Physics 210 Writing Assignment
Deadline: Friday, October 17.
Length: 2 – 5 pages, single spaced, including any figures, diagrams, data graphs, or other inserts. It is
most important to demonstrate your understanding of the topic, regardless of the length.
Topic: Describe any physics experiment, historical or contemporary. Be sure to include things like
• Context and motivation for the experiment.
• How the experiment is performed.
• How errors are addressed and controlled.
• What was definitively answered or observed by the experiment.
• Who was involved.
• What had been done in the past, and has or could follow it up.
• Highlight the roles of motion, force and energy where you can, or other specific connections to
the content of the course.
Depending on what era your choice comes from, you will be equipped to describe it in more or less
detail. You can give a complete account of the work of Archimedes, and something more general and
schematic regarding CERN.
If you have questions about a topic, you can ask me, and the earlier the better. You can also choose how
much breadth you want to cover, for example, you could choose the Manhattan Project, or focus
narrowly on Fermi’s first controlled chain reaction. You can also show me an outline or draft at any
stage.
Grading rubric:
10 – Clear and direct prose, a narrative that naturally flows. Perfect exposition of clear physics.
9 – An A grade also, there are no flaws.
8 – Choppy writing or gaps in the context or description of the physics.
7 – There may be some errors, indication that the material was not absorbed, merely a cobbled together
retelling.
6 – Significant errors, though still something that would count as a completion of the assignment.
: Describe any physics experiment, historical or contemporary. Be sure to include things like • Context and motivation for the experiment
August 7th, 2017 admin