Math 2243: News and Announcements, Spring 2009

o 05/18/09: I have graded the final and assigned grades, which must be available on OneStop. Here is some statistics for the Final: mean = 72.4, median = 71, maximum = 114, out of 120 points. Thank you very much for the enjoyable semester! Good luck with your future study, especially in math!

o 05/12/09: I will be in my office (Vincent Hall 324) tomorrow, Wednesday, May 13, from 4 to 5 pm, should you have questions.

o 05/07/09: Here is some statistics for Midterm III: mean = 18.2, median = 19.5, maximum = 38, out of 40 points.

o 05/05/09: I have not been able to grade your last midterm and have to put off its discussion till Thursday. I apologize.

o 05/05/09: The Final Exam is coming: Thursday, May 14, 6-9 p.m., VinH 20 (regular classroom). Coverage: Sections 1.1-1.5, 2.1, 2.3-2.5, 3.1-3.2, 3.4-3.7, 4.1-4.3, 5.1-5.5 (through p. 343), 5.6, 6.1-2, 7.1-4 (through top of p. 436), and 10.1-3. How to get ready: the more problems you solve, the better you will be prepared. Solve problems from the homeworks again (if you feel you do not remember how to do them) and similar problems from the text (for example, if problem 11 was on the homework, problems 10 or 12 will likely be similar). Attend our problem review sessions during the last week of classes and test yourself on Sample Finals. About half of the problems on the Final will be multiple-choice. You will not be given partial credit for those problems, but you will be given full credit just for correct answers. However, I strongly advise you to work those problems out as if they were not multiple-choice. This is the only reliable way to make sure you have chosen a correct answer.

o 05/04/09: I have added a link to four sample final exams and tutoring services information on main class web page. Below are access instructions to get the exams:

  1. Go to http://math.lib.umn.edu/examinfo.html
  2. Click on E-Reserves index hyperlink.
  3. Choose “Department” “starts with” “Math” from pull-down menus.
  4. Click on hyperlink for Math 2243 and correct instructor.
  5. Enter course number using all lower case letters (“math2243”) as the password.
  6. Click on hyperlink for one of several possible sample exams.
Note that the sample exams are actual exams from past semesters. The course syllabus has somewhat changed over the years, and some problems, which should be easy to recognize, are out of the scope of our class. Additionally, the same page also has links for tutoring and review session information for Calculus courses.

o 04/22/09: Unfortunately, I have to attend a retirement dinner in my department on Thursday, April 30, our third midterm day. I suppose, I have to start thinking about retirement, given how harmful teaching environment is to the human soul. I have asked my graduate student Alex Hanhart to proctor the exam for me in class. The second hour will be free. He will also collect homework as usual at the beginning of the class.

o 04/16/09: The third midterm is coming: Thursday, April 30, during the first class period. Coverage: Sections 5.5 (through p. 343) and 5.6, 6.1-2, 7.1-4 (through top of p. 436), and 10.1-3. How to get ready: the more problems you solve, the better you will be prepared. Solve problems from the homeworks again (if you feel you do not remember how to do them) and similar problems from the text (for example, if problem 11 was on the homework, problems 10 or 12 will likely be similar). Test yourself on Sample Exam III, now with answers.

o 04/02/09: It has turned out I will not be able to be in class on Thursday, April 2. I have asked Professor Bobkov to substitute for me in class then. He will be collecting homework as usual at the beginning of the class. The homework is assigned online, as always.

o 03/31/09: Here is some statistics for Midterm II: mean = 29.7, median = 29, maximum = 40, out of 40 points.

o 03/25/09: Quite a few students are confused about which formulas to memorize from Section 5.4. You do not need to memorize all those formulas related to p2 - omega2 or c2 > 4 km, or specifically e-rt (c1 + c2 t), which you must know from the general theory of Section 5.3, for example. All you need to know is how to write down a differential equation (and initial conditions, if needed) for a spring-mass system, solve it, and be able to interpret mathematical answers, that is to say, know the terminology, such as free harmonic motion, oscillatory motion, underdamped motion, undamped motion, critical damping, amplitude, period, etc. You can solve all relevant problems from sctratch, and that is the best way to approach this topic. If you click on the solution of homework problem 5.4.15, you will see what I mean.

o 03/12/09: The second midterm is coming: Thursday, March 26, during the first class period. Coverage: Sections 3.1-3.2, 3.4-3.7, 4.1-4.3, and 5.1-5.4. How to get ready: the more problems you solve, the better you will be prepared. Solve problems from the homeworks again (if you feel you do not remember how to do them) and similar problems from the text (for example, if problem 11 was on the homework, problems 10 or 12 will likely be similar). Test yourself on the Sample Exam II.

o 03/05/09: There is an error in the answer in the text for homework Problem 4.3.15. Here is a correction: v = (-4,-2,0,1). Thanks to Andrew.

o 02/26/09: (Good) news from University Vice President's office: "Due to severe winter weather, all Twin Cities campus evening classes starting at 4:40 and after, are canceled for Thursday, February 26, 2009." Thus, our tonight class is canceled. However, I am still in my office at the U (VinH 324), and will heroically hold my office hours till 6 p.m. The homework which was due tonight will be due next class meeting, Tuesday, March 3. Have a great weekend! I will post further homeworks and class outlines shortly.

o 02/26/09: Good news! First of all, there are graduate students, i.e., TAs, working now at the Tutoring Center in Lind Hall 150, see http://www.math.umn.edu/undergrad/tutoring_schedule/. These people would definitely be able to help you with any needs. Second of all, at the same link, you can find a schedule of tutors who provide specific help for Math 2243 and 2263. Third of all, there are Evening Math Tutorials specifically for evening math classes in Vincent Hall 311: M,T,W,Th 4:45-5:45 p.m.

o 02/24/09: If on Homework 9 (Section 3.4) you got points taken away for not showing your work when computing products of matrices or for simply not computing BA, when it was not defined, you may hand in your graded homework for regrading. I do not think it was reasonable to expect that you show every detail of simple arithmetics, when you needed to multiply matrices 10 times in one homework.

o 02/13/09: Here is some statistics for Midterm I: mean = 27.7, median = 31, maximum = 38, out of 40 points.

o 02/10/09: I will be in Japan Monday through Friday next week, February 16-20. For that reason I will not be able to hold my office hours on that week. So, if you have questions, ask me by e-mail. I will be checking my e-mail every once in a while. I have arranged my TA Alex Hanhart to sub for me on Tuesday and Professor Bobkov on Thursday. You can ask them questions before and after the class. They will be collecting homework, as usual.

o 01/29/09: As I have already mentioned here, I will be out of town Monday through Wednesday next week. For that reason I will not be able to hold my office hours on Tuesday. So, if you have questions, ask me by e-mail. I might not be able to answer your questions right before the class on Tuesday, but if you write to me on in advance, I will be able to respond by Tuesday night.

o 01/27/09: The first midterm is coming: Tuesday, February 10, during the first class period. Coverage: Sections 1.1-1.5, 2.1, 2.3-2.5. How to get ready: the more problems you solve, the better you will be prepared. Solve problems from the homeworks again (if you feel you do not remember how to do them) and similar problems from the text (for example, if problem 11 was on the homework, problems 10 or 12 will likely be similar). Test yourself on the Sample Exam I.

o 01/27/09: I recommend the following way to study after each class. First, study your class notes. Next, study the corresponding section of the text. See the Class Outlines to find out which section. Then do the homework.

o 01/27/09: Free tutoring services are now available, see information at www.math.umn.edu/undergrad/tutoring_schedule. There are tutors specifically for Math 2243 and 2263, tutors in selected dormitories, tutors by appointment, tutors in Walter Library, and private tutors for hire.

o 01/27/09: I plan to be out of town Monday through Wednesday next week, as well as the whole week of February 16-20. I have asked Professor Bobkov to substitute for me in class on February 3, 17, and 19. He will be collecting homework as usual at the beginning of each class. The homework will be assigned online, as usual.

o 01/22/09: If you need to register, please, send a message to Ms. Lawson at lawson@math.umn.edu and ask for a permission number. Then go to OneStop and register.

o 01/22/09: Based on popular demand, I have made the following changes to the syllabus: expanded my office by 30 minutes before each class; corrected the statement that homework counts as 100 points total, rather than each.

o 01/20/09: Homework will be collected after each class, starting January 22, and a small selection of problems will be graded. ("Small," because the grader will allocate only 6 hours per week for our class.)

o 01/20/09: Free tutorial services are available. This is a perfect way to get help with your homework, exam preparation, and brush up on those derivatives and integrals! See the Math Tutoring page for more info.


Last modified: Tue Jan 20 17:44:25 CDT 2009