SUNY-Geneseo/Physics & Astronomy
Fall 2023
Applied Mechanics
(Phys 313)
MWF 12:30 am, ISC 229
   Dr. Pogo  (pogo at geneseo.edu)
   Where's Pogo?
   Office: ISC 228D
  
  Syllabus in PDF Format Survey for Assignment #1 Free Body Diagram Method  
  Current Grade Status Grade Request Form CAPA Homepage  
  Mileage Reward Info Equilibrium Examples Equation Sheet Template for Final  
  Reactions Pressure example Pulleys  
  Centroids Mechanical Drawing    
  Shear & Bending Example Bending: Mathematica Beam Deflection Table  
 
Stress Concentrations
Torsion Spreadsheet Example
H vs. N
 
  Hotel Walkway (wikipedia) Calvin on Bridge Design    
   

Clip art of bridge

Bridge Advice    
 

What am I doing here? At the end of this course, you will be able to: analyze structural engineering problems (beams, cables, and trusses) in a simple and logical manner; use the concepts of stress and strain in structural members experiencing tension, compression, shear, bending, and twisting to evaluate the possibility of their failure; and use Mohr's circle and the Von Mises stress to ensure that your analysis is performed from the appropriate perspective. The first part of the course focuses on the analysis of “rigid bodies” in equilibrium. The second part of the course focuses on structures made of “real” materials having elasticity and finite strength.
clip art Arc de Triumph
There are two textbooks for this class: Vector Mechanics for Engineers – Statics, by Beer, Johnston & Mazurek (McGraw Hill, any edition), and Mechanics of Materials, by Beer, Johnston et al. (McGraw Hill, any edition). These books will be used in the first and second parts of the course, respectively.
 
Hey! Why are there two books? This material is typically presented in two different courses at engineering schools, and these are the texts for those courses. We will cover chapters 1 through 7 of Statics, and 1 through 9 of Materials. Both books have great example problems and illuminating text. If you are planning on a career in mechanical, civil, or environmental engineering, I strongly recommend that you purchase and keep both books, even after the semester ends.
clip art Golden Gate Bridge
How will I be graded? Your grade will be determined by:
  Assignments:   30%  
  Bridge Competition   10%  
  Exams  (4 exams):   60%     
    100%  

Each of the four exams (including the “final”) will cover the specific material from the weeks preceding it. However, all of the exams are effectively cumulative for the course, since you cannot master the material for the second exam unless you understand the material from the first (and so on). Really.

The bridge competition will be held in Newton 204 beginning at 3:45 pm on Thursday, December 7, 2023.

Can I do written homework on Post-it notes? Are you kidding? In the real world, neatness counts, and it counts in this class, too. The main purpose of the (rare) written assignments is professionalism. More information concerning written homework can be found on the reverse side of this syllabus. For this course, using online homework solutions is considered academic dishonesty. Students must not turn in homework problems that someone else has solved or solutions they find online. At best you will not receive credit for the homework; at worst you will be charged with academic dishonesty.
Clip art London Tower bridge
 
When are the tests?  Here is a tentative schedule of exams. Exams #1 through #3 are currently scheduled as “in class” exams. If the entire class (including Dr. Pogo) agrees, any exam time, date, or length can be changed (to a two hour evening exam, for example). Such changes will not affect the exam questions itself. In any case, the time limit for exams #1 through #3 will not exceed two hours.      
              Exam #1: Friday, September 22, 2023 (chapters 1 through 5 of Statics)
              Exam #2: Friday, October 20, 2023 (chapters 6 through 7 of Statics)
              Exam #3: Wednesday, November 15, 2023 (chapters 1 through 3 of Materials)
              Exam #4: Wednesday, December 13, 2023 (3:30-6:00 pm. Covers chapters 4 through 9 of Materials)
Clip Art Leaning Tower

Written Homework Rules

The entire point of having written assignments is to help you improve your professionalism. Therefore, unlike the CAPA portion of each weekly assignment, your grade will be primarily based on factors other than whether you get the right answer.

1)    Use exactly 8˝ ´ 11 inch paper. I will measure it with a ruler. Do not use spiral ring paper.
2)    Use only one side of each sheet
3)    Put your name on the top of every sheet. Put the assignment number on the top of the first page (e.g., “Applied, Assignment #3).
4)    Staple all your sheets together. Paper-clips and torn corners are not permitted.
5)    Clearly and systematically indicate what is given, and what is sought.
6)    Work must progress linearly down the page. If your solution initially meanders around the page, I expect you to recopy your solutions.
7)    Use a pencil. Erase errors instead of blotching them out. If you choose to use a computer, then everything must be in correct notation: italics only and always when needed, subscripts appropriate, equations in standard textbook form (not in any computer language), diagrams not drawn in “paint”, etc. The symbol “:=” is (now and for the rest of your professional life), unacceptable for written work, along with other “computational” notation (“^”, “E”, “*”, etc.).
8)    Draw and use Free Body diagrams as appropriate for all problems. Define and use coordinate systems. Specify your choice of “free body”. Label your forces.
9)    Define your symbols, and use subscripts. Not all forces can be called “F”, not all tensions can be called “T”, and not all normal forces can be “N”. Every symbol must be unique and clearly defined. Make a list or table of relevant symbols and their values when this will help me to understand your solution.
10)  Do not even bother to submit nonsensical results (e.g., a negative tension in a chain or rope).
11)  Use words and/or pictures to clarify your method of solution and your symbol definitions.
12)  Solutions should be symbolic. Include the initial fundamental formulas, but don’t show every step of intermediate algebra. If, for some reason, your solution uses numeric values, show no more than 4 significant figures, and include units.
13)  Box your answers.
14)  Plots should be professional and no smaller than 3 ´ 5 inches. Do not use default font sizes, default trendline formatting (where every variable is apparently an x or a y), default line widths, default colors, etc. No decision should be made by Excel or Mathematica. Axis names should include units.

 

What if I have trouble with the homework? Come see me during  office hours on Discord, and I’ll try to point you in the right direction. You must bring a paper copy of your homework assignment (not just your “answers”). Also, I know that most of you will work in groups, and I won’t attempt to stop it. However, the learning is in the doing. Nobody on this planet learns from copying somebody else’s work, no matter how clear or correct it is. Every part of every problem that you let somebody else do for you is something that you are deciding that you just don’t want to learn. You will not have their help on exams!

Learning Outcomes:

At the end of this course, students will:

· Be able to analyze rigid structural engineering problems consisting of beams, cables, and trusses in a simple and logical manner
· Be able to evaluate the possibility of failure due to tension and compression in structures made of elastic materials of finite strength
· Be able to evaluate the possibility of failure due to torsion in structures made of elastic materials of finite strength
· Be able to evaluate the possibility of failure due to bending in structures made of elastic materials of finite strength
· Be able to evaluate the possibility of failure due to shear in structures made of elastic materials of finite strength
· Be able to use Mohr’s circle and the “von Mises stress” to combine the above effects in 2D and 3D, respectively, to ensure that your failure analysis is performed in the correct coordinate system.