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Foundation course


 

 

FOUNDATION COURSE Part – 1 (PHYSICS)

Outline of the course:

Topics covered:

 

1. Introduction                                                          1 Session

2. Mechanics                                                           2 Sessions

3. Electromagnetism                                                 2 Sessions

4. Heat and Thermodynamics                                    1 Session

5. Optics and Waves                                                1 Session

6. Modern Physics                                                    2 Sessions

7. Special Topics: These could change from year to year but would comprise approximately 4 sessions. Some of the topics taken over the last couple of years were:

                                a. Physics Education Research

                                b. Astronomy and Astrophysics

                                c. Nuclear Physics

                                d. Nano Physics

 

Laboratory Course:

  1. The students will work on approximately 6 experiments during laboratory sessions. 

  2. The laboratory course will have some part of time during each session devoted to introduction to and orientation towards experimental physics. 

  3. Students should submit the final report within a week. 

  4. The faculty member will have to evaluate / grade this final report and give his / her detailed comments, feedback and marks (10 marks for each experiment). 

  5. Students should interact with the faculty member, discuss and analyze the report. 

 

During the course, the students will work on a set of experiments. This year the set was:

 

  1. Soft massive springs. 

  2. Physical and variable ‘g’ pendulum. 

  3. Coupled strip oscillators. 

  4. Electromagnetic damping. 

  5.  Electromagnetic introduction, inductance and reflected impedance. 

  6. Diffraction of light. 

 

Reference Books:

  1. Fundamentals of Physics, D. Halliday, Robert Resnicks and Jearl Walker, 6th Edition, John Wiley and Sons, 2007. 

  2.  Flying Circus of Physics, Jearl Walker, John Wiley and Sons, Second Edition, 2006. 

  3. Advanced Practical Physics, B.L. Worsnop and H.T. Flint, Khosla Publishing House, 2004. 

  4. Handouts from Resonance and America Journal of Physics. 

 

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FOUNDATION COURSE Part – 2 (BIOLOGY)

 

Duration of the Course; One month

 

Theory sessions:

Theory sessions of two hours each is held twice a week. Every week, lecture on one of the following topics is given during one of the session and a tutorial based on the topic covered is given to the students during the next session.

 

  1. Important concepts in Biology                                               2 sessions 

  2. Animal Behaviour                                                                 1 session 

  3. Genetic Relatedness                                                            1 session 

  4. Overview of DNA and biotechnology                                      1 session 

  5. Tutorials related to each topic                                                4 sessions 

 

Evaluation of the tutorials to be done by the faculty member.

 

 

Lab sessions:

3-hour lab sessions conducted once a week in the following areas:

 

  1. Separation Techniques – involves separation techniques based on the principles of adsorption and partitioning of components in a given mixture. 

  2. Microscopy – involves staining of different plant, animal and bacterial cells and observing them under various magnifications as well as observing the process of digestion in protists. 

  3. Colorimetry – involves determination of λmax of various coloured dye solutions, determination of the concentration of a given solution by plotting a standard curve and studying the absorption spectrum of chlorophyll pigments. 

  4. Nucleic acid extraction and agarose gel electrophoresis – involves extraction of nucleic acids from plant cells and their observation using the agarose gel electrophoresis technique. 

 

 

Reference Books:

  1. Biology, Campbell, Reece, 7th edition 

  2. Life: The Science of Biology, Purves, Orians, Heller, Sadava, 5th edition,  

  3. Survival Strategies, Raghavendra Gadagkar, Universities Press 

 

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FOUNDATION COURSE Part 3 - (CHEMISTRY)

(Aug 17 - Sept 18, 2009)

 

Instructor: Savita Ladage

Laboratory sessions: Swapna Narvekar and Indrani Sen

 

Topics covered:

Periodic Table: An introduction                                                2 sessions

Mole concept and Stoichiometry                                              2 sessions

Chemical Equilibrium                                                              2 sessions

Equilibrium in solutions                                                           2 sessions

Acid base chemistry

Redox chemistry (if possible)

Chemical Kinetics: An introduction1 session

Research in chemistry education1 session

 

 

Laboratory sessions

Session I: Some interesting demonstrations in chemistry

 

Session II: Qualitative tests/Crystallisation

 

Session III:  Acid-base/Redox chemistry

 

Session IV:  Instrumental experiment /Olympiad experiment

 

Background reading material will be supplied as a part of lab activity.

 

Reference Books (All books are available in HBCSE Library)

 

General Chemistry, Darrell Ebbing, Houghton Mifflin, 3rd Edn, 1990

Chemistry, Raymond Chang, McGraw Hill Company Ltd, 5th Edn, 1994

General Chemistry, principles and modern applications, Ralph Petrucci, Prentice Hall, 1998

General Chemistry, principles and structures, James Brady, John Wiley and sons, 5th Edn, 1990

Advanced Chemistry, Physical and Industrial, Philips Mathews, Cambridge University Press, 1st Edn, 2003.


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