain enrolled in PS 132.

Recommended for medical arts and general science students. Mechanics, heat, and sound are studied. Lecture-recitation and laboratory. Prerequisite: MA 117 or MA 123 or MA 151 (or concurrent).

A continuation of College Physics I. Electricity, optics and modern physics. Lecture-recitation and laboratory. Prerequisite: PS 261 with a grade of C or better.

Required for students who wish to major in physics and astronomy and for pre-engineering students. Mechanics, heat, and sound are studied. Lecture-recitation and laboratory. Prerequisite: MA 151.

A continuation of General Physics I. Electricity and magnetism, optics, and modern physics. Lecture-recitation and laboratory. Prerequisite: PS 281 with a grade of C or better.

An introduction to computer modeling of physics problems using spreadsheet programs, computer algebra systems, and other mathematical software. Prerequisite: MA 151 or concurrent.

An overview of the fields and practice of physics and engineering. Students will participate in weekly readings and discussions, and complete at least one written piece and at least one presentation. Specific content will change each time the course is offered. Prerequisite: upper-division standing

Concepts of space and time, frames of reference, Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity and Elements of General Relativity. Prerequisite: PS 262 or PS 282; MA 253.

Designed to introduce the history, structure, composition, and dynamic processes that shape our planet, as well as the impact humans have on Earth’s resources, to STEM educators. Connects astronomy and geology through the study of planetary science and exploration. This course does not satisfy any physics requirement outside of the STEM education program. Prerequisites: CH 317 with a letter grade of C or higher; concurrent enrollment in ED 318.

The basic theory of electro-magnetic fields and waves using the calculus and vector methods. Prerequisites: PS 262 or PS 282; MA 253.

A continuation of Physics 320. Prerequisite: PS 320.

Design and applications of DC and AC circuits along with electrical measurement and analysis. Topics include filters, complex impedance, Fourier analysis, and semiconductor devices. Two lecture hours and three laboratory hours per week. Prerequisite: PS 262 or PS 282.

Physical and geometrical optics. Lecture-recitation. Prerequisite: PS 262 or PS 282.

Experiments with lens systems, mirrors, aberrations, the spectrometer, interference and diffraction, and polarization. Prerequisite: PS 330 or concurrent enrollment.

Consideration of heat phenomena, first and second laws of thermodynamics, their principal consequences and application to simple systems, and the kinetic theory of gases. Prerequisite: PS 262 or PS 282; MA 253.

A mathematical study of classical mechanics. Rigid body statics and dynamics, kinematics and dynamics of particles and systems of particles, and conservative and non-conservative force fields. Prerequisites: PS 262 or PS 282; MA 253.

A continuation of Theoretical Mechanics I. Prerequisite: PS 335.

Design and implementation of scientific instruments via computer interfacing, emphasizing both software and hardware considerations. LabVIEW and Arduino platforms are used specifically. Two lecture hours and one three-hour laboratory per week. Prerequisites: PS 262 or PS 282

Phenomena specific to the extra-nuclear structure of the atom; phenomena peculiar to the atomic nucleus; introduction to quantum and wave mechanics, and relativity. Prerequisites: PS 262 or PS 282; MA 253.

A continuation of Physics 350. Prerequisite: PS 350.

Measurements of constants fundamental to atomic physics: Planck’s constant, electron charge and mass, speed of light, etc. Techniques of nuclear alpha, beta and gamma ray spectroscopy. Prerequisite: PS 350.

Experimental design and techniques. Extensive use of technical literature will be necessary. Independent work is encouraged. This Capstone requires summative reflection, serving as a culminating experience for Bachelor’s degree students. Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.

Application of ordinary and partial differential equations, Fourier series and Transforms, partial differential equations with solution methods, and tensor analysis as applied to problems in the fields of physics and engineering. Prerequisites: PS 262 or PS 282 or concurrent enrollment; MA 253.

Techniques and models in computational physics. Prerequisites: PS 262 or PS 282; MA 253.

Computational physics research in any of the areas of physics. A written and an oral presentation of the work is required. This Capstone requires summative reflection, serving as a culminating experience for Bachelor’s degree students. Prerequisite: Departmental permission.

Offered on demand as teaching schedules permit. Material is to be chosen according to student interest from any one of a number of fields of physics. Prerequisite: consent of instructor.