Physics 1020-02:
Fundamentals of Physics -- About Time


Outline of this course:
In this course we will discuss the concept of "time" and in doing so we will introduce a number of important concepts of physics. Rather than presenting a top-down, deductive approach, we will try to understand concepts when their understanding is needed in the context of our discussion of time. The course is intended to provide a general knowledge of many of the basic concepts, facts and methods of physical science. It is designed to help you acquire "scientific literacy" enabling you to appreciate news relating to science, and to make reasoned judgments about societal issues relating to or influenced by science. Even though this course tries to put emphasis on a conceptual understanding, the use of simple mathematics cannot be completely avoided without sacrificing knowledge of one of the important characteristics of physics, namely its quantitativeness. Therefore, some mathematical concepts and tools will be introduced and used as needed.


We will discuss, in various levels of detail, a number of topic areas from the list below:

The order of discussion may change, and we may jump back and forth between different topic areas since they are interrelated.


  • Textbooks, sources of information:

    • You do not need to buy a textbook for this course. There are books and other documents available on the Web, and additional material will be posted in Blackboard. The main sources of information will be

    All of these are available on the Web (see below)