Homework:

 

Homework will be assigned for nearly every class period and will consist of assigned readings and problems.  I expect you to come to class prepared to discuss the assigned readings and problems and to ask questions on the concepts that you do not understand.  Homework should be complete and ready to hand in at the beginning of the class. Homework problem solutions will be graded on a scale of 0-10. The solutions will not be rigorously graded for technical accuracy, rather they will be graded based on a qualitative assessment of your understanding and effort. It is your responsibility to use the reviewed solutions to grade your own work for technical accuracy.  Homework that is submitted after it is collected in class will not be accepted unless you made prior arrangements with the instructor.   

You are encouraged to get help on the homework from any source, including other students, to the extent that it helps you understand the concepts.  However, the problem solutions that you submit must be your original work and reflect your effort.  One cautionary note must be emphasized--students are often lulled into a false sense of security concerning their understanding of dynamics when they are able to follow someone else's solution of a problem or follow the instructor's solution of an example problem.  Merely being able to follow someone else's solution is not enough.  You must be able to develop the solution on your own.  If you can do the homework problems on your own in a timely manner,  you most certainly will do well on the exams.

 

In practice, engineering work is checked and rechecked by multiple reviewers.  As a result, engineering work must be neat and present a clear and logical solution.  It is not sufficient to "get the right answer."  A reviewer must be able to easily follow your logic and determine how you arrived at your answer.  Therefore, use the following guidelines for all homework problems.   Points will be deducted from your homework score if you do not follow the guidelines.  

 

1.    Use green engineering computation paper and do your work in pencil.

2.    Only one problem per page unless the problems are very short in which case you may put two problems on the page.

3.    Use only the front side of the paper.

4.    At the top of each page put your name, the course name, and the date. At the top right number each sheet and indicate the total number of sheets.

5.    Use the Given, Required, Solution format.

6.    Where appropriate, use a straight edge to draw figures.  Text should be neatly printed.

7.    Your work must be neat and present a logical solution that can be easily followed. 

8.    Show all work.

9.    Enclose your answer in a box.

10.  Staple the sheets in the upper left corner.

 

The homework format described above is intended to familiarize you with the way practicing engineers actually do their work. The format includes most of the elements required by professional engineering offices, and it includes common standards for the presentation of computations, tables and graphs.

In professional practice, all written work is kept as a record of the engineering/design/construction process. Such records are needed to show that accepted engineering and design methodologies were employed, to establish professional responsibility for the work, to justify time sheets, to justify client billings, to permit error checking and correction and to provide a record of the as-built facility.

For these reasons, actual engineering worksheets contain information that identifies the responsible worker and checker, the date the work was done, the project name and account number, task name and account number, and page numbers, including the total number of pages in the task, so that missing pages can be detected. All work must be checked by others and must be filed for future retrieval and reference. Also, it may be necessary to excerpt portions of the work for transcription to databases or other reports.

Consequently, it is essential that work results and records be presented in prescribed formats that are familiar to their users. The use of familiar formats makes data recovery and checking faster and more accurate, which enhances the productivity of the firm or agency. The details of the prescribed formats vary from company to company and agency to agency, but these variations do not mean that formats are unimportant.

These same standards apply to examinations and quizzes as appropriate.

WORK WHICH DOES NOT ADHERE TO THESE STANDARDS MAY BE RETURNED UNGRADED OR CREDIT MAY BE DEDUCTED AT THE PROFESSOR'S DISCRETION.