Overview and Authoring Guidelines

The PICUP Collection of Exercise Sets

The fundamental unit of the PICUP collection of educational materials is the "Exercise Set". All Exercise Sets are peer-reviewed and adaptable for faculty use. Standard Exercise Sets use numerical approaches that can be adapted to multiple platforms and Specialized Exercise Sets take advantage of particular computational platforms.

Exercise Type Any
Course Level Any
Subject Any
Programming Language Any
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37 Exercise Sets

Mechanics
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3 body problem - Code for visualization of 2D Earth-Moon-3rd body trajectories

First Year Mechanics

Developed by Fabio Daniel Saccone

Example Implementation: IPython/Jupyter Notebook

A Rigid Three-bar Pendulum

Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Ernest Behringer

Example Implementation: Python

Binary Stars with Equivalent One Body Problem

Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Aaron Titus

Example Implementation: IPython/Jupyter Notebook

Center of Mass for Point Particles

First Year Mechanics

Developed by Deva O'Neil

Example Implementations: Glowscript and Spreadsheet

Computing the 1-D Motion of a V2 Rocket

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by David Marasco

Example Implementations: Spreadsheet, Glowscript, and MATLAB

Double Pendulum

Advanced Mechanics

Developed by Derrick Hylton

Example Implementation: IPython/Jupyter Notebook

Energy and Phase Space of a Damped Oscillator

Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Deva O'Neil

Example Implementations: Glowscript, IPython/Jupyter Notebook, and Mathematica

Falling Sphere with Air Resistance Proportional to $v^2$

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Kelly Roos

Example Implementations: C/C++, Fortran, Glowscript, Haskell, IPython/Jupyter Notebook, Mathematica, MATLAB, Python, and Spreadsheet

Falling through a non-uniform Earth

First Year Mechanics

Developed by Karl Henrik Fredly and Tor Ole Odden

Example Implementation: IPython/Jupyter Notebook

Foucault Pendulum

Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Andy Rundquist

Example Implementation: Mathematica

Harmonic and Anharmonic Oscillations of a Boat

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Eric Ayars

Example Implementations: Python, Easy Java Simulations, IPython/Jupyter Notebook, and Mathematica

How far would a skydiver have to fall to break the sound barrier in a non-uniform atmosphere?

First Year Mechanics

Developed by Karl Henrik Fredly and Tor Ole Odden

Example Implementation: IPython/Jupyter Notebook

Lagrangian dynamics

Beyond the First Year and Advanced Mechanics

Developed by Andy Rundquist

Example Implementation: Mathematica

Making Animations with Potential Energy

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by W. Brian Lane

Specialized Programming Language: Glowscript

Physical Pendulum without Small Angle Approximation

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Gautam Vemuri and Andy Gavrin

Specialized Programming Language: MATLAB

Plane Rigid Pendulum

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Kelly Roos

Example Implementations: C/C++, Easy Java Simulations, Fortran, IPython/Jupyter Notebook, Mathematica, MATLAB, Python, and Spreadsheet

Planetoids with Momentum!

High School and First Year Mechanics

Developed by Christopher Orban

Example Implementation: Javascript

Planetoids with Torque!

High School and First Year Mechanics

Developed by Christopher Orban

Specialized Programming Language: Javascript

Simple Hanging Harmonic Oscillator

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Kelly Roos

Example Implementations: C/C++, Easy Java Simulations, Fortran, Glowscript, IPython/Jupyter Notebook, Mathematica, MATLAB, Python, and Spreadsheet

Snowboard Jumping and Newton’s Second Law

First Year Mechanics

Developed by Michael (Mick) O'Shea

Example Implementations: Python, IPython/Jupyter Notebook, and VPython

Space Elevator - Analyzing Stress

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Larry Engelhardt

Example Implementations: IPython/Jupyter Notebook, Python, and Spreadsheet

Traveling to Mars

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics

Developed by Aaron Titus

Example Implementations: Glowscript and Easy Java Simulations

Projectile Motion: Experiment and Computational Model

First Year Mechanics and Experimental / Labs

Developed by Todd Zimmerman

Example Implementations: Glowscript, IPython/Jupyter Notebook, Sage Worksheet, and Easy Java Simulations

Study of rectilinear motion with a smartphone: Elevators and Slides

First Year Mechanics and Experimental / Labs

Developed by Amador García Fuente, María Rita Sierra Sánchez, Maria Velez, and Maria Rosario Diaz Crespo

Example Implementations: Octave and Python

Bead on a Wire

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics and Mathematical / Numerical Methods

Developed by Steve Robinson

Example Implementations: Glowscript and Spreadsheet

Lunar Lander

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics and Programming Introductions

Developed by Aaron Titus

Example Implementations: Glowscript and Easy Java Simulations

Move the Blob!

High School Mechanics and Programming Introductions

Developed by Christopher Orban

Example Implementation: Javascript

2-Body Gravitation

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics and Astronomy

Developed by Walter Freeman and Kelly Roos

Example Implementations: Mathematica, MATLAB, Python, Glowscript, and Spreadsheet

Binary Orbit Inspirals Due to Gravitational Radiation

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics and Astronomy

Developed by Robert Hilborn

Example Implementations: Glowscript and Mathematica

Finding the Earth-Sun Lagrange Points

Beyond the First Year and Advanced Mechanics, Mathematical / Numerical Methods, and Astronomy

Developed by Nicholas Nelson

Example Implementation: Python

Gravitational Waves from Binary Orbits

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics and Astronomy

Developed by Robert Hilborn

Example Implementations: Glowscript and Mathematica

Gravitational stability of a planet within its rings

Beyond the First Year Mechanics and Astronomy

Developed by Michael Massa

Example Implementation: Python

Cliff Diving and Quadratic Drag

First Year Mechanics, Experimental / Labs, and Fluids

Developed by Peter Bryant

Example Implementations: IPython/Jupyter Notebook and Spreadsheet

Efficiency of a Water Turbine (3D Printing Lab)

First Year Mechanics, Experimental / Labs, and Fluids

Developed by Deva O'Neil, Benjamin Hancock, and Benjamin Hanks

Investigating Torque with 3D Printed Waterwheels

First Year Mechanics, Experimental / Labs, and Fluids

Developed by Benjamin Hancock, Deva O'Neil, and Hannah McPherson

Pascal’s Law and the Origin of Buoyancy

First Year Mechanics and Fluids

Developed by Deva O'Neil

Example Implementation: Glowscript

What a Drag: A Projectile Motion Game with Air Resistance

First Year and Beyond the First Year Mechanics and Fluids

Developed by Steve Robinson

Example Implementation: Glowscript