MATH 2374
IT Multivariable Calculus and Vector Analysis
Spring 2008
Syllabus


Text:

Marsden and Tromba, Vector Calculus, Fifth Edition. We will cover the entire book, with these exceptions:
  1. We assume you are familiar with the content of sections 1.1 and 1.2. (We will briefly review in class. For those who have never seen vectors and the dot product before, there will be an extra lecture on Monday, January 28.)
  2. Sections 2.2, 3.4, 3.5, 6.3, 6.4, 7.7, 8.5, and 8.6 are not part of the course.

Prerequisite:

You must have received a grade of at least C- in Math 1372 (or equivalent) to be in this course. If you did not receive at least a C- in Math 1372, please see your advisor. If you do not feel at ease with vector algebra, such as vector addition, scalar multiplication, and the inner (dot) product, your lecturer will give a review session the first Monday of the semester, January 28, during the regular lecture time in the regular lecture room.

Exams:

The dates of the midterms are Wednesdays February 27, April 2, and April 30. You will have the option of taking the midterm from 5:00 to 6:00 PM or from 6:10 to 7:10 PM. The final exam is Monday, May 12, from 1:30 to 4:30 PM.

Grading policy:

  • Homework: best 11 homework assignments worth 10 points each, for a total of 110 pts.;
  • Quizzes: best 25 online quizzes worth 2 pts. each, for a total of 50 pts.;
  • Labs: best 6 labs worth 20 pts. each, for a total of 120 pts.;
  • Midterms: each midterm worth 140 pts., for a total of 420 pts.;
  • Final Exam: 300 pts.
  • Total: 1000 pts.

Makeups:

Students must make arrangements in advance if they will not be handing in homework on time or will miss an exam. Exam absences due to recognized University related activities, religious holidays, verifiable illness, and family/medical emergencies will be dealt with on an individual basis. See official University Policy on Makeup Examinations for Legitimate Absences.

Attendance:

We will conduct the class under the presumption that you have attended all lectures, labs, and recitation sections. In particular, you are responsible for any announcements made in class.

Readings and Quizzes:

Before each lecture you should complete the associated reading on the course WebVista page. The pre-lecture readings are followed by a short, instructive quiz, due online at 9 AM the day of the lecture (meaning they really should be completed the day before). The online readings after the quiz are supposed to be studied after the lecture, in addition to reviewing your lecture notes and the corresponding sections of the text.

Homework and Lab Assignments:

Unless otherwise indicated, the assigned problems for each week are due the following Friday at the beginning of lecture. Labs will be due at the beginning of your lab section one week after you have finished working on the lab in class. We encourage you to discuss homework problems and lab assignments with your classmates, including strategies for solving different kinds of problems. Indeed, this is one of the best ways to improve your understanding of the course. However, when you actually write up your solutions, you must do this on your own. Collaboration during the write-up stage or handing in homework or labs that are almost identical to a classmate's is a form of cheating and may result in a score of zero for all your homework or lab assignments. Your homework should be:
  • neatly and clearly written, using complete sentences and correct grammar. You must show your method of solution as well as your answer. Neat crossing out is acceptable, but homework which looks like scrap paper, which contains only answers and no method of solution, or which appears to have been written at the last minute or without reasonable care, will not receive full credit and may not be graded.
  • handed in on time, at the beginning of class. Late homework will be graded only under unusual circumstances and only if arrangements have been made in advance.
  • stapled.
In particular, if your homework is illegible, then your TA has the right to deduct a point from your homework or (in extreme cases) to hand it back ungraded.

Scholastic conduct:

We expect the highest standards of conduct from members of this class. Cases of academic dishonesty will be treated with utmost seriousness. See Student Conduct Code. More generally, we expect students to be actively involved with the issues presented in class. In particular, you should be prepared each week to ask and answer questions.

Student privacy and course website

In this class, our use of technology will sometimes make students' names and U of M Internet IDs visible within the course website, but only to other students in the same class. Since we are using a secure, password-protected course website, this will not increase the risk of identity theft or spamming for anyone in the class. If you have concerns about the visibility of your Internet ID, please contact your lecturer for further information.

Incompletes

We will consider giving you an incomplete only if you have successfully completed all but a small portion of the work of the course and some severe, unexpected event prevents you from completing the course. This means that you must have taken at least 2 midterms and must be doing at least C- work. We cannot give you an incomplete simply because you are behind in your work. In that case, you should try to drop the course.

Drop dates

You may drop the course without permission up until Monday, March 18. If you drop before the end of the second week, no mention of the course will appear on your transcripts. Otherwise, you receive a W for the course. However, it will cost you more money, the later you drop the course.

S/N grades:

If you are registered S/N, we will submit a grade of S if your letter grade is C- or above; we will submit a grade of N if your letter grade is D+ or below. IT students should not be taking this class S/N.

Homework assignments

The lecture schedule and homework assignments are listed on a separate page.
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Last Modified Tuesday January 15, 2008
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