Allocations to labs     At the beginning of each academic year, Prelims (first year), Part A (second year) and Part B (third year) students are allocated to the different laboratories on a rota system; you must follow your allocation. The Management Scheme will tell you your present allocation. See also Alternative practical times for working out of allocation.       Prelims First year (Prelims) students work in pairs on either Thursdays or Fridays every week. The initial allocation of colleges to groups and groups to labs and the rotation through them are shown in the Tables 1, 2 and 3 below. N.B. If you partner with somebody from a college not in your group, one of you will move into the other's group. (Look under 'View your record" on your MS page to see your group and other details.)     Thursday Friday starting lab see below group colleges groups colleges A Mansfield Merton St. John's E New Somerville St. Anne's St. Peter's Optics B Balliol Brasenose Exeter Magdalen F Christ Church LMH Oriel Trinity Electronics C Queen's SEH Wadham G Hertford Corpus St. Hilda's St. Hugh's E & M D Jesus St. Catz Worcester H Keble Lincoln University General Table 1 Initial allocation of colleges to first-year practical groups. N.B. This is your initial allocation only. After pairing you may be in a different group.           groups (Thursday/Friday) week A/E B/F C/G D/H MT1 0.5 Electronics 0.5 Computing 0.5 Computing 0.5 Electronics 0.5 Data am     0.5 Data pm MT2 0.5 Data am     0.5 Data pm 0.5 Electronics 0.5 Computing 0.5 Computing 0.5 Electronics MT3,4,5 3 Optics expts. 3 Electronics expts. 2 E & M expts. 3 General expts. MT6,7,8 3 Electronics expts. 2 E & M expts. 3 General expts. 3 Optics expts. HT1,2,3 2 E & M expts. 3 General expts. 3 Optics expts. 3 Electronics expts. HT4,5,6 3 General expts. 3 Optics expts. 3 Electronics expts. 2 E & M expts. HT7,8 2 extra weeks for those who have got behind total 11 days of real practicals, 4 days of computing Table 2 Allocation of groups to first-year practical labs. Note that you are required to do two practicals only in the Electrostatics and Magnetism lab in a three week allocation.           In addition to the allocation to the Optics, Electronics, Electrostatics and Magnetism, and General physics labs given in Table 2 above, students are required to complete a four-day computing course. This will involve programming in the C language. It is organized as three 'experiments' which will be marked and entered on your record as follows: CO00, CO1x where x is in range 1-6, and CO5y where y is in range 1-7. You will do the first part of CO00 in a half-day session in the first two weeks of MT and complete it with another half-day session in third week or sixth week as specified in Table 3 below.       CO00 is worth one day. When you have CO00 marked the demonstrator will assign and book CO1x which is also worth one day. You are allocated two half-day sessions as shown in Table 5 below for work on CO1x. You are expected to complete it by the end of fifth week MT for groups A, B, E and F or eigth MT week for groups C, D, G and H.       CO5y is worth two days and will be done in Hilary Term. You will be informed by email before the end of Michaelmas term which practical has been selected for you and when in Hilary Term it is due to be handed-in.     week Thursday Friday am pm am pm MT1 B A F E MT2 D C H G MT3 E F A B MT4 F E B A MT5 E F A B MT6 G H C D MT7 H G D C MT8 G H C D Table 3 Allocation of groups to Computing lab             Part A Part A students work in pairs on Mondays and Tuesdays of either even or odd weeks. The rotation is shown in Table 4 below and your allocated weeks and labs will be shown on your page of the MS. Practicals will take place for the whole of Michaelmas Term, weeks 3 & 4 in Trinity term, and 2 days for Electronics practicals in Hilary term. Students are allocated 1 week (each of 2 days) in each of the Computing, Thermal physics, Electronics and E&M and Optics laboratories together with 1 free choice week in which they are free to book available experiments in any of these laboratories. N.B. Unless you wish to do more than two Electronics experiments it is unwise to choose Electronics when you have a free choice in Michaelmas term. This is because everyone is allocated to Electronics in Hilary when the other labs are not open. (See also Alternatives to practical work and Alternative practical times).        Students are encouraged to do experiments in a broad range of labs but no lab except Electronics is compulsory. If you want to work in a lab or week to which you are not allocated you may do so but you will not be able to book and therefore plan. You will have to turn up on the day and see what is available at 10:15am and you will need to ask a senior demonstrator to book you in. (See also Alternative practical times)       You must do 4 days in Electronics and the normal expectation is that you will do experiments EL16 and EL24 and no more than 6 days in Computing. Those substituting Learning Physics or a short option for practical work thus reducing their quota to 6 days will be required to do only 2 days in Electronics doing either EL16 or EL24 and no more than 3 days in Computing.         Table 4 Part A lab. rotation.  Students do one ratation spending 1 even/odd week of 2 days in each lab. i.e. 10 days, plus 2 further days in Electronics in HT. N.B. Computing must not constitute more than half your total.     In addition students are required to undertake an Oral skills exercise.         Part B Part B students work in pairs on Mondays and Tuesdays of either even or odd weeks. Practicals will take place for the whole of Michaelmas term and also, for MPhys students, in weeks 1-4 of Trinity Term. BA students should complete their practicals in Michaelmas Term. The rotation is shown in Table 5 and your allocated weeks and labs will be shown on your page of the MS. You will spend 1 week (each of 2 days) at each position of the rotation. BA students stop after one rotation i.e. 6 days, which must be completed in Michaelmas Term. (See also Alternatives to practical work and Alternative practical times).         Table 5 Part B lab. rotation.  MPhys students do two ratations spending 1 even/odd week of 2 days in each lab. BA students will do only one rotation i.e. 6 days in all.       In addition students are required to undertake Written skills written skills exercises.     [PPC home page]     Last update: September 22nd. 2009 kla