Math 4023: applied algebra
Information about this course
- Text book: Modern algebra and discrete structures, by Robert Lax.
- Class times and place: MWF 8:40 - 9:30am, Locket 240
- Office hours: MTWF: Locket 210.
11:30am - 12, or by appointment.
- Homework:
There will be one homework most weeks.
Total 12 or 13 homeworks. Some homeworks will be given using webwork.
Homework grades will be stored in semester book.
I will also suggest ungraded homework problems to be attempted after each class,
on the topics covered in the class.
- Please practice using the Webwork
homework as soon as possible. Your user name is your paws ID. passwork initially
social security number. Please change this on your first login.
- Tests: (in class time)
- test 1: Wednesday February 14
- test 2: Wednesday March 28
- Final Exam: Monday May 7, 3 - 5pm
- Computation of final grade:
- 20% homework, computed from best 10 homeworks
- 20% test 1
- 20% test 2
- 40% final exam
- Grading scale: 90-100%=A, 80-90%=B, 70-80%=C, 60-70%=D.
- Make up policy: No tests or exams can be dropped, but
make up exams are possible in the case
of illness or unavoidable absences, e.g., for job interview, or clash with
exams for other courses, provided you
have documentation to prove your reason for absence. This should be
given in advance of the day of the exam where possible.
- Course web page: http://www.math.lsu.edu/~verrill/teaching/math4023/index.html
- Course outline:
- Introduction to proof, induction, relations (chapter 1 and 2)
- Finite state machines (chapters 1 and 2)
- Symmetries and group theory (chapter 3)
- Elementary number theory (chapter 1 and 4)
- More advanced number theory and cryptography (chapter 4)
- Coding theory (chapter 5)
- Refer to last year's course page at
http://www.math.lsu.edu/~verrill/teaching/math4023/spring2006/index.html.
This course will probably have a similar schedule of topics, but different homework
and grading scheme.
- There are some typos in the text book - see
http://www.math.lsu.edu/~lax/errata.pdf for corrections.
-
Contents of tests and exams:
Questions on tests and exams will be similar to examples given in class, and
to homework questions, both graded and ungraded.
The final exam covers all topics of course.
Handout outs and other class material
- For week 4, Wednesday February 7:
-
Helena Verrill
Last modified: Wed Feb 7 12:09:12 CST 2007