Professor Wright begins this lecture with a brief introduction to musical acoustics, discussing the way multiple partials combine to make up every tone. He reviews fundamental rhythmic terms, such as "beat," "tempo," and "meter," and then demonstrates in more depth some of the more complex concepts, such as "syncopation" and the "triplet." Professor Wright then moves on to discuss the basics of musical texture, giving detailed examples of three primary types: monophonic, homophonic, and polyphonic.

In this lecture, Professor Wright explains the basic system of Western musical notation, and offers an interpretation of its advantages and disadvantages. He also discusses the fundamental principles of rhythm, elaborating upon such concepts as beat, meter, and discussing in some depth the nature of durational patterns in duple and triple meters. The students are taught to conduct basic patterns in these meters through musical examples drawn from Chuck Mangione, Cole Porter, REM, Chopin, and Ravel.

This lecture provides an introduction to basic classical music terminology, orchestral instruments, and acoustics. Professor Wright begins with a brief discussion of the distinctions between such broad terms as "song" and "piece," briefly mentioning more specific terms for musical genres, such as "symphony" and "opera." He then moves on to describe the differences between a "motive" and a "theme," demonstrating the distinction between the two with the use of music by Beethoven and Tchaikovsky.

Professor Wright introduces the course by suggesting that "listening to music" is not simply a passive activity one can use to relax, but rather, an active and rewarding process. He argues that by learning about the basic elements of Western classical music, such as rhythm, melody, and form, one learns strategies that can be used to understand many different kinds of music in a more thorough and precise way -- and further, one begins to understand the magnitude of human greatness.

Waves are discussed in further detail. Basic properties of the waves such as velocity, energy, intensity, and frequency are discussed through a variety of examples. The second half of the lecture deals specifically with superposition of waves. Constructive and destructive interferences are defined and discussed.

Final Exam covers the second half of the course.

The focus of the lecture is the concept of entropy. Specific examples are given to calculate the entropy change for a number of different processes. Boltzmann's microscopic formula for entropy is introduced and used to explain irreversibility.

Why does a dropped egg that spatters on the floor not rise back to your hands even though no laws prohibit it? The answer to such irreversibility resides the Second Law of Thermodynamics which explained in this and the next lecture. The Carnot heat engine is discussed in detail to show how there is an upper limit to the efficiency of heat engines and how the concept of entropy arises from macroscopic considerations.

This lecture continues the topic of thermodynamics, exploring in greater detail what heat is, and how it is generated and measured. The Boltzmann Constant is introduced. The microscopic meaning of temperature is explained. The First Law of Thermodynamics is presented.

This is the first of a series of lectures on thermodynamics. The discussion begins with understanding "temperature." Zeroth's law is introduced and explained. Concepts such as "absolute zero" and "triple point of water" are defined. Measuring temperature through a number of instruments is addressed as well as the different scales of measurement. The second half of the lecture is devoted to heat and heat transfer. Concepts such as "convection" and "conduction" are explained thoroughly.