260113 VO Time and Clocks (2020W)
Labels
Registration/Deregistration
Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).
Details
Language: English
Examination dates
Lecturers
Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N
Thursday
08.10.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
15.10.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
22.10.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
29.10.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
05.11.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
12.11.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
19.11.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
26.11.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
03.12.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
10.12.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
17.12.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
07.01.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
14.01.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Thursday
21.01.
09:30 - 11:00
Digital
Information
Aims, contents and method of the course
Assessment and permitted materials
I hope to give a written test after the end of the lectures. No books, notes, or other outside material will be needed or permitted. If COVID does not allow for this, then we will have oral examinations via video teleconference.
Minimum requirements and assessment criteria
An exam score of at least 50% is necessary to receive a passing grade.
Examination topics
The student should be able to demonstrate knowledge of the physics associated with clocks, including: sundials, pendulum clocks, quartz clocks, atomic clocks. The student should be able to demonstrate knowledge of the systems of time used in the world today and the definition of time standards. The student should understand principles of clock accuracy, precision, and statistics. The student should understand some very basic principles of time with regard to special and general relativity. All of this material will be addressed in the lectures.
Reading list
There is no textbook for the course, but suggestions for reading and references will be given. Lecture slides and notes will be provided online via Moodle during the semester.
Association in the course directory
ERGB, ERG 3, UF MA PHYS 01a, UF MA PHYS 01b
Last modified: Fr 12.05.2023 00:21
We will learn about the physical principles of clocks and time-keeping, starting from long ago but concentrating on the present. Along the way we will address many issues, such as: How do you quantify the accuracy of a clock? How do you tell time with an atomic clock? How is “official” time managed? What is a leap second? How does relativity affect clocks? What limits the performance of clocks based on sundials, pendulums, quartz crystals, and atomic transitions?
The contents of the course are not "set in stone." Student input is welcome if there are additional special topics that you are interested in.