{"id":198,"date":"2020-05-18T05:59:56","date_gmt":"2020-05-18T09:59:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/?page_id=198"},"modified":"2020-05-18T17:48:47","modified_gmt":"2020-05-18T21:48:47","slug":"ns547-special-relativity","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/improving-teaching-of-physics-itop\/courseinfo\/ns547-special-relativity\/","title":{"rendered":"NS547: Special Relativity"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>\np{font-size: 16px; text-align: -webkit-left; display: block; margin-block-start: 1em; margin-block-end: 1em; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px;}\nh3{font-weight: strong; font-size: 1.17em; font-family: sans-serif}\n<\/style>\n<h1><img loading=\"lazy\" src=\"\/itop\/files\/2020\/05\/newlogo2-636x116.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"636\" height=\"116\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-81 aligncenter\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/files\/2020\/05\/newlogo2-636x116.png 636w, https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/files\/2020\/05\/newlogo2-768x140.png 768w, https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/files\/2020\/05\/newlogo2.png 829w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 636px) 100vw, 636px\" \/><\/h1>\n<h1 style=\"font-size: 24px; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: #990000; display: block; margin-block-start: 0.67em; margin-block-end: 0.67em; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; font-weight: bold; text-align: left;\">NS 547\/SC 547 Concepts in Modern Physics II: Special Relativity and Related Topics<\/h1>\n<blockquote>\n<p><b>Physics content:<\/b> Einstein\u2019s Theory of Special Relativity and its applications to nuclear physics, particle physics, astronomy, and cosmology.<\/p>\n<p><b>Philosophy and History of Physics:<\/b> The development of nuclear physics and its ethical considerations.<\/p>\n<p><b>Physics Education Research:<\/b> Misconceptions about special relativity.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"\/itop\/files\/2020\/05\/NS-547-Course-Schedule.pdf\">Course Schedule (.pdf)<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/physics.bu.edu\/~duffy\/NS547.html\">Course Link<\/a><\/p>\n<h3 style=\"text-align:center;\">NS 547 Concepts in Modern Physics II:<br \/>\nSpecial Relativity and Related Topics<\/h3>\n<h3 style=\"text-align:center;\">Course Schedule<\/h3>\n<p><b>N.B.: The schedule below has not yet been adapted to the blended schedule of online and in-class meetings. Course readings may vary between course offerings<\/b><\/p>\n<h3>Session 1: Units of Measurement for Spacetime Physics.<\/h3>\n<p><i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Chapter 1.<br \/>\n<i><u>Assignment:<\/u><\/i> Selected problems &#8211; Chapter 1.<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading Assignment for Session 2:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><i>Making of the Atomic Bomb:<\/i> Chapter 2<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Session 2: Inertial Frames and Measuring Time.<\/h3>\n<p><i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Chapter 2.<br \/>\n<u><i>Assignment:<\/i><\/u> Selected problems &#8211; Chapter 2.<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading Assignment for Session 3:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><i>Making of the Atomic Bomb:<\/i> Chapter 3<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Session 3: The Principle of Relativity<\/h3>\n<p><i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Chapter 3.<br \/>\n<u><i>Assignment:<\/i><\/u> Selected problems &#8211; Chapter 3.<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading assignment for session 5:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Scherr, R., Schaffer, P. &#038; Vokos, S. (2002). The challenge of changing deeply held student beliefs about the relativity of simultaneity. <i>American Journal of Physics<\/i>, 70 (2), 1238-1248.<\/li>\n<li>Scherr, R., Schaffer, P. &#038; Vokos, S. (2001).Student understanding of time in special relativity: Simultaneity and reference frames. <i>American Journal of Physics<\/i>, 69 (S1), S24-S35.<\/li>\n<li><i>Making of the Atomic Bomb:<\/i> Chapter 4<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Session 4: The Lorentz Transformation.<\/h3>\n<p><i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Special Topic: Lorentz Transformation.<br \/>\n<i><u>Assignment:<\/u><\/i> Selected problems on Lorentz transformation.<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading Assignment for Session 5:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><i>Making of the Atomic Bomb:<\/i> Chapter 6<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Session 5: Lorentz transformations, Simultaneity, Twin Paradox.<\/h3>\n<p><i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Chapter 4.<br \/>\n<i>Mathematics and Problem-Solving:<\/i> The mathematics of transformations.<br \/>\n<i><u>Assignment:<\/u><\/i> Selected problems &#8211; Chapter 4.<br \/>\n<b><i>Philosophy\/History\/Education Research:<\/i><\/b> Misconceptions on simultaneity and reference frames<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading Assignment for Session 6:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Making of the Atomic Bomb: Chapter 8<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Session 6: The Worldline and a Spacetime Map<\/h3>\n<p><i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Chapter 5.<br \/>\n<i><u>Assignment:<\/u><\/i> Selected problems &#8211; Chapter 5.<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading Assignment for Session 7:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><i>Making of the Atomic Bomb:<\/i> Chapter 10<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Session 7: Regions of Spacetime<\/h3>\n<p><i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Chapter 6.<br \/>\n<i><u>Assignment:<\/u><\/i> Selected problems &#8211; Chapter 6.<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading Assignment for Session 8:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><i>Making of the Atomic Bomb:<\/i> Chapter 11<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Session 8: Momentum and Energy: Four Vectors and Momenergy<\/h3>\n<p><u><b>Midterm test<\/b><\/u><br \/>\n<i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Chapter 7.<br \/>\n<i><u>Assignment:<\/u><\/i> Selected problems &#8211; Chapter 7.<br \/>\n<b><i>Philosophy\/History\/Education Research:<\/i><\/b> Students\u2019 presentations<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading Assignment for Session 9:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><i>Making of the Atomic Bomb:<\/i> Chapter 13<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Session 9: Equivalence of Mass and Energy.<\/h3>\n<p><i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Chapter 8.<br \/>\n<i>Concepts:<\/i> E=mc2, fission, fusion, annihilation.<br \/>\n<i><u>Assignment:<\/u><\/i> Selected problems &#8211; Chapter 8.<br \/>\n<b><i>Philosophy\/History\/Education Research:<\/i><\/b> Students\u2019 presentations<\/p>\n<p><b>Reading Assignment for Session 10:<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><i>Making of the Atomic Bomb:<\/i> Chapter 15 (p. 486-496)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Session 10: Applications of Energy and Mass Equivalence.<\/h3>\n<p><i><u>Assignment:<\/u><\/i> More selected problems &#8211; Chapter 8.<br \/>\n<b><i>Philosophy\/History\/Education Research:<\/i><\/b> Students\u2019 presentations<\/p>\n<h3>Session 11: Gravity: Curved Spacetime in Action<\/h3>\n<p><i>Spacetime Physics:<\/i> Chapter 9.<br \/>\n<i><u>Assignment:<\/u><\/i> Selected problems &#8211; Chapter 9.<br \/>\n<i><b>Philosophy\/History\/Education Research:<\/b><\/i> Students\u2019 presentations<\/p>\n<h3>Session 12: Cosmology.<\/h3>\n<p><b><i>Philosophy\/History\/Education Research:<\/i><\/b> Students\u2019 presentations<br \/>\n<b>Take home exam<\/b><\/p>\n<h3>Session 13: Wrap up<\/h3>\n<p><b><i>Philosophy\/History\/Education Research:<\/i><\/b> Students\u2019 presentations<br \/>\nCourse evaluation<\/p>\n<h5 style=\"font-size: 1.17em; text-align:center; display:block; margin-block-start: 1.67em; margin-block-end: 1.67em; margin-inline-start: 0px; margin-inline-end: 0px; font-family: sans-serif;\">Bibliography<\/h5>\n<p>Rhodes, R. (1986). The Making of the Atomic Bomb. Simon &#038; Schuster, New York.<\/p>\n<p><b>Selections from Physics Education Research Literature<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Scherr, R., Schaffer,P &#038; Vokos, S. (2002). The challenge of changing deeply held student beliefs about the relativity of simultaneity. American Journal of Physics, 70 (2), 1238-1248.<\/p>\n<p>Scherr, R., Schaffer,P &#038; Vokos, S. (2001).Student understanding of time in special relativity: Simultaneity and reference frames. American Journal of Physics,69(S1), S24-S3<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NS 547\/SC 547 Concepts in Modern Physics II: Special Relativity and Related Topics Physics content: Einstein\u2019s Theory of Special Relativity and its applications to nuclear physics, particle physics, astronomy, and cosmology. Philosophy and History of Physics: The development of nuclear physics and its ethical considerations. Physics Education Research: Misconceptions about special relativity. Course Schedule (.pdf) [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17481,"featured_media":0,"parent":22,"menu_order":8,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/198"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17481"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=198"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/198\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":234,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/198\/revisions\/234"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/22"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.bu.edu\/itop\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=198"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}