- Department: Physics
- Module co-ordinator: Prof. Roddy Vann
- Credit value: 20 credits
- Credit level: C
- Academic year of delivery: 2019-20
- See module specification for other years: 2018-19
Pre-requisite modules
- None
Co-requisite modules
- None
Prohibited combinations
Occurrence | Teaching cycle |
---|---|
A | Autumn Term 2019-20 to Summer Term 2019-20 |
The aim of the professional skills element of this module is to develop the core competencies and knowledge required of any physicist, including a general introduction to the subject, basic IT skills, report writing, use of information resources, experimental techniques, problem solving and computer programming. This will be achieved through a mix of activities, including laboratories, workshops, lectures, programming classes and small group teaching. The knowledge and skills learnt will be further developed in later years.
The “human uses of energy” component of the module aims to give an appreciation of the energy “budget” typical of the world today, in terms of both energy demand (for an appropriate standard of living) and also energy supply. This will enable students to apply basic physics principles to understand the options for energy production (at least partially in the context of carbon emission reduction) and to understand the ways in which energy is used. Working on these topics will develop fundamental physics skills in problem solving, including simplifying problems to render them tractable and making quantitative approximations.
Professional Skills Syllabus
Induction Activities (weeks 1 and 2, term 1):
Introduction to communication skills, study skills, career planning, personal development planning (3 hour lecture). Library: tour of the JB Morrell library (1 hour) and information retrieval exercises. A basic introduction to IT (web, e-mail, etc) and use of Office applications for scientific presentation (3 hours of computer sessions).
Statistics (weeks 4-7, term 1):
Five lectures on basic concepts in probability and statistics, with weekly coursework problems. Covers the notion of probability and binomial, Poisson, and normal probability distributions.
Introduction to Experimental Laboratory
(weeks 2-3, term 1): Three short workshops on experimental measurement techniques, plotting scientific data, and recording data and analysing errors.
(weeks 4-5, term 1): A core experiment to be presented in a formal report (see First Year Laboratory Handbook for full details).
Scientific report writing (week 6, term 1): An introduction to writing scientific reports (1-hour workshop).
Problem solving skills (fortnightly, term 1): Small group discussions with your supervisor, to help develop “thinking-like-a-physicist” skills such as order of magnitude estimations, dimensional analysis, applying differential equations, and curve sketching and interpretation (5 x 1-hour tutorials).
Introductory Python Programming (term 2)
Aims: This course introduces problem solving using computers, using Python as the programming language. The most difficult aspect of programming is designing a step-by-step recipe (algorithm) to solve a given problem. This kind of logical problem solving is a useful skill which is highly valued in research and in the commercial world, and which all physicists should learn through practice. Once an algorithm has been designed, it must be implemented in a programming language, which for this course is Python. Python is a modern language which is freely available for Windows, Linux/Unix and Mac OS with extensive documentation, tutorials and extensions available online. It is easy to learn but very powerful, and is increasingly being used commercially and in scientific research. Students will learn how to create programs in the Python language to solve physics problems and then visualise the results in 2D and 3D. The emphasis is on problem solving, and teaching skills which students can then apply to other areas of their study.
Syllabus
Problem solving strategies and algorithm development
Computer programming fundamentals and Python
Looping with for..in and while loops
Control using if, elif and else
Getting input from the user, and printing results
Debugging and testing methods
Python's module system and importing libraries
Defining functions and using built-in mathematical functions
Using Visual Python to produce animations of mechanics simulations
Mini-conference (weeks 8-10, Term 3)
Students will choose a topic in physics and prepare a short presentation for an informal “mini-conference” in week 10. The emphasis is on enjoyment of physics and relaxed discussion of topics of interest, including subjects that will be explored in greater depth in year 2. Prior to the presentation in week 10, guidance and help will be given on presentation skills and discussion of subject and content.
Human Uses of Energy syllabus (refer also to lecture summary)
The need for energy – how much and to whom
Vehicle transport
Wind power
Domestic energy usage
Thermodynamics of heat engines & heat pumps
Fluctuations in demand and supply
Combined heat & power (CHP)
Nuclear fusion
Health impact & safety
Lecture Notes
Lectures are intended to highlight and explore the key concepts of each topic. Reading of the textbook and other sources will be required for a complete understanding of the course. Lectures will be a blend of delivery and discussion and students are expected to actively participate.
Students will need to make their own lecture notes in addition to those supplied by the lecturer. Lectures will be recorded to allow students to capture all points discussed and additional supporting material will be made available via the VLE.
Task | Length | % of module mark |
---|---|---|
Essay/coursework Induction and laboratory activities |
N/A | 5 |
Essay/coursework Laboratory reports |
N/A | 10 |
Essay/coursework Marking of lab books |
N/A | 5 |
Essay/coursework Physics Practice Questions |
N/A | 7 |
Essay/coursework Python: assignments |
N/A | 20 |
Essay/coursework Statistics |
N/A | 10 |
University - closed examination Human uses of Energy |
1.5 hours | 43 |
None
Assessment
The Python course will be assessed by weekly short multiple-choice tests (10%), followed by five weekly programming assignments of increasing difficulty (first two assignments 15% each, following three assignments 20% each). Programming assignments will be assessed on the quality of source code. (NB. percentages stated in this paragraph are percentages of the total Python course mark, not the total Professional Skills module mark.)
The energy and environment element of the module will be assessed through a combination of Physics Practice Questions and a 1.5 hour examination.
Task | Length | % of module mark |
---|---|---|
Essay/coursework Induction and laboratory activities |
N/A | 5 |
Essay/coursework Laboratory reports |
N/A | 10 |
Essay/coursework Marking of lab books |
N/A | 5 |
Essay/coursework Python: assignments |
N/A | 20 |
University - closed examination Human uses of Energy |
1.5 hours | 43 |
PPQs within 7 days deadline. Python programming assignments will be returned with comments and suggestions for improvement. Mark for the laboratory note book received from the demonstrator at the end of a completed experiment and receive report back along with a mark sheet that provides a mark and a set of comments/suggestions for each section of the report.
Practical Physics by G L Squires (Cambridge University Press) ***
Python Programming: An Introduction to Computer Science by John Zelle **
“Sustainable Energy without the hot air” ( also available as a free e-book at http://www.withouthotair.com/ ) by David MacKay
“Energy science : principles, technologies, and impacts” by Andrews & Jelley
“Elementary Climate Physics” by F.W.Taylor
Coronavirus (COVID-19): changes to courses
The 2020/21 academic year will start in September. We aim to deliver as much face-to-face teaching as we can, supported by high quality online alternatives where we must.
Find details of the measures we're planning to protect our community.