Course Description

Laboratory materials ancillary to the laboratory manual will be posted to Blackboard no later than 7 days prior to the upcoming lab. It is your responsibility to print and bring copies of all needed materials to lab. Students lacking the lab text, including completed pre-lab assignment, laboratory procedure, data pages and post-lab pages will not be admitted to laboratory.

Laboratory expectations

You will be assigned 10 (ten) lab experiments, scheduled as shown on the attached lecture- laboratory schedule. For each experiment, a completed pre-lab assignment must be shown for admittance to the laboratory. During lab, complete the data sheets and questions using the forms in your laboratory text using a permanent (ink) pen. Completed labs including pre-lab, workup, and post-lab questions are due as posted. However, if you come prepared and work efficiently, you should be able to complete the majority of labs and their associated calculations and post-lab questions sheets entirely within the scheduled lab period.

• Dress appropriately for the lab, i.e., no shorts, above-the-knee skirts, skin tight pants (including leggings or yoga pants), open-toe shoes, hats, or loose long hair. Eye protection and appropriate clothing are required at all times. “Loaner” equipment including shoe coverings and lab coats are available for a fee. If you have not come prepared to work safely, you will be asked to leave.
• You must complete the pre-lab before lab, and make it available for checking off (initialing) by the instructor or teaching assistant at the beginning of lab. Pre-labs handed in as part of the final lab report without this initialing will not be counted, so you will lose 10 – 20% of the lab report grade.
• All calculations in lab sheets should clearly show units of input data and intermediate quantities as well as units of the final calculated values.
• Reports, weighted equally, are due in lab one week after the lab was completed. The lab report must include the completed pre-lab as well as any post-lab questions as well as your data. Late lab reports are penalized at 20% per day, and will not be accepted more than 3 days after the due date.
• You will work in pairs during the lab; in certain cases due to equipment limitations, you may work in small groups (3 – 4 students). Each group is expected to complete and turn in their own pre-lab and lab reports. If two separate groups are found handing in line-by-line identical or nearly-identical lab reports, both groups will receive a zero on that report. No credit will be given for plagiarized work.
• All students will be required, when applicable, to plot their data using MS Excel on their own. You may choose to bring your computer to lab. We will also have laptops available in lab for you to use as well.
• All assigned experiments can be completed within the assigned time if you come prepared, begin immediately, and work efficiently. If you fail to complete an experiment, you will receive partial credit for writing up what you have. Don’t expect your instructor or teaching assistant to stay late so you can finish up; this is especially the case for our late evening time slot.