Medical physics 1
2020-2021, 1st semester
obligatory course
COURSE DATA
Course title: Medical physics 1
Credits: 2
Course code: AOK-OAK101
Assessment: end-semester examination
Lecture: 2 periods every second week
- Thursdays, 12:00–13:30, online as a YouTube stream
Seminar: 2 periods every second week
AIM OF THE COURSE
In accordance with the widespread involvement of physical principles and methods in almost all areas of medical sciences, this compulsory course offers an introduction to applications of physics in medicine and clinical research.
The physics syllabus is designed to facilitate the understanding of certain phenomena in the physiology of the human body (kinetics of the body, muscle function, circulation, respiration, sensing, transport phenomena) by studying the underlying physical principles.
The 2 hours/fortnight physics lecture is accompanied by 2 hours/fortnight seminars. These seminars are dedicated to discussing lecture material and clarifying the questions that may arise.
Both semesters are concluded by an end-semester examination. Assessment is based on the material covered in the lectures and seminars and on the relevant chapters of the obligatory reading.
REQUIREMENTS FOR THE SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF THE COURSE
Pursuant to current disease prevention regulations, lectures are held online in the platform to be announced by our institute. We help students prepare for the examinations by publishing our annotated slides.
To complete this course successfully, one needs to have a certain grasp of the fundamentals of physics. Students can check if they have this level of knowledge by completing a survey test in the first two weeks of the semester. We offer the online elective course Fundamentals of medical physics to help students brush up their physics skills.
The lectures are complemented by biweekly online seminars whose aim is to help students reach a deeper understanding of the lecture material. The site for these online seminars is Microsoft Teams. Attending seminars is obligatory and active participation is expected. In default of this, the seminar instructor has the right to refuse the signature for the seminars. Students can have no more than two absences with leave from the seminars. Seminar absences are to be made up for according to the directions of the instructor. Students must ensure that they have the registrations necessary for the use of Microsoft Teams. Our institute provides a handout to assist the necessary registration steps.
To check if students have appropriated the material, we shall set an online test in every biweekly period. The material of each test will be announced by a schedule published in CooSpace. The 10-question tests consist of 7 theoretical and 3 calculation questions, randomly selected by the online system from a question pool. Each question is worth 1 point. We award fractional points for partially correct answers. The time allowed for the completion of the test is 20 minutes. The test must be started within a one-week time window and can be attempted 3 times, of which the one with the best result will be counted.
The results of the 5 mid-term online tests will be added up. The total will be converted into 5 mid-term points according to the following thresholds (without any rounding):
- below 25%: 0 points
- 25%–: 1 point
- 40%–: 2 points
- 55%–: 3 points
- 70%–: 4 points
- 85%–: 5 points
Only students who have obtained the signature for the seminar are eligible to take the examination. If a student fails to meet this, they must take a seminar resit from the combined material of the seminars in the semester. Failing the resit means they cannot register for an examination.
EXAMINATION REQUIREMENTS
The course is worth 2 credits, awarded on the basis of an end-semester examination. Students take a computer-aided test examination at the end of the semester. 15% of test questions cover the material of the seminars, 25% of them consist of fundamental physics questions and 60% of them are medical physics questions. Students have to sign up for the examination through the Neptun system. Examination registrations are finalised automatically 24 hours before the examination. Repeated examinations are to be taken according to the general regulations of the Study and the Examination Requirements of the University. No first examinations are allowed during the resit week of the examination period.
At the examination a maximum of 35 points can be achieved, to which the 5 points obtainable from mid-term work are added, making a total of 40 points. Grades of the examination are determined as follows (with the examination results rounded to two decimals where needed):
- 0–20.99 points: fail (1)
- 21.00–25.99 points: pass (2)
- 26.00–30.99 points: satisfactory (3)
- 31.00–35.99 points: good (4)
- 36.00–40.00 points: excellent (5)
The test can be completed once. The time of completion is 60 minutes. Each examination question is worth 1 point, with fractional points awarded for partially correct answers. Completion cannot be interrupted. You cannot go back to a previous question. You can only proceed forward from question to question. During the examination, students are allowed to use the printed or digital version of a formula sheet provided by the institute. This contains the formulae relevant to the calculation questions in the mid-term and end-semester tests.
In all other respects, refer to the current version of the Academic and Examination regulations or, for issues not clarified there, to the announcements of our institute.
SYLLABUS OF THE LECTURES
- Biomechanics. Muscle function
- Fundamentals of the senses: oscillations, waves, optics
- Hearing and vision
- Flow of fluids
- Thermodynamics
- Diffusion and other transport processes
- Signal analysis
SYLLABUS OF THE SEMINARS
- SI and other fundamentals
- Biomechanics
- Oscillations and waves. Optics
- Hearing and vision
- Flow of fluids
- Thermodynamics
OBLIGATORY TEXTBOOKS
- S Damjanovich, J Fidy and J Szöllősi (eds): Medical biophysics. Medicina, 2009.
SUGGESTED TEXTBOOKS
- Paul Davidovits: Physics in Biology and Medicine. Fourth edition. Academic Press, 2013.