Finite math (3 credit hours)
Call number: 25800
Description: Topics include matrices, symbolic logic, set theory, probability theory and applications to the analysis of business and social science related problems.
Instructor: Gary Cohen
Where and when this course meets: Room C276 on the West Charleston campus, 12:30 - 1:50 p.m. Tues/Thurs.
Office location and hours: My office is located on the West Charleston Campus in Building H, first floor, room H 101-S. Tel: 651-5812
Office hours this semester are at the following times:
Mon/Wed: 9:15-10:45 p.m. in room C276 and 10:20 - 10:50 a.m. in my office
Tues/Thurs: 7:15-8:45 p.m. in room C276 and 10:20 - 10:50 a.m. in my office
Please note that in general, I will not be able to schedule other office hours. Therefore please recognize that you will have to adjust your schedule on the days you wish to come see me during my office hours. If you plan on coming to evening office hours, they will be in classroom C276. For evening office hours, please inform me that you will be coming that same day by phone or in person.
Email: gary.cohen@csn.edu
Web site: http://www.nevada.edu/~coheng
You are required to go to my web site, print out a hard copy of the entire syllabus and bring it to me, so I can see you have it, and so I can check off in my grade book that you have received the syllabus. You will be issued a grade of F for the course, if you have failed to do this before the first exam is given!!! You cannot be in this course if you have not read all the policies, procedures and expectations! There will be a 15% grade penalty on the first exam if you have not done it by the 4th class period of the semester!
Textbook: Finite Mathematics and its Applications, 9th ed. by Goldstein, Schneider and Siegel is the current edition. Older editions can also be used.
Prerequisites: Math 124 or 126 or math 128 all with a grade of C or better; or satisfactory ACT/SAT/Placement test score.
Attendance and related issues: Students are expected to attend class regularly and be punctual. Students who find themselves in the position of having to miss numerous classes should withdraw and take the course when regular on-time attendance is possible. This course was not designed with the occasional attendee in mind. Each lecture covers a heavy dose of material - the lectures do not always follow the book (some of the lectures may be on topics not even covered in the textbook), so attending the lecture is absolutely critical in order to keep up and not find yourself lost in class!
The course is lecture-driven with the textbook being used as a reference and supplement and source of homework problems. Anyone arriving late for a test/quiz/exam will automatically lose 10 percentage points on that test/quiz/exam - No exceptions! If you arrive late for a test or quiz, you may be asked to wait in the hallway for a minute or two until I am able to come out in the hall and tell you exactly what materials you need to take out, give you scratch paper, give you a chance to ask any questions you have about the testing procedure, etc so as not to disturb the other students.
If I am in the process of giving verbal instructions to the class or handing out tests, you will have to wait until I finish that process. You will not be allowed to come in during the middle of this. This procedure is to minimize disturbance to the rest of the class and is not a punishment.
Because this policy will be strictly enforced, please do yourself a favor and arrive a few minutes early to class, so that you do not take a chance on being counted late. Do not argue with me about whether or not you are late. Anytime after the test has been announced (even if that is just one second) as having begun you are late!!! Please be aware that sometimes quizzes will be given at the beginning of class and other times they may be given in the middle or at the end of class, so if you leave early, you may have missed a quiz without realizing it. I often have some students who are baffled by why they have a lower quiz average than they thought they had for this very reason!
Grading: There will be 4 in-class exams in the course and some quizzes. The last of these exams is the final exam and is cumulative over all the material in the course, although the last part of the course will most likely be stressed more heavily than earlier parts that were already tested. Three of the four exams will be roughly equally spaced and the third exam will be very close to the final exam. If we are running short on time, I might decide to give the third exam and the final exam on the same day. In that case, each exam would be a short exam consisting of maybe 7 or 8 problems, so the total time needed for both would still be just the usual class period.
Each exam will be announced at least two class periods in advance. Please do not ask me when the exams will be, until I have announced them. I inform the class of exam dates as soon as I have decided upon them myself. When you sign up for a course, you should plan on being available to show up each and every class period, short of an unforeseen emergency.
Your final course grade is determined from the following weighting of grades:
Test #1 20%
Test #2 20%
Test #3 20%
Pop-quiz Average 20%
Final Exam 20%
If your course grade is better by not counting the quiz average (that is, by counting each test for 25% instead of 20% and not counting the quizzes at all), then that will be your grade. So the quizzes can only help you and not hurt you!!
Note: If I decide to give any take-home tests (not too likely), you will not have the option to skip any of those tests under any circumstances.
The number of quizzes in the course will not be decided in advance, but will probably be somewhere between 5 and 12. Please do not ask me whether or not we have a quiz on a given day - I will not divulge that information, since the quizzes are intentionally pop-quizzes (surprises!). Your quizzes serve both as an important indicator of your weekly progress in the course as well as serving to give frequent feedback on the minimal expectations for the course. If you are struggling with quiz questions, then you will have difficulty with exam questions, since some exam questions will be harder than the quiz questions.
There are no make-up exams in this course. If you miss one of the first three in-class exams, then your final exam automatically will be counted for 40% (instead of 20%) of your total course grade (if you are not using the quiz average then 50% instead of 25%). If you miss more than one of these first three exams, the second and third miss will each be counted as a zero (each worth 20% of the course grade) and the final exam will count for 40% (50% if quiz average is not used) of the total course grade. As stated above, you are not allowed to skip any take home exams I may give under any circumstances.
If you miss a class, it is your responsibility to get a copy of any assignments/handouts that were distributed during the missed class. I may or may not have a copy of what you need with me the next class period (I probably will not). Therefore you may need to rely on photocopying the handouts from another student in order to know what exactly you missed. There are no extensions in this class for any course work. Note: Students must pass the final exam in order to pass the course.
Students who do not pass the final exam will be given an automatic F in the course. You can not pretend to be prepared for the next course, if you can not demonstrate an overall understanding of this one!
The basic grading scale for all work in the course will be:
90-100% A
80-89% B
70-79% C
60-69% D
Below 60%F
+/- scores (such as B+ or C-) will be determined within the above broader grade categories when I assign final grades.When calculating grades, rounding up is done only for scores at least halfway between two whole numbers (so 84.5 would be rounded up to 85 but 84.4 would be rounded to 84).
Calculators: You may use scientific or graphing calculators on quizzes and tests, including the final exam, except in those cases in which it is specifically announced prior to handing out the test/quiz that you may not. You are responsible for learning how to use your own calculator - I will not answer questions regarding how to use your specific calculator during quizzes/tests/final exam. This course is not about teaching a specific calculator and so you are responsible for learning to use whichever one you choose to purchase. There are numerous web sites devoted to teaching how to use various calculators. I DO NOT LEND OUT MY CALCULATOR TO STUDENTS WHO FORGET TO BRING THEIR OWN FOR TESTS/FINAL EXAM. I do not allow students to share a calculator on tests/final exams, so if you want to use one, then be sure to bring your own. You may also want to bring an extra set of good batteries just in case the ones in your calculator fail during the test.
Laptop computers are not allowed on tests, quizzes and exams.
The overall calculator philosophy that shall be adopted for this course can perhaps be summarized by the following points.
Showing your work: Always show all work. Sometimes I may give more partial credit than other times (sometimes I may be generous and other times I may not give much partial credit - depending on the nature of the topic and the kinds of quiz/exam questions), but unless it is explicitly stated to the contrary, you are required to show all work in a well-presented organized manner in order to be eligible to receive credit. When grading I usually go by the principle: "little work receives little or no credit, regardless of whether the answer is right or not." Being able to clearly show/explain how you arrived at your answer is something I consider to be an essential part of what a college educated person is able to do.
There may be a few opportunities to do an extra credit assignment to earn a few extra points in the course. Most of these kinds of assignments may involve things that are peripheral/tangential to the thrust of the course and will not be useful for making up for a lack of understanding of required material. A few of these points may involve viewing a math-related video shown in class and do a related assignment on it. Credit will not be given for writing that is sub-standard by reasonable college standards (so I expect decent grammar, punctuation, correct sentence construction, logical flow of thoughts, etc).
These videos will generally not be announced in advance. There may also be an extra credit problem or two on some of the tests that you can choose to attempt if you have time for it after doing the rest of the test. The total extra credit points for the course will be very few in number. The occasional extra credit problem on tests will be hard compared to the required problems, but I may occasionally hint in lecture about possible candidates for such problems. Since extra credit is not intended to compensate for a poor understanding of basic course material, you must have at least a C average at the end of the course in order for your extra credit to count. If you have below a 70% test/quiz average, then I will not factor the extra credit into your grade (unless the extra credit was a problem on an actual in-class test itself). Additionally, much of the extra credit may simply be a "check" in my grade book and I will decide the point value at the end only when I do final grades. Extra credit is not designed to allow students with poor grades to get good grades - it's "icing on the cake" for people who are already keeping up with at least a basic understanding.
Withdrawals/incompletes: Note: If you quit attending and do not officially withdraw by the deadline, you will receive an F. I will not issue grades of W or I on account of poor course performance, so if you need to withdraw, be sure to do it in the proper way - this is a student responsibility, not a teacher responsibility. Incompletes are issued only under very unusual circumstances and in accordance with official college policy. If it is determined that a student needs to receive an incomplete (incompletes are extremely rare and usually only for verifiable medical emergencies), the student will be required to make up the remaining course work on a schedule agreed upon between student and instructor - I will only give incompletes that can be made up in not more than a couple weeks from the end of the course, despite the fact that the school policy states that instructors may (but are not required to) give more time than this. I will not let a student drag things out for many weeks.
The final exam will be cumulative in nature and will be based primarily on the totality of all work given in the course (so you would be very wise to save all returned quizzes/tests in a notebook and make sure you can do all problems that you missed). THE QUIZZES/TESTS/ HOMEWORK/NOTES ARE YOUR STUDY GUIDE FOR THE FINAL EXAM - nothing will be a decent substitute for studying your past quizzes/tests/homework and class notes!!! Additionally, you may be asked some questions on the final exam that are similar to homework problems that have been assigned but not yet tested.
Academic honesty: Cheating, plagiarism and other acts of academic dishonesty are considered to be very serious offenses at CSN. Any student involved in such activity may be reported to the administration for disciplinary action. Penalties may range from receiving zeros on quizzes/tests to failing the course to being expelled from the college. You are expected to have read and understood the current issue of the student handbook regarding student responsibilities and rights and the intellectual property policy for information about what constitutes acceptable behavior on campus. Scholastic dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent.
Classroom conduct: Any behavior deemed disruptive or counter productive to the educational goals of the class will be grounds for removal of a student from the class. Repetition of such an offense may result in expulsion from the course.
Please be aware that talking to your classmates while I am lecturing is disruptive to other students in the class and to me. Often students do not realize that even chatting in the back of the room can be heard in the first row near the chalkboard. Therefore I urge each student to respect others in the class by saving conversations for appropriate times (before class, after class, during breaks and in class group activities). If I get the impression that there is talking over me while I am lecturing, I may take this as a sign that the class is bored and decide that the time for a pop quiz is ripe. If I ask you to stop talking to a classmate during lecture, then the next time you have to be asked to stop talking, I may ask you to move to another seat of my choice, not yours. If there is any disrespect toward me and uncooperativeness in following the policies, then I may take action to remove the disruptive student from the class per the official school policy at CSN for removing a disruptive student.
All cell phone usage is banned in the classroom. This includes talking on the phone, listening to voice mail, reading and sending text messages and using your cell phone as a calculator or for any other purpose during all tests and quizzes. Any audio or video recording is also banned in this course.
ADA notice: Any student who qualifies for "reasonable accommodations" in accordance with the American with Disabilities Act must notify the instructor of such by the end of the first week of class. Accommodations will be made only for those students with official documentation on file. If you are a student requesting such accommodations, do not wait for the Access office to contact me on your behalf - please speak to me directly in the first week of class during office hours or leave me a phone number on my voice mail, along with a good time to call back and I will contact you. Another option would be to send me an email. My email address is: gary.cohen@csn.edu.
Students with medical, psychological, learning or other disabilities desiring accommodations or auxiliary aids will need to contact the campus Disability Resource Center:
The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.
Finding out your final course grade. I do not post grades for reasons of protecting individual privacy of all students - therefore you will need to wait until your grade is available from the school via the online system. NO EXCEPTIONS TO THIS POLICY WILL BE MADE FOR ANY REASON. I DO NOT MAIL INDIVIDUAL GRADES ON POSTCARDS and I do not send them in email or in any other way. It is the student's responsibility to keep track of all quizzes in order to monitor course progress. I do not carry my grade book with me so I will not be able to tell you your grade off the top of my head.
Requirements for all take-home work. Although nearly all grades are in-class tests/quizzes, there may be a few take-home assignments.
Unless otherwise explicitly specified, all take-home assignments to be handed in for a grade must be done so as to satisfy the following specifications. Failure to do so will result in grade penalties: Late work will not be accepted. When establishing a due date for any given take-home assignment, I always allow for more time than I think should be taken for students to complete the assignment - I usually allow for several days past the "reasonable length of time" that I have in my own mind. You are highly encouraged to begin tackling the assignment right away and not procrastinate and are free to hand it in to me any time before or on the announced due date. Therefore, I do not view requests for extensions as reasonable, even under emergency circumstances. If I were going to allow extensions, then I would also have made the initial due date earlier - by going out of my way to allow for more than ample time in the first place, I have in effect already given an automatic "extension" beyond a more "normal" length of time. Therefore, all deadlines are fixed and final.
Doing your own work/cheating. I can not monitor whatever cheating may go on outside of the classroom and I will not pretend to be able to do so. However, my experience tells me that people who cheat by having other people do their work for them and do not learn the material very well as a result are the people who are not able to perform on the in-class exams. Since most of your total course grade depends on in-class performance, you have much more to lose than gain by having other people do your take-home work (since you will not have any help when taking an in-class exam). Taking the proper amount of time to really learn the material, make your own mistakes on the take-home work, and correct those mistakes in your preparation for the exams, is the only way I know to be able to prepare yourself for the in-class exams. In addition to the take-home quizzes that are part of your grade, I may also sometimes give out practice quizzes or practice problems to do at home that will not be part of your grade but that are intended to help give you additional practice to prepare you better for the exams. Really taking your time on these practice opportunities and doing your own work and correcting your own mistakes is the best way to prepare for the exams.
I expect the appearance of the work to look "nearly professional." By this I do not mean that it has to be typed - it can be hand written, but very very neatly with no extraneous marks on the page, no significant use of white-out on any given page, no cross-outs, etc. I expect the work to look like you took some time and a lot of care to do it. Of course math scribbles are never this neat initially - therefore you will need to do your work on scratch paper and then copy it down NEATLY on the sheets to be handed in, showing all RELEVANT work in a logical order and using correct math terminology and correct mathematical notations.
All work should be done on standard 8.5 by 11 inch loose-leaf notebook paper or other paper of the same size. Handing in paper torn from a spiral notebook or any other paper with perforated edges is not acceptable and will receive a point-penalty of up to 50% of the total number of possible points. Handing in ripped/torn paper or otherwise mutilated paper will also receive the same kind of point penalty. My own philosophy on matters of neatness/care is that college is a time for you to demonstrate the BEST WORK of which you are capable. Having part of your grade reflect upon the level of care/pride/neatness is perfectly reasonable, since such issues are ones which matter a great deal in many "real world" professional job situations. Just think of some of your own experiences (I bet everyone has had them) in which you were not able to understand another person's written description of something only because they did not take enough time and care with expressing the information in a clear way.
Note cards/cheat sheets: The tests and quizzes I am giving are mostly closed book exams. Generally, I will not allow "cheat sheets" at this level. If there are any exceptions to this, I will verbally let you know, in class prior to the test/quiz to which it applies.
Do I always have to solve a problem like it was done in class or in the textbook?
No - in areas of math and science, there is lots of room for uniqueness and creativity and I certainly make no claims to always have the easiest and absolute best way of doing a problem. To make such a claim would be arrogant. However, there are some restrictions of which you need to be aware, in order to preserve the continuity of the course. Here are the ones that come to mind: In order to receive credit for a solution, you must show all work and explain in a logical manner, from beginning to end, how the solution follows from material covered up to that point in the course. If your solution relies on significant theorems not covered in this course (but which another teacher in another course may have told you about), you may not receive credit for the work. The reason for this is simple: What I stress, for the most part, is logical development of material. That means that giving a solution that is reliant on a theorem that was not covered yet, gives you (and maybe a few others who happen to know the same theorem from a class taken elsewhere) an unfair advantage over someone who was never told about such a theorem. To be sure everyone has the same "tools" from which to work, it is a reasonable restriction to require you to use what has been done in this class and not pull in odds and ends from other places.
A similar principle applies to definitions. It is often the case that different textbooks adopt different definitions for the same thing. In such cases, if I am stressing a given definition in class and make a point of saying that is our definition, then that is the one you are expected to use if I ask for the definition. Although I only occasionally ask for definitions on tests/quizzes, I will only accept very precise definitions on those few occasions when I do ask for them. If we have stressed a given definition in class then I would expect to see that exact same definition as an answer on a test/quiz, should I ask for it and not just something you think is "close enough."
The reason has nothing to do with any belief on my part that my definition is the best one - but rather it has everything to do with the need for the entire class to be united and consistent in the details of how we think about things, so that proofs of theorems (that are ultimately dependent on certain definitions) make sense to everyone in the class for the same reasons (or perhaps everyone is lost - but not on account of misunderstanding the definitions).
After all, just think of how frustrating personal conversations can be if the two people involved are not even using the same working definitions (but are not aware of that fact) and whose basic disagreement comes down in the end analysis to a difference in definitions!
You are expected to attend class regularly and will be held responsible for all topics and sections covered in class. This is NOT a course designed with the "occasional attendee" in mind. Coming to class is the way to find out what the assignments are, what material was covered, what was stressed, what was omitted, what was presented differently than in the textbook and to ensure that you are doing what is expected of you. I will sometimes present material from a different point of view than the book and I do not feel obligated to follow the book's presentation of material if I wish to stress different things. This also means I will not always follow the section numbers in the book in a strict linear order. So for example I may combine several sections into one lecture, skipping some kinds of examples and adding a few of my own that are not in the book at all...or I may take a totally different approach than what is presented in the book...You really do not want to miss lecture!.
I am looking forward to helping you do your best in my course and wish you a great semester!!
"If I have seen further than others, it is because I have stood on the shoulders of giants." - Newton
Why study this stuff if I will never use it??
Some of you will use math heavily in your future courses and/or careers. Others may not, however ....Mathematics is a critical thinking subject. Although you may find that you do not use a particular kind of math in your daily life, learning to think in the critical way that math demands will help you develop your overall ability to analyze difficult problems that require a logical type of thinking. This type of ability is necessary in writing computer programs for example. As we continue progress into the computer age, more and more people will be expected to learn some amount of computer programming in professions that have not required this ability of the average employee in the past. Those people who have spent time honing the kind of thinking involved in the study of mathematics will have a definite advantage over those individuals who have not. Interestingly enough, the most highly valued and best paid employees in most businesses today are those who have done well in their college math courses.
One of the common misconceptions about math that many people have (no doubt, due to years of having been drilled in memorized methodology in grade school math) is that mathematical thinking is always rigid, cold and leaves no room for creativity. This is, however, far different than the way in which mathematicians regard the subject. In fact, its light years away from the way that mathematicians and people in scientific professions use math.One of my goals is to point out ways in which math lends itself naturally to the human creative process. This is probably one of the hardest aspects of the subject to communicate to another person. In a sense, it probably has to be "self-discovered"....much like students of Zen are guided by the Zen master on the one hand, but are only given the "techniques" to discover it on their own. No master can achieve a deep meditative state for someone else....it must come from within the individual student .....a similar situation holds in advanced mathematics. Although it can be hard to keep such things in perspective (when stumped by a difficult problem, for instance), some of the math-related videos I will offer for extra credit will also serve to make this apparent in the context of interviews with people who have used math at the "cutting edge".One never knows who will be the next to find new creative uses of mathematics.
Regrading policy. If you feel a grading error has been made on one or more of your test questions, I will be happy to re-grade the entire test for you, but I will not consider individual problems for re-grading. The philosophy is simple: My goal is to ensure you end up receiving the score you earned. If an error in grading has deprived you of a few points, but an error in grading another problem has given you too many points, then both errors ought to be corrected - not only the ones that give you more points. When I hand back tests, I will allow you a short time to look over your test carefully in class and decide whether or not you would like the entire test re-graded and hand it back to me for re-grading immediately at that time before it leaves the room. Once I have given the class this chance to make a decision about re-grading and announce the last chance to hand the test back in for re-grading, I will not consider any further requests for re-grading that test at any time. If you decide you would like your test re-graded, then please follow proper procedure and hand back the test with a note to me on it, which details exactly where you think an error has been made. Each test is graded individually and not by comparison with other students.You may feel that you had more points taken off for making the same mistake as another student, but in reality, your paper may have suffered higher point loss for other reasons (such as degree of incorrectness in use of mathematical notations, clarity of explanation of what exactly your reasoning was, intelligibility, etc.).
Please be aware that often before I hand tests back, I make photocopies of each student's test or of all tests with scores in a certain pre-decided range. If when re-grading and comparing the test you handed back to me with the photocopy of the original version you handed in, I detect any changes (erasures, crossings-out, re-writing things that were not originally there, etc.), I will promptly assign you an F course grade for cheating. I may also decide to pursue more severe action with the college administration, as I take cheating to be a very serious offense and will not deal with it lightly.
Office hour policy:Office hours serve several purposes. Primarily, office hours are a time when a student having difficulty with the course can establish and maintain occasional contact with the professor of the course. While I am happy to talk to my students during office hours, I would like to stress that it is not the purpose of office hours to use that time for private tutoring. If you need that much help in the course, you will need to find a private tutor.
Please come prepared and organized regarding the purpose of your visit during office hours. I do begin to wonder about how serious the student is who has to first start digging around and flipping through pages of disorganized material desperately trying to figure out where he/she put this or that question.... you are supposed to do all that before you come and be prepared with your materials when you show up for office hours. My time is valuable as is yours!
Cheating policy: It's simple. If I catch you cheating or have b evidence of cheating on either the in-class or take-home tests, then I will go out of my way to pursue the most severe action possible with the administration (which can include, but is not limited to, expulsion from the course or expulsion from CSN or assignment of a grade of "F" for the course, notations on transcripts that cheating had been judged to have taken place). Be forewarned that although I can not monitor you when you are doing a take-home exam, if I detect certain consistent and highly unlikely "coincidences" between certain student's test papers, you will be called into my office for a required meeting as a first step in getting to the bottom of these "unlikely coincidences." Be advised that after having graded thousands upon thousands of student papers over the years, I am very much in touch with similarities that are the sort that can occur by chance alone as well as other types of similarities that do not occur by chance, but that are a direct result of student mutual cooperation in doing a test. Unless otherwise specified, you are always expected to do all your own work on your graded assignments and are not allowed to work together with other students or discuss any aspect of the test before handing it to me. Asking other people (tutors, teachers, Internet help chat rooms, bulletin boards, etc.) is also cheating when it comes to tests. Plagiarism (either directly copying or nearly directly copying - i.e., making trivial changes and calling the work your own) is also cheating in my class.
Disclaimer: Information contained in this syllabus, other than grading, late assignments, makeup work and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.
Homework: The homework in this class is highly suggested only and is not to be handed in for grading. These problems are for your benefit only and provide practice on the basic kinds of problems that will be tested on the exams and quizzes. The majority of problems you should do are the odd-numbered ones and hence answers for these can be found in the back of your textbook. Solutions worked in a considerable amount of detail may be found in the student solution manual. It is important to understand that the homework is your responsibility. Failing to do enough of it to learn the material at a decent level of mastery will result in not being able to perform at passing level on tests. Although I may do a few homework problems in class here and there, there is not time in class to do very many compared to the number assigned. If you have questions on particular problems which cannot be addressed in class, you may see me in office hours to ask additional questions. You may also get help from the mathematics tutorial lab on the second floor of the H bldg.
Directions: The primary source of homework in this class is found under the link on my web page entitled "supplemental materials" (this is the "course packet") next to the syllabus link. Additionally, you may choose to do problems from the text that are similar to ones from lecture and from the course packet. You will probably want to make use of the student solutions book that came with your text book if you purchased it new. As the semester proceeds, I will probably end up assigning some additional sections from the text. Stay tuned for more info to be given out at a later date in lecture.
Since I do not require a graphing calculator, you can skip over any exercises that require use of the calculator, if you wish, although you may choose to do a few of those, too to gain a better understanding, if you have a graphing calculator and know how to use the relevant features.