TAM 2030, Spring 2011
Old news
* 5/6 Textbook errors. If you have found them, we would like to know them.
Please report as per the book error page or come tell Andy Wed May 11 from 2-3.
If you have found many, or have found deep interesting ones, extra credit is possible.* 4/29 End of semester schedule
Friday May 6, 9 AM: All HW, lab, problem session, i-clicker grades posted on blackboard.
(We will post here when that is ready. ... and they are..)
Sat. May 7: Make-up exam (9 - 10:30AM+) & HW exam (1 - 5). 2nd floor Thurston.
Anyone can take these for practice (but they won't be graded unless you need them).
Email Pranav by Thursday May 5 if you are taking either of these (for any reason).
Sat May 7: Extra credit projects due (Idea: write one or more candidate final exam questions and solutions.)
By Monday May 9, 5 PM: If you think we have a grade recorded incorrectly
a) email Pranav, b) give paper documentation to Pranav, if appropriate.
By Weds May 11 6 PM: Please complete online course survey (+1 pt on final grade)
Thurs May 12, 2-4:30 PM, Uris G01, FINAL EXAM (no extra time)
Sat May 13, Final exams graded
Sun May 14, Final grades assigned (We will post here when that is done. It's done now (5/22/2011).)* 4/29 End of semester office hours (subject to change, check back: updated 5/7)
Unless otherwise posted, all in Thurston 102.Sun May 8, 12 - 4 Matt Mon May 9, 10 - 2 Diego 2 - 6 Jacob 8 - 10 Luke REVIEW (2nd floor Thurston) Tues May 10, 1 - 5 Pranav 5 - 8 Luke Wed May 11, 10 - 11 Andy 5-TERM FORMULA EXAMPLE (2nd floor Thurston)
11 - 2 Andy
2 - 3 Andy NOT office hours. Come report textbook errors. 2 - 6 James Thurs May 12, 10 - 1 Eric* 4/28 Redo prelim 3 questions, as per previous prelims, due Wed May 4.
* 4/28 Prelim 3 and solutions.
* 4/28 Some links related to Equations of Motion and the car barrel-roll mentioned in class.
The book, Equations of Motion by Bill Milliken of Cornell's Aeronautical Laboratory
The story of the barrel roll in James Bond. Part 1 (includes Cornell scenes), Part 2.
Another video about the jump. And another.
(All courtesy of a friendly student.)* 4/26 Andy office hours changed today, just today: 1:30 - 3:30
4/15 Prelim review and office hours 4/17-4/19 (subject to change, check back).
But for the review, all are in Thurston 102.Sunday 4/17: Office hours: 10 - 2 (Jakob)
6:30 - 8:30 (James)
Review: 5 - 6:30 (Luke, 2nd floor of Thurston)
Office hours: 6:30 - 8:30 (James)
Monday 4/18: Office hours:
6:30 - 9:30 (Luke)
4:30 - 10 (Matt)
Tues 4/19: 12:30 - 2:30 ( Andy)
2:30 - 4:30 (Pranav)
4:30 - 6:30 (Diego)
4 - 7 (Luke)* 4/7 Prelim 2 redo due in recitation on Wed April 13. Same deal as last time (read old news for details).
* 4/7 TAM 2020 is the 7th hardest class in the USA. What does that make TAM 2030?
* 3/30 Prelim2 Solution (matlab code from exam)
* 3/19 Prelim review and office hours 3/27-3/29 (subject to change, check back).
But for the review, all are in Thurston 102.Sunday 3/27: Office hours: 10 - 2 (Jakob)
3 - 6 (James)
Review: 6 - 7:30 (Luke, 2nd floor of Thurston)
Monday 3/28: Office hours:
11 - 1 (Andy)
5 - 8 (Luke)
4:30 - 10 (Matt)
Tues 3/29: 12:30 - 2:30 ( Andy)
2:30 - 4:30 (Pranav)
4:30 - 6:30 (Diego)
3 - 7 (Luke)* 3/18 Prelim 2 on March 29 covers all prerequisite courses and through to the homework handed in on March 15.
- Know how to do all the homework, and similar problems, on your own? You'll probably do fine.
- There will be a question asking you to write Matlab code. Again, the only way to be sure you can do this is to do the homeworks without help and without looking at sample code. Going through this probably took, or will take, hours of frustrating time debugging your code and trying to decypher Matlab help. That seems to be the only way to get competent.
- Please refresh chapters 2 and 3 on vector notation and drawing free body diagrams. For example, you should be a total master of sample 2.1; box 2.8; figures 3.2, 3.6 and 3.5; box 3.1; and box 3.2.* 3/15 Redo prelim 1and earn points. Clarification. For each problem in which you scored x<20 points you can earn credit. Redo the problem perfectly and you get a redo score of y=20. Your recorded score will be the larger of these two numbers: x and (x+y)/2. Examples: a) you got 21 originally => don't redo, b) you got 18 originally and have a perfect redo => net score = 19. Hand in up to 3 problems, each starting on a fresh page, but with the bundle stapled together. For each problem site all sources (and how used). Hand in by 10 PM Friday March 18 (not 16).
* 3/15 Matlab from lecture today is posted
* 3/14 Extension on prelim redo. Rumor has it that this is a bad week for some people. So the prelim redo is due in the HW box by 10 PM Friday March 18.
* 3/1 Prelim 1 Prelim 1 Solution (matlab code from exam)
* 3/2 Extra office hours: Thursday March 3 5-8 PM (Luke). Students are encouraged to find each other for help and company in Thurston 102 other times
* 2/28 Office hours as usual on Tuesday March 1, but only until 7. On Thursday March 3 students are encouraged to find each other for help and company in Thurston 102.
* 2/26 Prelim 1 cover sheet. Please read it slowly, well before the exam.
* 2/25 Review. Sunday 4-6, Thurston 2nd floor some place. Look for James (the camera guy in lecture). First hour, mostly not Matlab. 2nd hour mostly Matlab. Come with questions. Note the plethora of old exam problems available on the www (many also turned into HW problems in the book).
* 2/23 A student asked: "Hello Professor Ruina, I just wanted to know what exactly was going to be covered in the first prelim. Thank you."
A professor answers: "Anyone who can do all of the homework (through the homework handed in Tues Feb 22) alone without looking up anything (including being able to write all Matlab code), and well-explain thier work, and who knows all the material in the text readings (Chapt 1 - 9 + units appendix), lectures (through Feb 17) and lab 1 and recitations, and who knows all the material in the pre-requisite courses, should be able to do at least almost all of the exam. There is the possibility that some cleverness and insight will also be rewarded. You can do passing work with something less than that, however. Bottom line, learn the material as best you can, following what you are interested in or what you think you most need to know, and hope that you and I agree about what is most important. If you and I disagree, and your exam grade isn't optimized, you will still probably have learned more in the long run by following your nose. And you will be rewarded in the end in various ways. What do I most wish I could instill?: First) Lack of nonsense (recognizing nonsense when you see it), 2) presence of common sense, 3) clear secure confident reasoning, 4) Mechanics intuition, 5) Technical competence (FBDs, vectors, units, algebra, matlab, calculus) and, 6) The right answers."* 2/18 Lab 2 is posted.
*2/15 Font problems. The printed book, and the pdf of it as viewed on a few computers, has some font problems.
Example: problem 9.3.10 part f. It should read x hat = ... (that's x with a hat on top). This means that
hat's are probably missing here and there in the whole printed book (and pdf as viewed on a few computers).
Please let me know any places you see this and I will post them. A new book file was uploaded that seems to
not have the problem, but its 50Meg instead of 20Meg. If you have the font problem, probably best to switch to
the new file.* 2/11 Box in your answers. This is a request from the homework graders.
* 2/10 Matlab from today is posted. This stuff is key/core and will be on exams etc. You should be able to write
similar code from scratch yourself (using only online help).* 2/3 The book available at Kraftees on College Ave, just past the traffic light. $44. Pay ahead for a guaranteed copy.
* 2/8 Matlab ODE help (but not yet ODE23) on Sat Feb 12 at 2 PM in Kimball B11. Matlab functions and structures.
* 2/8 Matlab from lecture today is posted.
* 2/3 Very interesting Mechanical Engineering Seminar! on Friday Feb 4 at 2:00 PM in Thurston 205.
Its not the one on the ME web site. Its a last minute invited speaker: Andy Ruina. It's a popular talk aimed at nerds at
about your level and above. A 7 year old came when I gave the talk a couple weeks ago in California and liked it too.
Lots of videos and such: a photo of my first big car crash, my wife on a spinning trapeze, me too. The main topic
is about how hard it is to demonstrate conservation of angular momentum.
* 2/3 iclicker problem. If you were not in class on Thursday Feb 3, or if you were on the list of 48 shown in the class
1) Please register your iclicker again immediately.. Its not your fault. 2) Sorry.* 1/31 A new version of the book is posted. A printed version will be available for about $60 at Kraftees by about Feb 6.
* 1/29 Manual for lab 1 is posted (below).
* 1/25 Please register your iclicker now.
* 1/24 Please register on Blackboard now.
1) Log in with your net ID.
2) Search by course ID and type ENGRD2030, or search by instructor and type Ruina.
3) Register.* 1/24 These WWW pages are in constant progress. Please point out disparities or ambiguities.
* 1/24 Absolutely primitive beginning Matlab tutorial on Sat Jan 29 2-4 PM in Kimball B11.