Winter, 1998 (MWF 12:00, Skiles 202, with recitations TTh 12:00)
Instructor:
Evans Harrell, Skiles 134, 894 4312, harrell@math.gatech.edu
InstructorÕs office periods: MWF 3:30-4:30
Assistant: Chris Carmichael, carmich@math.gatech.edu
Instructor's office periods: MWF 3:30-4:30
Required text:
S. Grossman, Calculus, published by Saunders College Publishing.
Description: Calculus is not only essential in engineering; it is one of mankind's greatest intellectual achievements. After thousands of years of confusion on the part of philosophers, Newton, Leibniz, and Euler created the tools for understanding the infinite and the infinitesimal. In this second term we learn about the integral and its uses in problems involving areas and averages, and we begin solving differential equations. Since we are living in the late twentieth century, we will do all this with the aid of computers.
Grading and requirements: There will be four tests, on Friday, 16 January; Friday, 30 January; Friday, 13 February; and *Tuesday*, 3 March; homework; and a final exam. Homework will be collected and reviewed each Thursday, on which day there may also be a one-question quiz closely related to the homework. You will not get a detailed grade on the homework, but you will receive a recitation grade. You will receive the maximum recitation grade if you hand in all the homework, perform well on any quizzes, and work at least three problems on the blackboard during the term (they do not have to be absolutely correct). You must hand in homework and you must work problems on the board in the recitations or you will lose points. Some of the homework problems or close variants will appear on the tests, but other problems will not just be clones of the homework.
Determination of your grade. The weighting for the final grade is: each test 20%, final exam 30%, and recitation 10%, except that the equivalent of one test will be dropped from your average as an efficient way to cope with absences, illness, etc. Regardless of excuses, a second test will not be dropped. The computer will automatically determine the most favorable 20% contribution to your grade to drop, taking into account possible different test medians, etc. There will be an opportunity for an extra credit project, which can add up to 3%
The median grade in the class has historically been a high C. To get a B you need to be somewhat better than the historical average and to get an A you need to clearly excel. D denotes poor performance. We do not adhere to a rigid numerical scale or a rigid quota for a given letter grade. We take a great deal of care in drawing the lines between numerical grades based on a review of performance on actual exams and asking, "How good is this?" Grade guidelines will be posted on the World Wide Web during the term.
Extra credit. There is an optional extra credit assignment, which can add up to 3 points to your average (on a scale of 100): Take an assignment in another class at Georgia Tech, and work it using Maple (or Mathematica or Matlab, or write a program in Java). The assignment should use material from Math 1508. Embed the assignment in a well-presented document, where it is explained in simple, clear prose, so that one of your classmates who is not taking that class can understand what you did. Note: This likely means that a xerox copy of the assignment as handed in to the other class will not be adequate. Everything should be self-contained, and the document should be delivered on the World Wide Web, or on diskette (Mac or PC, but use only Microsoft Word, Maple, or Mathematica), or in printed form. Due date: Friday, 6 March.
Calculators and tests. No restrictions will be placed on the use of calculators that do elementary mathematics on the tests. Calculators that can store formulae or do calculus symbolically shall not be brought to tests. No credit will be given on tests for a correct answer without the intermediate steps.
Readings. The order of the material will be roughly as follows:
sections 4.1-4.8; sections 5.1-5.6, 8.7; sections 6.1-6.8; sections 16.1-16.5; sections 7.6,7.7,7.9, 7.1-7.3
(This schedule may be modified as the term progresses.)
On-line materials
This course will benefit from many on-line materials, which you can access with the software in the student software suite, especially Netscape, Maple, and Acrobat. There is a home page for the class at
http://www.math.gatech.edu/~harrell/1508/,
and there are many other useful things at the School of Mathematics home page for on-line resources, at
http://www.math.gatech.edu/~bourbaki/fifteen.html#integral.
Engineers today do mathematics differently than in the past. Complicated calculations can be done with software such as Maple, and there are many powerful items on the World Wide Web to help you both to learn mathematics and to do it effectively. Georgia Tech is one of the leaders in incorporating these developments into our calculus classes, with Maple, Mathematica, Java, and other software.
Many of you are new to the software or to the Internet, so we have prepared many ways to help you. One recitation will be held in the Skiles computer lab. At that time we will show you how to access the World Wide Web and get Maple working. Once you reach the Web pages, there are many links to useful materials on-line. Also, there are two consultants - actual human beings - on call in the afternoons in the Rich building on weekday afternoons. (Their hours will be posted when they become available.) Finally, there is an on-line newsgroup,
which you can use to get information and tips from one another, as well as ask questions of the professor and teaching assistant.
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