Question:   Calculus is not required for the MCAT.  Why do you use calculus in this course?
Answer:      From the time of Sir Isaac Newton, it has been clear that understanding physics depends on calculus.  (That is why he invented it.)   There is a non-calculus physics course that you can take if it will satisfy your degree requirements.  The Physics Department offers many courses, and this one is calculus-based.

Question:  Your pdf file doesn't work.  Why don't you fix it?
Answer:    Please report problems with the class website.  Things can go wrong that we do not expect.   However, we test everything thoroughly.   Experience has shown that most problems are with the student's system, not ours.  One common problem is some sort of bad interaction between your browser (e.g., Internet Explorer) and the plug-in used to open files (Adobe Acrobat).  One way around this is almost always to download the file onto your local disk, and open it from there.  Simply closing your browser and starting over may help too.

Question:  Your homework assignments have too many problems!  Are you nuts?
Answer:    Experience has shown that working problems is essential for learning physics.  Therefore, it is important  to work a large variety of problems.  The homework assignments for this course, while not perfect, are  the core of the course.  Working the homework problems gives you the best chance of doing well in this course; it is the best way to prepare for the exams.  

Question:  Many professors curve grades.  Why don't you?
Answer:  Some students seem to think curving would result in better grades.  It would not.   Curving, by design, distributes grades around an average score, which is typically assigned a C or C+, and very rarely higher than the B/C boundary.  And it has the effect of limiting the number of A's.  The grading policy used in PHY 317K, over many years, has resulted in more A's and fewer C's than any sort of standard curving methodology would have.  More important, a student's grade in this course is based on his or her performance alone.  It does not depend on what the average student (i.e., what someone else) does.  Since the grading method is transparent, a student can see how he or she is doing, and adjust accordingly.  Curving would make it harder for students to figure out what level of performance is needed to achieve a given letter grade.  No grading scheme is perfect.  The grading policy here is arbitrary in some ways, but on balance it has worked well over time, and because it is fixed and transparent, students know exactly where they stand.

Question:  But, why not just curve individual exams, since maybe the whole class did bad on one exam?
Answer:   This, again, is thinking in terms of a curve only raising grades.  If a curve is applied, then sometimes it will lower grades.  If the whole class does particularly well on an exam, a curve would lower many grades.  Is curving only fair when it helps you?

Question:  This course is too hard and you cover too much material.  What is wrong with you?
Answer:     Students often say that this course is the hardest they have taken.  No matter how hard an instructor tries to explain things, physics is going to be difficult for some students.  To help, there are 10 hours of problems sessions per week.   The bottom line is, it is up to you to work hard and understand the material.  Do we cover too much?  Since this is the only (or last) physics course many students will ever take, the goal in this course is to give students some exposure to the whole subject.  That requires we covering a lot of topics, and the course is therefore fairly fast paced.  This becomes a problem for students who do not keep up, because it is very difficult to catch up after you have fallen behind.

Question:   I want a better grade.   What should I do?
Answer:     There is no trick or magic bullet.  Physics is easier for some people than others.  It may be due to better mathematical preparation, or greater ease in dealing with abstractions.   Whatever the reason, most students can make an A if they really apply themselves.  That means 10-12 hours per week of real effort, reading the text closely, working problems, and attending the problem sessions, in addition to attending the lectures.

Question:   I'm taking physics, organic chemistry, microbiology, plus I have a job.   How do you expect me to do all this homework?
Answer:     Students often say this is the hardest course they have taken at UT.  You should think twice, maybe three or four times, before taking this course when you have an unusually heavy load of courses or at the same time you are taking other tough courses.  Self confidence is good, but balancing your workload should be a factor in your planning.

Question:  The lab has nothing to do with this course.  What's with that?
Answer:     Good question.  In fact, they do have something to do with each other, but the instructor for this course does not supervise the labs.  Better coordination is something we are working on.

Question:  Who needs this team teaching?
Answer:    The instructors have team-taught this course many times, and the bugs have been worked out.  It has advantages for both the students and the instructors.  Since there are two large sections of the same course, combining them reduces duplication of effort, which has benefits.   Common homework assignments and common problem sessions are examples.  Course materials, homework, exams, etc., get more thorough review because two professors are responsible.  Most students probably prefer one professor over the other, but that does not negate the advantages.

Question:  I hate physics.  Why are you bothering me with this stuff?
Answer:    Your decision to take this course was probably not based on a love of physics, but it might be worth remembering that some people do, indeed, love physics.  They enjoy it and make it their careers.  Some of those people make large contributions to society.