Physics 10240 Book Report
The following is a summary of the criteria by which the book report will be
graded.
Each item is worth between 1 and 10 points toward a total score of 100
points.
Factors such as the difficulty of the book and clarity of the report will
affect the scoring
of each section.
Handing in a report late or selecting a book late
will cost between
five and ten points in the final grade.
Length
The book report should be 5-7 pages long (single or 1.5 spacing) excluding the header sheet. Reports that are
either too short or too long will be penalized (5-10 points).
All book reports must contain
the following:
Header (One page)
- Title
- Author
- Publisher
- Number
of Pages
- Abstract:
Summarize in one concise paragraph
what the book is about and how it relates to the course.
Introduction
- Who is
the author (a short biography/bibliography)?
- Why
should one pay attention to what this author says?
- What
exactly is the author writing about?
- Why is
this interesting (if it is)?
- How
does the topic of the book relate to Physics 10240?
Body
- Summarize
the main points that the author is trying to make in each chapter.
- Summarize
the main facts that the author cites to make these points.
- What (if
anything) have you learned from this chapter that was not covered in
class?
Conclusion
- Why
is this book good (if it is good)?
- Which
sections/chapters are the best?
- Why
is this book bad (if it is bad)?
- Which
sections/chapters are the worst?
- What
is the level of the book (i.e., what is the “target audience” in your
opinion).
- Would
you or would you not recommend that this book stay on the reading list?
- If the book was not on the
reading list, do you recommend that it be added?
Colin Jessop(cjessop@nd.edu)
updated January 2025