The following table contains the homework problem assignments and reading assignments for Classical Mechanics for the
fall, 2025 semester. The problems are taken from Classical Mechanics: A Modern Perspective
by Barger and Olsson (B&O) and locally developed ones that are listed below.
Some of the reading assignments are from Physics for Scientists and Engineers by Knight (Kn).
| Aug 25 | Read the syllabus and Chap 1 in B&O; Do Chap 1 - 1,2 in B&O; Read Section 6.5 in Kn; install Mathematica, instructions here. | Aug 27 | Chap 1 - 7,9 in B&O, HW on 1D free fall - 1,2. | Aug 29 | HW on 1D free fall - 3; report on chisovFalling.nb due Wed, Sep 3; read guidance on lab writeups and see a sample here. |
| Sep 1 | HW on 1D oscillators - 1,2; Chap 1 - 14,15; Read Kn 15.1-15.4,15.7. | Sep 3 | HW on 1D oscillators - 3; Chap 1 - 16; Report on chisovFalling.nb due this day Wed, Sep 3. | Sep 5 | HW on 1D oscillators - 4,5. |
| Sep 8 | Chap 1 - 17; lab report on 'Wiggling Cantilevers' due Fri, Sep 12 | Sep 10 | HW on 1D oscillators - 6,7. | Sep 12 | Read Kn 10.1-10.5, 25.2-25.4; Molecular Vibrations - 1,2,3,4. |
| Sep 15 | Molecular Vibrations - 5,8,9; hand in 5,9 on Fri, Sep 19; Chap 2 - 2,7. | Sep 17 | Molecular Vibrations - 7; hand in 8 on Mon, Sep 22. | Sep 19 | Molecular Vibrations - 5,9 due on this day; 8 due on Monday, Sep 22; The Pendulum HW - 1,2. |
| Sep 22 | Molecular Vibrations - 8 due on this day; Read Kn 15.4-15.9; The Pendulum HW - 3,4,5. | Sep 24 | Chap 3 - 1,2,3,5a (and get the equation of motion); Test in one week. | .Sep 26 | Chap 3 - 7a (and get the equation of motion); Normal Modes HW - 1,2,4. |
| Sep 29 | Chap 3 - 5b; Normal Modes HW - 3. | Oct 1 | Test 1 | Oct 3 | Normal Modes HW - 5,9a; try 9a for Mon, due on Wed, Oct 8; Chap 3 - 5c; see here for math tools. |
| Oct 6 | Normal Modes HW - 6,7. | Oct 8 | Chap 3 - 5d, 5e, 7b | Oct 10 | Chap 4 - 9,10; HW on Collisions - 1,2. |
| Oct 13 | Fall Break | Oct 15 | Oct 17 | ||
| Oct 20 | Oct 22 | Oct 24 | |||
| Oct 27 | Oct 29 | Oct 31 | |||
| Nov 3 | Nov 5 | Nov 7 | |||
| Nov 10 | Test 2 | Nov 12 | Nov 14 | ||
| Nov 17 | Nov 19 | Nov 21 | |||
| Nov 24 | Nov 26 | Nov 28 | |||
| Dec 1 | Dec 3 | Dec 5 |
Local homework sets.
| 1D Free Fall | Oscillators |
| Molecular Vibrations | The Pendulum |
| Normal Modes | Collisions |
| Rutherford Scattering | Newtonian Cosmology |
| Extra Solar Planets |