Grading

The course grade will be based on points earned out of a possible 600.

Lecture Exams (300 total points): 3 hourly exams and a cumulative final exam, each worth 100 points. The last hourly exam will occur on the day of the final. The lowest hourly exam score will be dropped, so that the exam score will be calculated on the basis of the two better hourlies and the final. The exams will cover previous lectures, presentations, and appropriate text pages only; information presented in labs will not be specifically tested in lecture hourlies.

Presentation/discussions (100 total points): There will be 10 discussions/problem set sessions over the semester. The content and format of these is flexible. Most likely these sessions, which will occur on Friday, will involve group consideration of thoughtful questions that I distribute. The final answers to these will be prepared individually and will be turned in for points.

Lab: The lab grades will sum to 200 points, and will then be combined with the lecture grade for a final course score. See the lab syllabus for details on how lab points are earned.