HW for Section 2
This is the PDF file that includes the HW problems for Section 2.
There are three homework problems in the PDF file. Each homework problem is worth 5% of the total points for the course.
Many of the homework problems for the course are simple numerical exercises designed to give you a feel for some of the physical scales relevant for LIGO. You can use paper, pencil and a calculator to complete the assignments, or you can use a spreadsheet. A spreadsheet is actually easier, since it allows you to conveniently store constants you will use often (like the speed of light, for example) and then use them with many different calculations. If you are not familiar with spreadsheets, there is a nice tutorial from Microsoft about Excel, their popular spreadsheet program. It is linked below. Even if you will use a different package, like OpenOffice or Numbers, these tutorials might be useful. Spreadsheets are all fairly similar in the basic way they work.
If you are not very practiced with spreadsheets, use the first few homework assignments to learn about them. The last assignments, in Section 5, will require you to use spreadsheets or some other programming, so now is a good time to hone your skills.