Reading:

Review mechanics from Physics 2170 or equivalent.  For instance, in Halliday, Resnick, and Walker, look over Chapters 1 to 12.
In Fowles and Cassidy, read section 1.2.
 

Introduction:

Time, space (distance), and mass (weight) are quantities that we know from experience.  We can sense the passage of time, we can observe distance, and we feel weight.  Everyone has some understanding of these quantities before they begin the study of Physics.

Two of the most fundamental ideas in Physics are conservation of energy and conservation of momentum.  However, energy and momentum are not quantities directly observable with our senses, not like time and space.  Rather energy and momentum are inferred from measurements of directly observable quantities.  For instance, by measuring the position as a function of time, we can determine velocity, and then, having previously measured the mass, we can infer the momentum of an object from the relation p=mv, or the kinetic energy from K.E. = ½ mv2.  Thus, in order to achieve a better understanding of energy and momentum, we begin with the directly observable quantities of time, space, and mass, and interesting combinations of these quantities.

(Note:  Our concept of time, space, and mass is greatly colored by the environment in which we live, and in more advanced Physics courses, will be subject to some modification.  But, we must have someplace to begin, and our everyday feeling for these quantities is accurate for situations not so different from our environment, with similar velocities and masses.)

In this course you will be learning mechanics at a more sophisticated level than in introductory Physics.  Although this is not a mathematics course, mathematics will be used, and reviewed as necessary.  Calculus and vector algebra will be commonly used, and techniques for solving basic differential equations will be introduced.

Units:

We will normally be using SI units.  The fundamental units are:
 
length meters (m)
time seconds (sec, s)
mass grams (g)

other units for force, energy, torque, etc. are formed from combinations of the above.

Kinematics:

Kinematics is the description of motion, as opposed to dynamics where motion and other properties of a system are derived from the forces and initial conditions.  Suppose we know the position of a particle as a function of time:

x(t) = some function of time for instance x(t) = Asin(t) or x(t) = a+bt+ct2

The velocity is given by the derivative of x with respect to t.

v(t) = dx/dt  = [xdot]

For the two relations for position as a function of time given above, the velocity as a function of time is:

v(t) = -Acos(t)
v(t) = b+2ct

Lastly, differentiating once more yields the acceleration.

a(t) = dv/dt = [vdot] = d2x/dt2 = [xdoubledot]

The two position functions give an acceleration of:

a(t) = -Asin(t)
a(t) = 2c