Year 12 Physics Booklet
Year 12 Physics Booklet Year 12 Physics Booklet ............................................................................................. 1 Sixth Form Assignments Information ................................................................... 2 SI units and Notation .............................................................................................. 3 Assignments to complete before your first lesson ............................................ 4 Library ................................................................................................................... 4 Books ..................................................................................................................... 4 Mechanics Assignment ........................................................................................ 4 The Ancient Greeks Assignment ....................................................................... 4 Distance Time Graphs Assignment ................................................................... 5
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Sixth Form Assignments Information All homework and assignments must be original. For any large research based assignment, you must: Use more than one medium. This means you cannot just use the internet. You can use books, internet, journals, newspapers, T.V., radio, etc. Find a LIBRARY. Use at least three different sources. This could be for example, two books and one internet site. Read your research materials and make notes before writing anything in a final form, taking something from each source. You may find that your sources disagree on some things, e.g. did Eratosthenes really travel to Alexandria? Draw your own diagrams. Diagrams from the internet or from books will usually not be sufficient to illustrate your ideas. Use either pencil and paper to draw diagrams (if you want your work on computer, you can scan them in) or a drawing program that supports vector based diagrams (e.g. Microsoft Visio, Photoshop, Flash). When making notes, you might have ideas of your own. Do not be afraid to state an opinion or try to make insightful comments about ideas relating to the subject of the homework (e.g. if you think Aristarchus is an idiot, and a poor scientist, be arrogant and let me know why). The more personal input you put into your work, the more you understand it. This is simply evaluating all your research. From your notes, write up your research assignment. Remember: o Keep the title of the assignment in mind and make sure you answer it. o Talk about any bias in your sources. o Use only appropriate diagrams. o Evaluate and discuss the homework topic. o Do not copy anything from the internet. Otherwise you will have to complete the whole assignment again.
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SI units and Notation
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Assignments to complete before your first lesson Library If you are not part of a library outside school, go to your nearest library and find out how to become a member. Bring your library card to your first lesson.
Books If you want to get your A for A-level physics, get these books out at the library (or buy them). Big Bang – Simon Singh Advanced Physics - Steve Adams and Jonathan Allday Read big bang before you start the course. Advanced physics will help you with the course throughout year 12 and 13 – you don’t need to read it before you start. Bring both books with you to your first lesson.
Mechanics Assignment Write your own A4 “handbook” to explain the concepts of speed, velocity, displacement, acceleration, scalars and vectors. Including original diagrams, the handbook should be at least 8 pages long. Use the Advanced Physics book or other sources to help you. Bring this to your first lesson.
The Ancient Greeks Assignment The ancient Greeks discovered much about the word through observation and logic. They are often thought of as being the people who started science and philosophy. The ancient Greeks had accurate methods to work out: 1. That the earth is a sphere (roughly) 2. The size of the spherical Earth 3. The size of the Moon 4. The Earth - Moon distance 5. The Earth - Sun distance 6. The size of Sun For each of these, explain how the ancient Greeks worked them out. Bring this to your first lesson.
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Distance Time Graphs Assignment Read this information:
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Answer the following questions on paper and bring in to your first lesson:
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Sixth Form Assignments Information All homework and assignments must be original. For any large research based assignment, you must: Use more than one medium. This means you cannot just use the internet. You can use books, internet, journals, newspapers, T.V., radio, etc. Find a LIBRARY. Use at least three different sources. This could be for example, two books and one internet site. Read your research materials and make notes before writing anything in a final form, taking something from each source. You may find that your sources disagree on some things, e.g. did Eratosthenes really travel to Alexandria? Draw your own diagrams. Diagrams from the internet or from books will usually not be sufficient to illustrate your ideas. Use either pencil and paper to draw diagrams (if you want your work on computer, you can scan them in) or a drawing program that supports vector based diagrams (e.g. Microsoft Visio, Photoshop, Flash). When making notes, you might have ideas of your own. Do not be afraid to state an opinion or try to make insightful comments about ideas relating to the subject of the homework (e.g. if you think Aristarchus is an idiot, and a poor scientist, be arrogant and let me know why). The more personal input you put into your work, the more you understand it. This is simply evaluating all your research. From your notes, write up your research assignment. Remember: o Keep the title of the assignment in mind and make sure you answer it. o Talk about any bias in your sources. o Use only appropriate diagrams. o Evaluate and discuss the homework topic. o Do not copy anything from the internet. Otherwise you will have to complete the whole assignment again.
Page 2 of 6
SI units and Notation
Page 3 of 6
Assignments to complete before your first lesson Library If you are not part of a library outside school, go to your nearest library and find out how to become a member. Bring your library card to your first lesson.
Books If you want to get your A for A-level physics, get these books out at the library (or buy them). Big Bang – Simon Singh Advanced Physics - Steve Adams and Jonathan Allday Read big bang before you start the course. Advanced physics will help you with the course throughout year 12 and 13 – you don’t need to read it before you start. Bring both books with you to your first lesson.
Mechanics Assignment Write your own A4 “handbook” to explain the concepts of speed, velocity, displacement, acceleration, scalars and vectors. Including original diagrams, the handbook should be at least 8 pages long. Use the Advanced Physics book or other sources to help you. Bring this to your first lesson.
The Ancient Greeks Assignment The ancient Greeks discovered much about the word through observation and logic. They are often thought of as being the people who started science and philosophy. The ancient Greeks had accurate methods to work out: 1. That the earth is a sphere (roughly) 2. The size of the spherical Earth 3. The size of the Moon 4. The Earth - Moon distance 5. The Earth - Sun distance 6. The size of Sun For each of these, explain how the ancient Greeks worked them out. Bring this to your first lesson.
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Distance Time Graphs Assignment Read this information:
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Answer the following questions on paper and bring in to your first lesson:
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