How Things Work: An Introduction to Physics
University of Virginia via Coursera
- Provider Coursera
- Cost Free Online Course (Audit)
- Session Upcoming
- Language English
- Certificate Paid Certificate Available
- Effort 2-4 hours a week
- Duration 8 weeks long
- Learn more about MOOCs
Taken this course? Share your experience with other students. Write review

Class Central Custom Lists
Build and share your own catalog of courses with Class Central's custom lists.
Overview
Class Central Tips
Syllabus
-Start here!
Skating
-Professor Bloomfield examines the principle of inertia through skate boarding. Objects at rest tend to remain at rest while objects in motion, tend to remain in motion. Why does a stationary skater remain stationary? Why does a moving skater tend to continue moving? How can we describe the fluid, effortless motion of a coasting skater? How does a skater start, stop, or turn? Why does a skater need ice or wheels in order to skate? Physics concepts covered include Newton's first and second laws and 5 physical quantities: position, velocity, acceleration, force, and mass.
Falling Balls
-Professor Bloomfield examines the physics concepts of gravity, weight, constant acceleration, and projectile motion working with falling balls.
Ramps
-Professor Bloomfield examines the physics concepts of Newton's third law including conserved quantities, support forces, work, energy, and mechanical advantage working with ramps.
Seesaws
-Professor Bloomfield illustrates the physics concepts of rotational versus translational motion, Newton's law of rotation, and 5 physical quantities: angular position, angular velocity, angular acceleration, torque, and rotational mass using seesaws.
Wheels
-Professor Bloomfield illustrates the physics concept of frictional forces through experiments with wheels.
Bumper Cars
-Professor Bloomfield examines the physics concepts of momentum, impulse, angular momentum, angular impulse, and the relationship between potential energy and force using bumper cars.
Final
-This is the final exam.
Taught by
Tags
Help Center
Most commonly asked questions about Coursera
Reviews for Coursera's How Things Work: An Introduction to Physics Based on 24 reviews
- 5 stars 75%
- 4 stars 17%
- 3 stars 8%
- 2 star 0%
- 1 star 0%
Did you take this course? Share your experience with other students.
Write a review- 1
Only one try at quizzes (unusual for Coursera in my experience) meant the quizzes were not themselves learning experiences. To me that pressure to do it right the first time or lose forever made the course far less fun than most Coursera courses (and inconsistent with things learned in Gamification and other studies of motivation).
this review helpful
this review helpful
this review helpful
this review helpful
for the non-scientist
Lots of practical examples
this review helpful
this review helpful
It related to the real world really well and made it easier to understand.
I looked forward to doing it every day.
this review helpful
this review helpful
- 1