Dr. Donald Luttermoser's PHYS-2010-003
Course Web Page

This web page has been set up for the students at ETSU taking PHYS-2010-003 General Physics I with Dr. Luttermoser. Links have been set up for the students to download the syllabus, course notes, homework assignments, review sheets, and sample exams with solutions. All of the files listed on this site are in PDF (Portable Document Format). Should your web browser not be able to display PDF files, one can download Acrobat Reader to view these files. Note that we will be using Version 3.0 of my course notes during the Fall 2026 semester.

Course Overview:

General Physics I is the first course in a two-semester sequence that covers the following three main sections of classical physics: (1) mechanics, including 1-D and 2-D motion, Newton's laws, circular motion, work-energy, linear and angular momentum, collisions, gravitation, and rotational dynamics; (2) solids and fluids, which covers the structure of matter and motion of continuous media; and (3) thermal physics, which covers heat, gas laws, the kinetic theory of gases, and thermodynamics. Students will have a firm understanding of the basics of classical physics at the conclusion of this course (excluding electricity and magnetism, optics, and wave mechanics which are covered in General Physics II).

The main goals of this course are to demonstrate how the Universe works and to teach you scientific methodology. General Physics I is a problem-solving course, that is, the measure of a student's progress is demonstrated by the ability to solve problems using algebra and trigonometry, and not just to quote facts, laws and formulas. Your homework will be designed to help you develop these skills and the exams will test you on them. It is assumed that you have a reasonable working knowledge of algebra and trigonometry at a high school level. Doing physics means doing story problems using mathematics! You are expected to have (and know how to use) a good scientific calculator -- especially for exams.

On-Campus Attendance is Required for this Course:

You will be required to attend class on campus in Brown Hall 370. The exception to this is if you have been tested positive with COVID-19, or you are sick from some other infection. Then you can watch the lecture via Zoom. Note that your professor is immune-compromised due to the medications he is taking. Please, keep your distance from me if you are feeling ill during class, or wear a face mask if you plan to talk to me.

For providing information to keep the ETSU community safe and communicating updates regarding policy changes, please visit the ETSU COVID-19 Information web site. It remains the best place to find updated information regarding ETSU's protocols and safety measures concerning your health.

Course Syllabus:

        Course Syllabus for PHYS-2010-003, General Physics I.

Expected Learning Outcomes:

General Physics I (PHYS-2010) is designed to be taken in tandem with General Physics I Lab (PHYS-2011), although students receive a separate grade for each. As with all of our department's Physics and Astronomy courses, we expect that students completing these courses will be able to:
  1. Appreciate that physics is relevant to the real world and a useful tool for solving problems.
  2. Develop problem-solving skills to simplify "real world" problems in terms of simple physics concepts, and to compute or estimate solutions.
  3. Learn the Scientific Method -- understanding the interplay of hypothesis and experiment for informing and formulating theories and models (i.e., the role of falsifiability in science).
  4. Recognize that all good experiments must include at least an estimate of their precision.
  5. Recognize that scientific conclusions, whether yours or those from an outside source, may be incorrect, and develop the ability to check these conclusions with simple calculations, independent external references, and/or common sense.
  6. Understand both the qualitative and quantitative natures of science, and how mathematics informs crafting of hypotheses and constructing experiments.
  7. Use mathematics to solve simple equations, and appreciate the dependencies of physical properties on each other.
More specifically, I expect that students completing this course will be able to:
  1. Apply dimensional analysis concepts to perform unit conversions.
  2. Demonstrate understanding of one and two dimensional motion by applying kinematic equations to physical linear motion problems.
  3. Apply Newton's Laws, as well as work-energy methods and the Impulse-Momentum Theorem, to probe the causes of motion.
  4. Appreciate the power of Conservation Laws including energy, linear momentum, and angular momentum in the analysis of dynamics problems. This includes the contexts in which these Laws can be applied.
  5. Demonstrate an understanding of rotational kinematics and the angular momentum concepts applicable to rotational motion problems.
  6. Understand and apply laws governing static and dynamic fluids.
  7. Obtain an introductory fundamental understanding of thermodynamic principles.

Course Notes Sections:

My lectures will be based on the following Course Notes that I have written. I have been teaching Physics and Astronomy for over 40 years. During the undergraduate and graduate years of my education, there were a handful of courses where I learned the material very well. In each of these case, the course notes were presented in an outline format. As a result of this, I have developed an outline format for my notes in all of the courses I teach. Although some students do not like this style of teaching, the majority of students I have taught over the past 40 years find it a very useful technique in gaining an understanding of Physics.

The course notes presented below are separated into sections, following the chapters in the textbook, with a few exceptions. I split Circular Motion and Gravitation into 2 separate sections where they are presented as a single chapter in the textbook. I also have a substantial amount of additional material in the Gravitation section than what appears in the textbook, since a thorough understanding of gravity is very helpful in understanding Newtonian mechanics.

Finally note that the textbook refers to "Chapters" as "Topics", however I will refer to them as Chapters.

I. Introduction
II. Mathematical Techniques
III. Motion in 1 Dimension
IV. Motion in 2 Dimensions
V. Newton's Laws of Motion
VI. Work and Energy
VII. Linear Momentum and Collisions
VIII.   Circular Motion
IX. Gravitation
X. Rotational Equilibrium and Dynamics
XI. Solids and Fluids
XII. Thermal Physics
XIII. Energy in Thermal Processes
XIV. Thermodynamics

D2L Course Website and Lecture Recordings

For the past few years, I have been streaming the lectures in "real-time" so that students can attend lecture in a remote (i.e., online) format and will be recording these lectures. However, as mentioned above, I expect all students to attend class on campus in Brown Hall 370 unless you are sick.

Although this course is meeting on campus, I will be streaming and recording each lecture which will automatically be stored on D2L Course Website. So if you are sick, or have tested positive with the COVID-19 virus, you can view the streamed lectures, or watch the recording from home. Prior to each scheduled lecture, I will be posting a Zoom link on the course D2L course web page that you can use to access the synchronous lecture remotely. If you cannot make the `in-class' lecture, you are expected to attend each Zoom lecture in `real time' remotely! However, if you are forced to miss a lecture due to illness, or be late to a class, each lecture will be recorded and the link for that recording will be pasted on the D2L course web page.

If you plan to attend class via Zoom, I require students to notify me via email (lutter@etsu.edu) prior to class! In this email, you are to give me the reason why you are missing class on-campus. If you don't do this, you will be considered absent for that class.

To access the ETSU D2L web site, click on the following link:

        D2L Web Site Login Page,

then select the PHYS-2010-003 course link once you log in, to get to the D2L Course Web Page.

Homework Assignments, Reviews, and Sample Exams:

There will be 4 homework sets assigned throughout the semester. These homework problems will be posted on the textbook's WebAssign web site (see below for details on accessing this site). You will be given further information about WebAssign during the first week of class. These WebAssign problems will be graded and count as 10% of the course grade.

Homework Assignments:     Problem Set 1       (WebAssign Due: Friday, September 18, 2026 by 6 p.m.)
Problem Set 2       (WebAssign Due: Friday, October 16, 2026 by 6 p.m.)
Problem Set 3       (WebAssign Due: Friday, November 6, 2026 by 6 p.m.)
Problem Set 4       (WebAssign Due: Wednesday, December 2, 2026 by 6 p.m.)

Registering and Accessing Cengage's WebAssign

The assigned homework will make use of the textbook publisher's WebAssign web site. Note that it is possible to purchase WebAssign when you purchased your textbook. However, if you have not purchased WebAssign, you can purchase it online via the registration process below.

To use WebAssign, you first need to register yourself into WebAssign.

How to Register for Your PHYS-2010-003 Fall 2026 Course:

  1. Go to the GetEnrolled.com website at https://www.getenrolled.com/?courseKey=etsu46583331
  2. Click the "JOIN COURSE" button.
  3. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete your WebAssign registration.
  4. Visit the Cengage Student Registration Page at https://startstrong.cengage.com/ for a step-by-step guide and short video on how to register for your course.

Once you are registered, to access the textbook publisher's WebAssign web site click the following link: https://webassign.com then click on the “Enter Class Key” button on the upper right of this web page. The Class Key for this course is:

etsu 4658 3331

Should you need additional assistance with WebAssign, you can contact Technical Support information at:

        https://webassign.com/support/student-support/

via the web or 1-800-354-9706 by telephone.

Note that each WebAssign Problem Set is due by 6 p.m. on the Due Date listed below:

WebAssign
     Problem Set     		 Due Date
(by 6 p.m.)
1 Friday, September 18, 2026
2 Friday, October 16, 2026
3 Friday, November 6, 2026
4      Wednesday, December 2, 2026     

WebAssign helps you prepare for class with confidence. It fuels practice, so you absorb what you learn—and are better prepared come test time. Videos and tutorials walk you through concepts and deliver instant feedback, so you always know where you stand in class. Focus your study time and get extra practice where you need it most.


Preparing for Exams

Each Exam has a Review Sheet of topics and questions to prepare each student for that Exam. These Review Sheets can be very helpful in doing well on an Exam.

Exam Reviews:                     Exam 1 Review      
Exam 2 Review      
Exam 3 Review      
Exam 4 Review      

Math Quiz and Exams Structure

On the first Friday of the semester during the last 20 minutes of the class, you will be given a Math Quiz to see if your algebra and trigonometry capabilities are suitable to understand the material in this course. There will be 5 problem on this quiz, but you are to do only 3 of these problems. There will be an equation sheet of any equations you may need for the quiz included with the quiz. Note that the score you receive on this quiz will NOT be included in the calculation of your course score.

There will be 3 "in-class'' exams given out throughout the semester listed on the dates in the syllabus. Each exam will have 3 sections used to calculate the grade on the exam. Part A: Hard Multiple Choice will contain 5 "math-oriented" problems, each worth 2 points. Part B: Easy Multiple Choice will contain 10 questions, each worth 1 point. These questions can include definitions, physics-related logic, and concepts that are covered in the lecture and/or textbook. Note that you do not have to show your work on these multiple-choice questions. Finally, Part C: Problems will contain two 10-point problems. For these problems you will need to show your work! That means showing your algebraic and/or trigonometric steps to get your answers. You will get zero (0) points for these problems if you just write down nothing but numbers! An equation and constants sheet will be given out on each exam. In addition, each exam will include a 5-point extra-credit problem. You will need to show you work on this problem too. Each in-class exam is worth 20% of your course grade.

At the end of the semester, there will be a comprehensive Final Exam. This exam will be double in length of the "in-class" exams. So there will be 10 "hard multiple-choice problems", 20 "easy multiple-choice problems", and four 10-point problems. In addition, there will be two 5-point extra-credit problems. Note that half of this exam will relate to all of the material covered prior to Exam 3, and the other half covering the material after Exam 3. A constants and equations sheet will be included with this exam as well. The Final is worth 30% of the course grade.

Students with Learning Disabilities

Over the years, I have had students in my courses who suffered with learning disabilities. I always offer additional support for such students, such as one-on-one tutoring and allowing additional time on the exams. However, in order to receive such additional support, a student needs to officially register with the Office of Disability Services. Once registered, this Office will provide paperwork to the affected student to give to the instructor of the course.

Click here to go to Dr. Luttermoser's home page.

Click here to go to the Department of Physics and Astronomy homepage.

Last modified: August 21, 2026 by D.G. Luttermoser