Note from Professor Surko: I am quite pleased with the class performance on the final. You did well on the test which had a number of challenging questions. I want to continue to encourage you to hone and use your quantitative skills, not only in physics, but in addressing other questions and problems that will arise in your studies at UCSD and in your careers and daily life after that. In the future, if you'd like to talk about physics or careers in science and technology and think I might be of help, please feel free to stop by. Wishing you a good holiday and a great New Year! Cliff Surko
2Cb Syllabus (PDF
The final will be Wednesday, Dec. 7 at 8 am in WLH 2005. You must bring your ID, a #2 pencil to fill out the Scantron form, and the usual Scantron form. You should also bring a calculator. The final is closed book. You may, however, bring two 8 1/2" x 11" pages of handwritten notes (writing on both sides OK, so four pages total). They must be in your handwriting. In addition, there will be a formula sheet, a sample of which is now on the course handouts page.
On the course handout page, you can find a set of sample final exam questions for Chapters 35 - 37. While the final will cover all the material in the course, it will emphasize Chs. 35 - 37, since we did not have an opportunity to cover this material on the quizzes.
Our course TA, Diego Zocco, will be in the Physics Tutorial Center, 2101 Mayer Hall, on Tuesdays, 3:30 - 5:30 pm. Please feel free to stop by if you'd like to talk with him.
Due to an error, problem #3 on quiz 5 (Nov. 4) had no correct answer, and so this problem will not be counted. The quiz will be graded on a basis of 10 questions total. Apologies for the confusion.
This is an F-18 jet fighter breaking the sound barrier. The picture was taken by a pilot in another F-18. The air is moist and so the shock front induces the formation of fine water droplets. These droplets allow you to see the shock. Click on the picture to view a larger version.
Click on the film to see a movie of an F-14 flying by a Navy ship. It breaks the sound barrier before it gets to the ship, then it slows down a bit and breaks the sound barrier a second time right near the ship. This second time, you can see the shock form at the nose of the plane, then "slide back" to the tail. The Mach cone has such a big opening angle because the plane is traveling only slightly faster than the speed of sound. (Video is an MPEG, approx. 1.35 MB)