Announcements
Week 2 Debrief
Dear Students,
Here’s our list of accomplishments of the week.
- We learned the Law of Balance of Linear Momentum (BoLM, Newton II, Euler I).
- We learned about the four steps needed to solve a problem using the BoLM.
- We learned that the ‘equations of motion’ of a system are scalar differential equations whose number is equal to the ‘degrees of freedom’ of the system.
- We introduced the 2D polar coordinate system and the 3D cylindrical polar coordinates.
- We practiced writing and projecting the BoLM vector equation even when different terms in the vector equations are written in different bases.
You are now able to solve up to sets 4 and 5 which are posted on the class website: https://mech230.github.io/S26/calendar/ Please solve these sets before next lecture, and pass by during office hours if you have any questions. You will have a related quiz during the problem session on Tuesday.
Plan for next week.
- Finish discussing the cylindrical polar coordinate system.
- Continue our discussion on degrees of freedom and constrained motion.
- Introduce the Serret-Frenet basis.
Remember that HW1, posted on Gradescope, is due on Monday January 26 at 6pm. Also, you are now able to complete HW2, also posted on Gradescope, which is due on Monday February 2 at 6pm.
PS. We have 2 more weeks to go before our first exam!
Wishing everyone a good weekend!
Best,
Theresa
Week 1 Debrief
Dear Students,
Here’s our list of accomplishments of the week.
- We reviewed important concepts from Statics, namely FBDs, and vector calculus which were the subjects of quizzes 1 and 2 respectively.
- We started from general continuum mechanics and made a series of assumptions to narrow down the scope of the course.
- We introduced basic kinematics principles: position, velocity, and acceleration vectors and the arc-length scalar.
- We derived three scalar identities for the case of rectilinear motion.
You are now able to solve sets 1, 2, 3 which are posted on the class website: https://mech230.github.io/S26/calendar/ Please solve these sets before next lecture, and pass by during office hours if you have any questions.
Plan for next week.
- We will introduce the balance of linear momentum for a particle.
- We will introduce the cylindrical-polar coordinate system.
After Tuesday’s lecture, you should be able to complete HW1, posted on Gradescope, which is due on Monday January 26 at 6pm.
PS. We have 3 more weeks to go before our first exam!
Wishing everyone a good weekend!
Best,
Theresa
Week 0 Announcement
Dear Students,
Welcome to MECH230. We are looking forward to a smooth and productive semester!
Our first meeting will be during lecture tomorrow. Please note that you are required to attend all classes and exercise sessions, including the first class and first exercise session held on Tuesday January 13.
Also, kindly complete the following pre-semester checklist:
- Read the syllabus.
- Explore the course website.
- Download the Gradescope app on your phone, create an account, and login. Please let me know before tomorrow’s class if you haven’t received an email instructing you that you were enrolled in Gradescope.
- Note the exam dates listed in the syllabus and on the website homepage. Since this is a huge class (5 sections), we will not be changing the exam times.
Best Regards,
MECH230 Teaching Team