This repository contains the notebooks and course resources for PHYS 201L at Christopher Newport University.
If this is your first laboratory meeting, follow the complete GitHub, team-fork, and Google Colab setup guide before collecting data.
Each laboratory team uses exactly one shared fork. The guide explains how to create and verify a GitHub account, create the team fork, invite and accept collaborators, open notebooks in Colab, save back to GitHub, and verify that the work was actually committed.
After completing the guide, open Start_Here.ipynb from the team fork and complete the save test.
Editable and printable versions are available in the course_documents directory.
| Lab | Experiment | Meeting dates | Due at 8:45 p.m. | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Density measurements and uncertainties | Aug 24 and Aug 31 | Aug 31 | Completed |
| 2 | Air track I: Kinematics | Sep 7 and Sep 14 | Sep 14 | Released |
| 3 | Projectile motion | Sep 21 and Sep 28 | Sep 28 | Coming later |
| 4 | Air track II: Newton's second law | Oct 5 and Oct 19 | Oct 19 | Coming later |
| 5 | Air track III: Conservation of energy | Oct 26 and Nov 2 | Nov 2 | Coming later |
| 6 | Collisions in two dimensions | Nov 9 and Nov 16 | Nov 16 | Coming later |
| 7 | Moment of inertia | Nov 23 and Nov 30 | Nov 30 | Coming later |
There is no laboratory meeting on October 12 because of fall recess. Each new lab will appear in the labs directory when it is released.
Before beginning Lab 2, the repository manager must use Sync fork → Update branch. Then open Lab02_Air_Track_Kinematics.ipynb from the team fork. The notebook initially runs with representative example data and explains how to export, upload, and select the team's own Capstone CSV files.
Do not begin with the Lab 1 notebook. Complete the step-by-step setup guide, including the Start_Here.ipynb save-and-verify test, first.
Do not place student ID numbers, grades, private feedback, or other sensitive information in this public repository.
- Create one team fork and invite every teammate as a collaborator.
- Confirm that every teammate accepted the invitation.
- Complete the save test in
Start_Here.ipynb. - Open
Lab01_Density.ipynbfrom the team fork in Colab. - Enter every team member's name in the notebook.
- Make an early test save to the team fork before beginning extensive work.
- Confirm on GitHub that the saved notebook contains the team's changes.
The printable experiment instructions for Labs 1-7 are in Experiment_Instructions. The released notebook remains the team's working laboratory record.
- Open the assigned notebook from your team's fork, not from the instructor repository.
- Select Open in Colab.
- Add every team member's name at the top of the notebook.
- Complete the experiment, analysis, and written sections during the scheduled laboratory meetings.
- In Colab, select File → Save a copy in GitHub.
- Select the team's fork and the notebook's original path. Include a meaningful commit message.
- Open the notebook on GitHub and verify that the latest results and writing appear there.
One notebook is submitted per team. The repository manager is responsible for verifying the final commit.
New labs are released as new directories. Before starting a newly released lab, the repository manager should open the team's fork on GitHub and select Sync fork → Update branch.
Do not rename or move released lab notebooks. This keeps instructor updates and submission links predictable.
By 8:45 p.m. at the end of the second meeting:
- The repository manager submits the GitHub URL of the team's completed notebook through the course LMS.
- Every student submits an individual effort report through the LMS.
The effort report is private. Do not commit it to the team's public GitHub fork. Follow any additional submission instructions in the LMS assignment.
If GitHub reports a conflict, or if Colab cannot save to the team fork, stop and ask the instructor before deleting files or overwriting a notebook.