Embedded Files
You will be grouped together with two other students, and will be combining forces to explore physics this semester. You are expected to prepare for each of your labs beforehand, and to be prepared to work for a solid 1 hour and 50 minutes in lab. It is not unreasonable to spend 20 minutes before each lab reviewing the text and practicing homework problems to prepare. You will be asked to do your experimentation both individually and with your labmates, and are generally expected to combine your experimental results with your peers to produce a single group lab report.
Your group will be expected to produce a single document during the lab period which details your lab experiences, and each member of your lab group needs to submit your group's pdf to Canvas. You are expected to turn in your lab report and self/peer review the day of your lab, ideally just as your lab period ends. You may coordinate a time to meet with your labmates after your lab to polish off your report if you so desire, but this is not expected, and your lab is still due by the end of the day.
Lab grades will be assigned a numerical score based on your performance and effort in lab, and on your lab group's report. You will be evaluated according to the rubric given below. Note that most of your grade will depend on your in-lab experience. You can maximize this by preparing for each day's content: come to lab familiar with the topics at hand, having practiced with the relevant equations, knowing what you will be doing, and being ready to work together with your labmates. We typically suggest each member of your group focus their preparation on each different activity so you can each take the lead on one of the exercises.
We in the Physics Department are committed to creating and maintaining a safe and inclusive space on campus for all students, faculty, and staff of Colorado State University. Respect is the foundation of all our interactions. Please chat with your TA , your course instructor, and/or the Lab Coordinator (Kenneth.Lonnquist@colostate.edu) if you have any questions or concerns!
Core Student Learning Outcomes
Core Student Learning Outcomes
Over the course of the semester, you will be learning a fair bit of physics, that's a given. As part of an AUCC course, the university expects that you will learn transferable skills from the lab setting that have a wide applicability across many fields of study and in life. In short, you won't just be expected to just learn and do physics in the lab, there's more to it. You should expect to:
Perform hands-on activities with demonstration and simulation components playing a secondary role.
Engage in inquiry-based activities.
Demonstrate the ability to use the scientific method.
Obtain and interpret data, and communicate the results of inquiry.
Demonstrate proper technique and safe practices.
As part of your lab experience, you will also be expected to:
Select or Develop a Design Process
Design your own experiments to solve problems.
Analyze and Interpret Evidence
Examine evidence to identify patterns, differences, similarities, limitations, and/or implications related to the physics.
Utilize multiple representations to interpret the collected data.
Interpret Information
Explain information presented in a variety of forms (e.g., equations, graphs, diagrams, tables, words).
Represent Information
Convert information into and between various forms (e.g., equations, graphs, diagrams, tables, words).
Draw Conclusions
State a conclusion based on findings.
Discuss the relevance and importance of your experiment.
Employing and developing these skills is truly an important part of your college experience. We strongly believe this, and so you will see these general goals reflected in your lab grades.
Grading Rubric
Grading Rubric
Each lab will be graded on a 10 point scale. Your TA will be looking out for the following in your lab experience, but are certainly not limited to these specifics. Make time to chat with your TA if you have questions about their expectations!
For the In-Lab Experience and Lab Report: 6 points
Did you show up prepared to experiment?
Are you familiar with the concepts at hand, and practiced with the week's equations?
Were you constructively engaged the entire lab period?
How did you refine your experimentation process from the last week?
What experiments did you work through?
Did you perform a reasonable number of experiments?
You will work with your two labmates, and share your group's lab report with your TA.
Are you explaining the physics?
Can you communicate your understanding with writing, graphs, math, and more in your analysis.
Are you conveying the point of the experimentation?
Don't just tell us what you did, tell us what it means.
Tell us what you've learned, and how it applies to the world.
Part of this grade includes evaluating if your report legible, well organized, and free of grammatical, spelling, and punctuation errors.
Be sure to indicate your contribution to the week's report, and your labmate's contributions.
Your lab grade is not based solely on the "correctness" of your work - This may be a big change from other courses you have taken. We mostly care if you have been working productively the entire lab period, if you have taken your Lab TA's evaluations to heart, if you've improved over your past week's performance, and if you can demonstrate your understanding of the material. We don't care if you're "perfect" - that's not the point of a learning environment. Again, this is likely not how you have been graded in the past. If you have questions please talk with your lab TA, and you are always welcome to chat with the Lab Coordinator.
Typically the first time your TA gives you a suggestion/correction, you should not lose points to it. Once you've been warned (in lab discussions, in TA feedback, etc...) then you will lose points if you repeat the issue. Further repetitions will continue to lose you points, possibly losing additional points as the semester progresses.
Important: you won't be expected to finish everything presented in the manual. Often times this would be impossible, as we tend to offer more than can be realistically done. As the semester progresses we will expect you to work better as a team with your labmates, learn how to be better prepared for your lab, and to budget your time in lab more effectively - allowing you to complete more activities. This will enable you to see more physics, getting more practice and experience during your lab period. We do expect most folks to complete the majority of the activities presented in the manual- as a general guideline, you are expected to complete three activities each lab, doing good work. If you have concerns about this expectation, please discuss the issue with your Lab TA.
You will, though, be expected to prepare for your lab. While we try our best to avoid it, the labs may cover material before you have seen it in lecture. Occasionally, this is done on purpose - some phenomena are best learned through direct experience. In all cases, you should review the material to be covered in your lab before you show up - read the textbook, keep the relevant equations handy, and know what the goals for the lab are!
Personal Evaluation: 2 points
When you upload your lab report (in pdf form!) to Canvas, you must also add two short paragraphs to your submission in the Comments section of the file upload. Do not append these directly to your lab report, as you and your groupmates should be uploading the same pdf. These notes should not - and will not - be shared with your labmates.
The first paragraph should discuss your lab experience. Topics you could discuss include, but are not limited to:
How did this lab go for you?
What worked well, and what didn't?
How will you make your lab experience better next week?
Do you have any lasting questions about the material?
You should note any "eureka" moments you had, or difficulties encountered.
How did you contribute to your two lab partners' understanding of the material?
The second paragraph should discuss your lab partner's contributions. Be sure to discuss:
How they helped the group.
If they did anything that you want to adopt for the next activity.
If they did anything to hinder the group.
You will be doing this for each lab, and are expected to make this a meaningful part of your lab experience - summing up your experience in lab, with your labmates, and your plans for the next session over several sentences each.
You are expected to put some thought into this, and to write several sentences each for yourself and your peers. If you only write one or two sentences for your evaluation along the lines of "The lab went well. We split the work evenly." or "Everything went great, and everyone worked hard." , it simply will not suffice, and will not earn you any points. We're serious - put some effort into this!
TA Evaluation: 2 points
Your TA will sum up their impression of your experience, your final report, and your peer's critiques. Topics of concern include, but are not limited to:
Were you clearly prepared for lab?
Were you constructively engaged through the lab period?
Did you take the time and effort to be respectful to your peers?
Did you clean up your station?
Did you synergize with your peers?
Did you submit your report and Canvas-Comment self/peer review before the midnight deadline? (i.e. if you attend lab on Tuesday morning, your lab report and self/peer review is due Tuesday at 11:59 pm)
Did you take your TA's feedback to heart, and improve your experimentation and/or report?
In general: Did you put in the effort we expect?
Typically, lab members will receive a group grade - with all members earning the same number of points. However, your TA is able to vary the individual scores depending on how each member stands out, for better or for worse. If you have concerns about this, please contact your TA, or the Lab Coordinator.
It is expected that most students will put in a reasonable amount of effort, and contribute their fair share. As such, it is expected that you will do the work to earn full credit for each lab. If you have questions or concerns about this, please reach out to your Lab TA or the Lab Coordinator.
There are penalties for missing labs.
Attendance at all labs is required. You are expected to attend the lab section you are registered for. Provisions for make-up labs will be determined by your course instructor. If you miss a lab, you should contact your course instructor. Note that if you are late to lab, or if you leave early, you are missing a fraction of the lab period, and will earn a similar penalty.
Hands-on participation in the laboratory is a requirement for this course. If you do not attend lab, you will be missing out on this critical component of the course. There are no "dropped" labs, "grading curves", or the like. As such, if you miss more than 20% of the scheduled labs, you cannot get credit for your course. This typically works out to missing three labs, so in short missing three labs (even if excused!) is very bad!
Your lab TA has been instructed to put a "0" into the grade book for any missed labs, and has been instructed to wait until they have heard from the course instructor directly to update the grade. Your TA cannot excuse missed work, only your course instructor has that authority. If you want to get your lab excused, you should discuss the matter as soon as possible with your Course Instructor - not your lab TA. Ideally, you do this before the missed content if possible. If the Instructor excuses your missed lab, the "zero" will be replaced with an "EX", and your lab grade will be averaged out of one fewer labs. Excused labs do count towards the limit on missed labs!
Again: If you miss three labs, you will not earn credit for the course. This does include excused labs - the Physics Department requires a certain number of in-lab hours to be attended for the course to qualify as a lab-based science credit. If you do need to miss three labs or more, excused or not, you should contact your course instructor as soon as possible to discuss your options.
A few quick examples with numbers:
If you miss 3 labs you will not pass.
If you miss 2 labs, and have 1 excused lab, you will not pass.
If you miss 1 lab, and have 2 excused labs, you will not pass.
If you have 3 (or more) excused labs, you will not pass.
If you were not there for three labs, please reach out to your course instructor ASAP! All hope is not lost, you might be able to arrange a makeup lab with them, or an incomplete - you will not necessarily be failing. Talk to your course instructor.
If you have a group member that drops out, ceases contributing, or who's performance is lackluster, you will not be penalized for their lack of performance. Please contact your TA as soon as you have an issue, and be sure to mention it in your weekly Self/Peer Evaluation Canvas comment. They may have been having a rough time, and we would like to reach out to them. In any case, it is not your responsibility to "cover" for anyone and it is not acceptable for them to place an extra burden on you. You should not feel required to do more than your fair share of the work. Tell your TA as soon as you notice an issue - the sooner we can address any concerns, the better.
Late Lab Reports / Peer Evaluation:
Lab reports must be submitted in the form of a pdf to Canvas by 11:59pm the day of your lab, Colorado Time.
Your self- and peer- review Canvas Note must also be submitted by 11:59pm the day of your lab, Colorado Time.
Ideally you should end up submitting your document and evaluation at the end of your lab period, but life happens and so we'll set the deadline to just before midnight. By "11:59pm the day of your lab, Colorado Time", we mean that if you happen to have lab on Tuesday, your report will be due before midnight, that Tuesday, according to the clock on my desk. If you've a Thursday lab, your report would be due before midnight on that Thursday. Your self and peer evaluation is part of your overall lab report experience, and so it must be turned in in a timely manner as well. You may still earn partial credit for a lab and/or evaluation submitted up to two days after the due date (i.e. A Tuesday lab turned in Thursday just before midnight would be penalized, but counted). Once that third day has passed, the lab and/or evaluation will be considered missing, and receive the missed-lab score of 0. We want to be respectful of your TA's time, so please do your best to stay on top of this!
Life happens, and we understand that. If something comes up that keeps you from lab, or from turning in your reports in a timely manner, please try to communicate your issue to your TA and/or course instructor as soon as possible. If we know there is an issue, we can work together with you to make the semester a successful one.
Contact Guidelines
Your TA will give you their contact info on the first day of lab, and you can find their email address on Canvas, or in CSU's directory. If sending an email to your TA (for any reason) you need to make sure your email's subject line clearly identifiable. The subject line format you should use should include your course number, your lab section, your last name, and a brief reason for the email. If I were a PH141 student, and wrote an email asking for specifics on my peer review, I'd write my subject line as:
PH141 L01 Lonnquist - Peer Review Questions
Again, use your info on the subject line to make it clear to your TA what you are discussing. You want to make sure they can recognize it as a "Lab" email, and as one that should be addressed in a timely manner. I know that I easily get dozens of emails each day, and when folks don't do this it can make it tough to be sure to answer the ones that need it. Please make it easy for your TA to respond to you!
The Lab Coordinator is Kenneth Lonnquist (hi!). My email is:
Kenneth.Lonnquist@colostate.edu
This email is posted on Canvas as well, likely in the announcements you've been getting each week, and you are welcome to contact him with any lab issues, comments, or concerns you may have. You probably should consider emailing your Lab TA first, since Kenn does not have any say over your lab grades, missed labs, late submissions, attendance, etc... . If you've got a question on that, he probably isn't the best person to chat with. He'll try and point you in the right direction, though!
If you miss a lab, you should email your Course Instructor ASAP!
Academic Integrity
Academic Integrity
We take Academic Integrity quite seriously. You are expected to follow Colorado State University's rules concerning Academic Integrity, which can be found here:
https://catalog.colostate.edu/general-catalog/policies/students-responsibilities/
In short, the central principle is this: Academic integrity is conceptualized as doing and taking credit for one’s own work. In practice, this means:
• In lecture, lab, and recitation: if your name appears on a paper you are expected to have participated in producing the quiz or report, and are taking responsibility for the entirety of its content.
• You can discuss your work with others, ask for advice and assistance, or contribute to a group assignment, but do not copy the work of another or allow another to copy your work.
• Note that the University considers using "AI" to generate or guide any portion of your work to be cheating, which violates the student codes of conduct.
• The use of AI tools for any other purpose including but not limited to writing code, creating images, handling edits, is also, by default, not permitted. Students must disclose and appropriately acknowledge the use of such tools in every instance.
Any instances of plagiarism or the like will be taken quite seriously, and penalized appropriately - often severely.
You know what the line is - do not cross it.
TA Feedback
TA Feedback
During the Lab
Your TA will typically give a very brief overview of the day's lab and equipment at the start of lab, and give the room some general constructive criticism and advice based on the last lab's perfomance. You can expect feedback on your progress during the lab discussions with your TA. Your TA will ask each one of you to discuss an experiment at some point in the lab, and to describe what it shows, what you are doing, why you are doing it, etc.... Your TA may also discuss theory for the upcoming material at these meetings, and should give you guidance on how to proceed for the next part of your report.
After the Lab
After your lab report and your self/peer evaluation has been turned in, your TA will review it and in feedback (text, audio, or video) discuss any portions of the report they loved, and any parts which could use some improvement. You should expect to have some constructive criticism each week in a timely fashion - typically before your next lab period. Please let your Course Instructor know if your TA is falling behind! We all have off days, and need to look out for each other.
Questions?
Questions?
If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
Your Lab TA is a wonderful person to discuss any issues you may have - you should contact them as a first step. You can find their contact info on the Canvas Lab Page. If you need or want to talk to someone else, the Lab Coordinator is Kenneth Lonnquist, and I think I'm a swell person to work with. You are welcome to stop by my office in room 209 (just by the pendulum) or send me an email at:
Kenneth.Lonnquist@colostate.edu
I want you to succeed, and I want to make sure you have all the tools available to do so. Let me know if you have any concerns, questions, or comments!
Thanks for reading this far. Please enjoy a photo of my dog Yuvi and the very large gift basket she won at a recent (July 2025) 5k for coming in first-place-doggo! I've never won a gift basket, and am a bit jealous of her!
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