CH110—Introduction to Rocketry

Baker University Spring 2024

Instructor: Dr. Jamin Perry Office: 301 Mulvane
E-mail: [email protected] Phone: 594-8326
Office Hours: MTWF 2:30-3:20, R 11:30-12:20, and by appointment
CH105—Problems Session: T, 11:00-12:00| MS211

Requirements and Materials

Textbook: Krauskopf, K. , Beiser, A.; Emeritus and Carter, E. S.; The Physical Universe, 17th ed.
Additional materials provided via Moodle.

4-function calculator

Coursework: Access to the Moodle

Course Description

This course is a descriptive, conceptual one-semester course in the physical sciences for the non-science major.
Course content is designed provide the student an introduction to the disciplines of physics and chemistry through
the historical and societal context of rocketry.

Disclaimer: The Common-Sense Rule

All policies and rules about this class assume we will all adhere to some level of common sense. Small typing
errors, mistakes, and general skullduggery, etc., will not be a point of contention or an acceptable loophole. For
example, if a typo of the year 2023 in which an assignment is due, since you are attending class in the Spring of
2024, then common sense should tell you that the assignment is due now, not in 2023, and you are still responsible
for it.

The instructor reserves the right to amend this syllabus at any point during the semester, with notification of
changes being made in a timely fashion.

Course Policies:

Attendance:
Class attendance is an important factor for being successful in this course. In-class activities, quizzes, and exams
that are missed due to unexcused absences cannot be made-up. The university and additional course policies
regarding the COVID-19, and other infectious diseases, found at the end of this syllabus will be followed for the
duration of the fall term.

In extreme circumstances, the professor reserves the right to modify the course requirements and policies with the
approval of the impacted student. If the modification effects the entire class, a syllabus revision or addendum will be
made.

Homework:
Learning about the physical sciences is a full contact activity and homework is an important part of this effort.
Required homework will be assigned throughout the semester. Assignments could involve research, brief reports
(both written and oral), or calculations appropriate to the course. Late homework assignments are accepted with a
penalty of 10% per day late. There are no make-up homework assignments.

Students will also listen to podcast (Moonrise), starting on week 2 of classes that will be used to motivate discussion
of the science of rocketry via forums and in-class discussions.

For calculations, students should start an in-class problem notebook, keep it up to date, and bring it along when
asking for help. In-class work is to accompany its author to class even on exam days. In-class work could be
collected in place of a quiz.

Lecture Activities / Experiments:

There will be a minimum of 5 lecture activities/experiments over the course of the semester. These activities will be
held in labs and off-campus when appropriate. The course fee for this class will cover the costs of materials and
transportation for off-campus activities. There are no make-up lecture activities/experiments.
 Chemistry 110: Spring24

Quizzes:
In general, there will be a quiz each week there is not an exam. The contents of these exams are typically materials
covered in the previous week. There are no make-up quizzes.

Solid-fuel Rocket:
Each student will assemble and paint a solid fuel-rocket. Students will launch their rocket and write a brief reflection
on their experience. Students who do not attend at least 65% of the lectures will not be allowed to launch a solid-
fuel rocket. This project is a privilege, not a right.

Exams:
A total of 3 exams will be offered over the course of the semester to assess student learning. If a student anticipates
a time conflict with the test date, the student MUST contact the instructor at least 2 days prior to the exam so
adjustments can be made. The exam dates are announced at the start of the semester and it is the student’s
responsibility to ensure there are no conflicts. There will be NO make-up exams.

Students may not begin an exam more than 10 min after the allotted exam time has started. Students should
expect to stay in the classroom during an exam and should plan accordingly.

The final exam will be offered at the scheduled time for each respective lecture section. If you have any type of
conflict with the final exam schedule, it must be taken to Dean Russell for review well in advance of the exam.

Dropped Scores:
If the class has an opportunity to “drop a lowest score” in homework or quizzes, the conditions that apply are as
follows:
1) The assignment must be attempted/turned in for grading for the dropping policy to apply.
2) Any score received due to academic misconduct cannot be dropped.

Extra Credit:
Extra credit may not be used to pass the class. If extra credit is available during the course, note that it will be
applied only after a passing grade is earned for the class.

Communication:
The best way of communicating with the instructor is via email. Students are expected to check both Moodle and
their Baker-assigned e-mail regularly in order to have the most up-to-date course information.

End of Semester:
The semester ends on May 10th, 2024. Aside from the final, no changes of any kind can be made to your grade
after 4pm on May 10th, 2024.

Grading:
Questions regarding the grading of homework, quizzes and exams must be brought to the instructor’s attention within
one week of when the graded work is returned to the student.

The grade breakdown of this course is as follows:

Homework 20%

Lecture Activities/Experiments 15%

Quizzes 10%

Solid Fuel Rocket Project 10%

Hour Examinations 30%.

Final Examination 15%

The following grade cutoffs will be used in this course:

A (90-100%), B+ (87-89), B (80-86%), C+ (77-79), C (70-76%), D+ (67-69%), D (60-66%), F (≤ 60%)

2
 Chemistry 110: Spring24

Additional Course Policies and Legalese:

Inclement Weather, Global Pandemics, and Other Stuff: In the event the University closes due to weather / viruses
/ clowns / zombies / zombie-clowns, etc. students will be informed by email how class will proceed. You are
responsible for checking your email and the Moodle page on a daily basis. If required, there is the possibility class
will be held via Zoom. In this event, the zoom session will be at the same time as class and material will be provided
per the usual on Moodle. If you read this line, and you email me your favorite dank meme before the end of the first
week of class, you will earn an automatic 2% toward your overall homework score for the semester.

Credit Hour Definition and Associated Course Expectations: Consistent with best practices in higher education,
Baker University subscribes to the federal definition of the “credit hour” endorsed by the Higher Learning Commission.
Driven by intended learning outcomes and verified by evidence of student achievement, the “credit hour” is an
institutionally-established equivalency that reasonably approximates not less than one hour of classroom (or direct
faculty) instruction and a minimum of two hours of out-of-class student work per week for the duration of the course
enrollment period. A 3-credit-hour course, for example requires approximately 45 classroom contact hours, roughly
90 out-of-class work hours and approximately 135 total instructional hours over the course of a 15-week semester.

In laboratory courses that carry 4 hours of credit, approximately 84 hours of classroom instruction have been planned
over the scheduled semester. In addition, students are expected to spend roughly 168 hours (12 hours per week)
on out-of-class assignments which include: a) assigned text readings, b) problem solving, c) unit evaluation and final
exam preparation, d) outside lab-related assignments, e) statistical and other homework problems, and f) literature
review research and manuscript preparation depending on the assignments in the course.

Accommodations: Baker University is committed to providing “reasonable accommodations” in keeping with Section
504 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1992. Access Services coordinates
accommodations and services for all eligible students with disabilities. If you have a disability and wish to request
accommodations and have not contacted Access Services, please do so as soon as possible. Access Services is
located on the Baldwin City campus in the Office of Student Academic Success (in Collins Library (lower level); 785-
594-8352; [email protected]). Information about Access Services can also be found on the Baker website at
www.bakeru.edu/sas. If accommodations have been approved by Access Services, please communicate with your
professors(s) regarding your accommodations to coordinate services.

Academic Integrity: Expectations and policies regarding academic integrity are consistent with those described in
the Student Handbook. Penalties for misconduct may range from a deduction of points, a reduction in an overall
letter grade up to, and including, a failing grade on the assignment, quiz, or exam in question. In cases of extreme
cases of misconduct, the professor reserves the right to assign an automatic failing grade in the course.

3
 Chemistry 110: Spring24

Tentative Lecture and Exam Schedule, Spring 2024

Dates Chapter & Subject Lecture Activities/Experiments

1/29-2/23 Ch.1 The Scientific Method Physics Activity (Motion)
Ch.2 Motion Physics Activity 2 (Rocket Car)
Ch.3 Energy
Ch.5 Matter and Heat
Moonrise-Podcast (Ep. 1-3)
Mon. 2/26 Exam 1 (Ch. 1-3,)

2/27-4/9 Ch.5 Matter and Heat Physics Activity 3 (Paper Rockets)

Ch.6 Electricity and Magnetism Chem. Activity 1 (Mixture Separation and
Ch.7 Waves Black Powder)
Ch.8 The Nucleus
Moonrise-Podcast (Ep. 4-7)
Wed. 4/10 Exam 2 (Ch. 5-8)

4/2-4/26 Ch.9 The Atom Chem. Activity 2 (Pipet Rockets)

Ch.10 The Periodic Law Solid Fuel Rocket Building & Painting
Ch.11 Crystals, Ions and Solutions
Ch.12 Chemical Reactions
Ch.13 Organic Chemistry
Moonrise-Podcast (Ep. 8-11)
Mon. 5/6 Exam 3 (Ch. 9-13)

5/7-5/10 Ch.17 The Solar System Solid Fuel Rocket Launch

Ch.18: The Stars
Moonrise-Podcast (Ep. 12)
Cumulative Final Exam, Tues, May 14th: 1:00 – 4:00 pm

Policies on attendance for COVID-19, Influenza and other Infectious Diseases

Class attendance, whether in the classroom or in a remote environment, is vital to your academic success.
However, during this extraordinary time, there are some additional course policies regarding attendance that must
be followed:

Policy 0: Abuse of any of these attendance policies, such as false claims of illness, will constitute misconduct and
may subject you to sanctions by the Dean of Students.

Policy 1: If an individual in the class is informed that they have been in close contact with an individual who
becomes infected, they should mask with a KF94, KN95 or N95 mask and test regularly for several days to ensure
the safety of other in the community. The student should wear a mask until negative testing rules out infection, or
positive testing requires isolation. Close contacts should follow the guidance provided by the CDC in regard to
masking.

Policy 2: If you are exhibiting any two of the following symptoms, DO NOT attend class in-person:

a. chills or fever (body temperature of 100.4oF or higher)

b. cough
c. new loss of taste or smell
d. shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
e. fatigue, muscle or body aches, or headache
f. another condition that may be symptomatic of infection with COVID-19
(https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/symptoms-testing/symptoms.html)

4
 Chemistry 110: Spring24

Policy 3: You must notify your instructor by email ([email protected]) in a timely fashion (within 24 hours) if
you are unwell and will miss class due to any symptoms stated in Policy 2. In these circumstances, you will not be
penalized for an absence provided that you notified your instructor. You will, however, be expected to keep up with
the class and submit any and all assignments on time unless there are mitigating circumstances. If such
circumstances arise, you must contact your instructor and develop a plan to keep current with your coursework.
Extended absences due to illness must be appropriately documented and you should remain in communication with
the instructor regarding ongoing concerns.

Policy 4: If you do become ill with what might be COVID-19 please test yourself or work with Dean Bailey or Sports
Medicine (if you are an athlete) to get tested. If you have to isolate due to infection by Covid-19 and you are too ill
or fatigued to complete assignments, we will develop a reasonable makeup schedule together.

Policy 5: If you miss an exam due to illness then sufficient accommodations will be made, provided that you have
followed the policies outlined in this document. Unverifiable absences will not be accommodated. Sufficient
accommodations for an exam will either involve dropping the missed exam (1 drop is allowed) or offering a different
(but equivalent) make-up exam within 2 days of the student’s return to campus.

Policy 6: Being allowed to attend remotely is not a guarantee, nor should it be expected to be an equivalent to in-
person instruction. In the unlikely event that students that are allowed to attend class remotely, the participants will
be held to the same conduct standards as in-class attendance. Appropriate clothing is required if a student is
attending via Zoom. Disruptive and unbecoming conduct will result in a single warning, repeated unacceptable
behavior will result in ejection from either class or the current Zoom session, and will be reported to the University
as misconduct.

The university COVID quarantine and isolation policies (which may be subject to change) are available at

https://www.bakeru.edu/coronavirus/