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Learner Reviews & Feedback for Introduction to Thermodynamics: Transferring Energy from Here to There by University of Michigan

4.8
stars
3,350 ratings

About the Course

COURSE DESCRIPTION This course provides an introduction to the most powerful engineering principles you will ever learn - Thermodynamics: the science of transferring energy from one place or form to another place or form. We will introduce the tools you need to analyze energy systems from solar panels, to engines, to insulated coffee mugs. More specifically, we will cover the topics of mass and energy conservation principles; first law analysis of control mass and control volume systems; properties and behavior of pure substances; and applications to thermodynamic systems operating at steady state conditions. COURSE FORMAT The class consists of lecture videos, which average 8 to 12 minutes in length. The videos include integrated In-Video Quiz questions. There are also quizzes at the end of each section, which include problems to practice your analytical skills that are not part of video lectures. There are no exams. GRADING POLICY Each question is worth 1 point. A correct answer is worth +1 point. An incorrect answer is worth 0 points. There is no partial credit. You can attempt each quiz up to three times every 8 hours, with an unlimited number of total attempts. The number of questions that need to be answered correctly to pass are displayed at the beginning of each quiz. Following the Mastery Learning model, students must pass all 8 practice quizzes with a score of 80% or higher in order to complete the course. ESTIMATED WORKLOAD If you follow the suggested deadlines, lectures and quizzes will each take approximately ~3 hours per week each, for a total of ~6 hours per week. TARGET AUDIENCE Basic undergraduate engineering or science student. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS - What are the prerequisites for taking this course? An introductory background (high school or first year college level) in chemistry, physics, and calculus will help you be successful in this class. -What will this class prepare me for in the academic world? Thermodynamics is a prerequisite for many follow-on courses, like heat transfer, internal combustion engines, propulsion, and gas dynamics, to name a few. -What will this class prepare me for in the real world? Energy is one of the top challenges we face as a global society. Energy demands are deeply tied to the other major challenges of clean water, health, food resources, and poverty. Understanding how energy systems work is key to understanding how to meet all these needs around the world. Because energy demands are only increasing, this course also provides the foundation for many rewarding professional careers....

Top reviews

MJ

Jul 23, 2019

Great course. But I was also hoping to get an in-depth analytical understanding of the second law of thermodynamics and the zeroth law as well. But I really enjoyed it and definitely learned a lot.

AM

Feb 24, 2021

Courses from the University of Michigan are always awesome. Hats off to Margaret Wooldridge, mam. Thank you so much, Coursera and the University of Michigan for making this outstanding experience.

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1 - 25 of 687 Reviews for Introduction to Thermodynamics: Transferring Energy from Here to There

By YOGESH I

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May 8, 2020

Margaret mam has done excellent job. Nicely designed the contents and videos were really helpful to solve the questions in the assignments.Thanks to mam. and Please Add course on Heat Transfer.

By Jeremiah S

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May 15, 2017

Should have made it clear that without the book, you will not be able to simply watch the lectures and solve some of the extremely complicated math problems in this class. I really struggled through some sections of the class without access to the formulas to solve many of the problems that showed up on the exams.

By Thomas O

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Apr 11, 2018

Great practical information to thermodynamical processes and machines with many calculated examples. A bit light on the fundamental definitions, like entropy, but very good for hands-on work.

By Jeremy D M

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Aug 2, 2019

If you already know thermodynamics and are looking for a refresher than this is probably for you. If you have no real exposure to this topic and want to learn it but may need a little help don't waste your time. It is amazing how many questions in the discussion go completely unanswered by the "staff" and you will get absolutely no assistance from anyone. Just pay your money and you figure it all out.

By Pawar A A

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Jul 19, 2020

By Taking These Course of thermodynamic, They fulfilled my knowledge about thermodyanamic law, properties. They gave more effective information that is useful for me as Mechanical Engineer.

By Ashish R

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Apr 18, 2018

Good Introductory Thermodynamics Course, I am an electrical engineer and had to take this course as a prerequisite for a graduate level course in renewable energy. The professor is top-notch and explains the concepts very well, the assignments are not very challenging but force you to think about the concepts introduced in the video lecture. I am waiting for a follow up course which will deal with the second law, exergy etc. in detail.

By Madan P

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Aug 11, 2021

the content and delivery of this course was exceptional. I learnt a lot about thermodynamics fundamentals and its practical applications. one of the best online courses I have attended so far

By Andrew C

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Oct 27, 2016

Starts off great, but quickly jumps into really dense course material moving quickly between topics with few images or examples while watching the lecturer slowly scribble on the slides. I expected more discussions in the videos with variance between visual, heavy calculations at a slower pace and high-level applications. Quizzes are long and redundant and there isn't enough recognition of the relationship between climate change and thermodynamics.

By Shivnand B G

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Nov 2, 2019

I like this course very much. This course helps me to clear my basic concepts of thermodynamics. I like the concept of this course is that, there is one hardware video in 7 and 8 week. So, my suggestion is to add one hardware video in each week related to the topic so it is very easy to understand the concept. This course is very important for me. Thank you very much to the Madam and the university.

By Nachiket D

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Feb 10, 2019

Excellent course on the fundamentals of energy analysis, accounting, and transfer! Highly recommended for engineers, scientists, and anyone curious about energy, sustainability, and the environment! Dr. Wooldridge does an excellent job breaking down seemingly complex systems using the fundamental analysis techniques that will be well-ingrained in you by the time you complete this course. :)

By Víctor G

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Nov 27, 2016

Excellent course, the topics are very nice selected, and the teacher (Prof. Wooldrige) is amazing; excellent teaching abilities. The grade exercises are nice, although some of them are not well solved. If they can put the solution after each test could be excellent. Nevertheless, I think this a must take course for getting the principal thermodynamics concepts or getting a review of them.

By Sriram B H

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Aug 15, 2017

Great intro course to thermodynamics. A follow up course with more advanced topics (2nd law, exergy etc.) would definitely be useful. A course at the graduate level would be very welcome!

By Vaibhav D A

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Jul 22, 2019

One of the Best Teachers ever I studied under!! I sincerely wish that we can get more courses by the same teacher on Coursera. I would be more than happy to pursue those courses.

By Matthew M

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May 8, 2019

I feel the questions given in the assignments are not adequately covered in the lecture/given material. I find myself doing a lot of outside research to get through assignments. Quite a frustrating course for that reason. It might be helpful to add some more reading material that covers the assignment questions in more detail. I don't find any benefit in spending hours researching a simple problem that i could easily have learned had i been given adequate information to begin with. None of the subject material in this course is particularly difficult.

By Maddie D

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Jun 18, 2017

The resources suggested to the students are difficult to use, and even require payment (the free trial only allowed 3 calculations, while the course requires 10+ calculations for the Week 3 quiz). Overall, the lectures seemed poorly planned out and lacked examples.

By Deleted A

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Mar 25, 2019

I had a minor in physics when I graduated from college about 32 years ago. Thermodynamics is one of the courses I would have needed to complete a major. I am taking this course just for fun and to broaden my knowledge of physics. Even though it has been a long time since I have done physics, the instructor has made the concepts so clear that I am not struggling. A serious effort is required but the presentation is very logical and there are plenty of good practical examples.

By Ashwin K M

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Feb 25, 2021

Courses from the University of Michigan are always awesome. Hats off to Margaret Wooldridge, mam. Thank you so much, Coursera and the University of Michigan for making this outstanding experience.

By Ismail H B

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Sep 30, 2017

It is quite a course that really gives the good understanding and brief problem solving capability about Thermodynamics. It also gives the mechanisms for energy generation, cycle process, states and so on. Moreover one can get a very important information and realities about world's energy bottlenecks and probable solutions. Dr. Wooldridge's undertaken to show these alternatives. But in this economic conjecture of energy generation, she becomes Don Quixot against windmills. Nonetheless, Dr. Wooldridge teaches the mechanism of these windmills. I hope her entropy lasts until the energy giants change their pathways to what she offers for the sake of inhabitable world.

By John K

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May 23, 2021

An outstanding course, to say the least. The course covers all introductory aspects of Thermodynamics, from very basics to numerical analysis of power cycles to the future of energy demands. The quizzes were challenging and required thinking, which was a positive as it helped develop critical thinking skills. The instructor was awesome and had a great grip on the subject. A little preliminary knowledge might be required for those studying thermodynamics for the very first time though.

By Mykola K

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Jun 20, 2017

Very good introductory course.

What i liked:

+ detailed and gradually explained basic concepts and laws;

+ lots of practical tasks in quizes;

+ Interesting info about world energy sources (the last week)

+ well defined amount of work per week for successful learning.

What i would like to be better:

- Would like to see more examples of real machines and processes (more pictures, videos, links to real world examples ), more interesting facts in field of thermodynamics and energy.

By Mridul M P

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Dec 23, 2016

The course is really helpful as a refresher for somebody who studied the subject 10 years back. I loved how the concepts were explained. Its a must recommend for any body who is going to study the subject in Undergrad to get good hold on concepts. Thanks for the course, It was something that I really needed at this moment in my assignment

By Mayanknath J

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Jul 24, 2019

Great course. But I was also hoping to get an in-depth analytical understanding of the second law of thermodynamics and the zeroth law as well. But I really enjoyed it and definitely learned a lot.

By Abhinav P C

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Jul 14, 2020

Very well organized course with systematic explanations to the important topics of thermodynamics. The course focuses on the basic concepts as a result of which it becomes easier to understand the lectures step by step and also solve the numerical problems and the concept based question without any issues.

I am extremely happy to invest my time in this course. I shall express my heartiest thanks to the course instructor for explaining us in very detail. I am looking forward to join more such courses offered by 'University of Michigan' through 'Coursera' in the near future.

By MOHAMMAD S K

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Oct 12, 2020

This course was very beneficial for young graduates. It developed a strong basis for further learning in the field of thermodynamics because the practical application of this course is everywhere including combustion, internal combustion engines, and turbomachinery. I am eagerly waiting to learned advanced thermodynamics in the future. I would suggest you start an advanced course in internal combustion engines and hybrid vehicles as soon as possible.

By James M G A

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Nov 4, 2020

I really like how she teach though i'm sometimes confuse because it has advanced calculus that I will soon take, however she taught well that I understand all the concepts as well as having an application from real life helps a lot

My favorite part of the lesson was we she saw us an engine I now know what is the use of engine and it looks cool, it motivates me to pursue engineering more