Energy and the Environment

Have you ever wondered:

• Who benefits from getting energy?
• Where do people get energy from?
• What choices to we have when it comes to energy?
• When will we run out of fossil fuels?
• Why is there so much concern about climate change?
• How do transform energy from nature into more useful forms like electricity?

Physics 140 will explore all of these questions and many more! This asynchronous course will allow people to explore energy from a number of different perspectives. Indigenous guest speakers will talk about their experiences in working in the energy sector and having access to energy.

This course is new to the University of Regina, but it's based on a multiple award winning course on sustainable energy from the University of Calgary. It's specifically designed to require only high school science and math as a prerequisite, focusing on the concepts rather than the calculations.

Component(s)                                 Weighting %
Group Discussion                                  10%
Lecture comprehension questions           10%
Homework                                            30%
Midterm 1                                             15%
Midterm 2                                             15%
Final                                                     20%

The textbook is the website energyeducation.ca, freely available for all U of R and FNU students, some sample pages are here:

• Who has access to electricity?
• Where does our electricity come from?
• What are kinetic energy, potential energy, and energy in general?
• What is coal, and how is our use changing?
• What are our fossil fuel reserves like? They aren’t what people think! (The real problem with fossil fuels is that we aren’t running out!)
• There’s a difference between renewable and sustainable, and that difference is important.
• Energy use depends on where we live, and that’s changing in big ways.
• Population is growing  but unevenly and that has big consequences for us using electricity as an energy currency.

Weekly breakdown of course material:

1. Modeling energy and matter
2. Primary energy, end use, energy for society
3. Heat, start of heat engines
4. Finish heat engines
5. Start fossil fuels, Midterm 1 
6. Fossil fuels
7. Environmental consequences and climate change
8. Finish climate change, start nuclear power
9. Finish nuclear Power and Midterm 2
10. Wind, Solar,
11.  Geothermal, Hydro,
12. Wave, Tidal, start Electricity
13. Finish Electricity, review course material

Course Learning Incomes
At the beginning of the course, students should be able to:

• Convert numerical quantities from one set of units to another with given unit conversions (eg. 100 cm = 1 m,
• how many meters is 324 cm?)
• Solve linear algebraic equations (e.g. If 3y+6=12, what is the value of y?)
• Use a calculator to find the sin, cos and tan of an angle (e.g. Find cos 40o with a calculator).
• Read line, bar and pie charts
• Discuss controversial topics such as climate change, fracking and poverty in a mature and respectful manner.

Online discussion
To do well in this course: read the assigned passages, watch the videos, and participate in the online class
discussions, and do the weekly homework assignments. This course will break into small
group discussions; courteous behaviour and discussions of controversial topics is expected. Your mark in the
online discussion will be based on your thoughtful contribution.

Homework
I’ve done my best to create problems that I believe you’ll be able to solve, in a relatively timely
fashion. If I am wrong, and experience has shown that I will be from time to time, it’s easier for me to issue
retractions before it’s due rather than after.

Exams
There will be two mid-term exams during the semester and one comprehensive, final exam scheduled by the
registrar. Material will come from class lectures, readings, homework, and online discussions. The professor and
TAs will schedule a time to be available during the exam to answer questions by e-mail and Zoom.
If you fall behind or have trouble in this course, I expect you to come to me and then we can figure out what can
be done about it. The earlier in the course you approach me the more help I can be.

Course Outcomes:

• What energy is and how it is used
• The advantages and disadvantages of various sources of primary energy
• What electricity is and how it is produced & distributed
• How our energy use ties to our changing climate.
• Analyze how our quality of life depends on energy consumption
• Analyze, evaluate and discuss the consequences of energy choices