CU Boulder PHYS 1110: General Physics 1
PHYS 1110 is CU Boulder's calculus-based mechanics course: kinematics, Newton's laws, energy, momentum, and rotation. It's required across engineering and physical science majors, with curved exams and a strong department culture of conceptual, clicker-question teaching.
Fennie is independent and not affiliated with University of Colorado Boulder. This is an unofficial study guide.
What makes it hard
Exams test modeling, not formula recall: drawing the right free-body diagram and choosing the right principle for a scenario you haven't seen. Homework pattern-matching is exactly what the exam problems are designed to break, and the rotation unit at the end stacks every earlier concept onto students' accumulated gaps.
What you'll cover
- • Kinematics in one and two dimensions
- • Newton's laws and free-body diagrams
- • Work and energy
- • Momentum and collisions
- • Rotational motion and torque
- • Oscillations
The PHYS 1110 study guide
How to study for CU Boulder PHYS 1110, step by step.
- 1
Train the setup phase explicitly
PHYS 1110 exams grade the modeling: diagram, principle, and justification come before any algebra. Practice that sequence deliberately on every problem; it's where the points live.
- 2
Hunt unfamiliar problems on purpose
If everything you've practiced resembles the homework, you've trained for the wrong exam. Past exams, other textbooks, and recitation sets supply the novelty the real test will.
- 3
Take the concept questions seriously
The department's clicker-style conceptual questions mirror real exam content; Boulder's physics exams test understanding, not just computation. Practice explaining why, not just calculating what.
- 4
Keep calculus frictionless underneath
Derivatives fluent, integrals comfortable. Calculus friction stacked on physics reasoning is the standard way students fall behind in the first month.
- 5
Bank review time before rotation
The rotational unit re-runs kinematics, forces, and energy simultaneously at the end of the course. Review earlier units before it opens; gaps you carried quietly become loud there.
Today
Today's PHYS 1110 plan
What a Fennie Daily Plan looks like for PHYS 1110. Yours is built from your own syllabus and adapts every day to your deadlines and progress.
First plan free, no card required. Fennie is independent and unaffiliated with your school.
FAQ
Is PHYS 1110 at CU Boulder hard?
Yes, it's a core engineering filter. Curved exams test physical reasoning on unfamiliar scenarios, so homework pattern-matching isn't enough. Students who practice setups from scratch on varied problems handle it; formula memorizers don't.
How do I study for PHYS 1110 exams?
Practice the setup phase deliberately (diagram, principle, justification before computing), then seek out problems you haven't seen, since breaking homework patterns is the exam's whole design. Conceptual 'explain why' practice pays off too; Boulder's exams test understanding directly.
How much calculus does PHYS 1110 use?
Calculus 1 working fluency: derivatives throughout, integrals conceptually. It's typically taken alongside or after APPM 1350 or MATH 1300, and calculus friction is a common early-semester struggle multiplier.