Math 75A Old News
- 8/20
- Be sure to check here periodically for important information and updates.
- The secret quote for the course is, "Mathematics is not a spectator sport."
- The web materials for this course are still under construction. If you spot any errors or links not working, please let me know.
- 8/31
- The textbook, A Companion to Calculus, has been ordered for the Bookstore. I will try to let you know when they come in. If you spot them in the meantime, please let me know! Until then, I have scanned selected pages of the text so that you may complete your homework. The following files are in .pdf format and are divided roughly by section:
- 9/1
- A reminder that our first quiz will be on Friday, September 7. It will cover Sections 2-A through 2-D of Ebersole and section 1.1 of Stewart (i.e., the homework due that week). You should know how to
- Use function notation to evaluate a given function at a given number or expression, e.g.: if f(x) = 2x + 3, what is f(-3)? f(t)? f(x+h)?
- Express a given function in four different ways, including
- description ("Take 2 times a number, then add 3.")
- formula (f(x) = 2x + 3)
- table (list of points)
- graph
- Find the domain and range of a given function, either algebraically or graphically, and express your answer in interval notation
- Due to unforeseen schedule conflicts I have had to change the time and location of our upcoming weekly problem sessions. You can view my updated schedule here. In particular, I will not be coming to campus on Tuesdays or Thursdays (though I will still be available via email).
I will say more about problem session in class next week, but basically it is like an office hour except we meet in a classroom, and it is separated by course. So only Math 75A students will come to the Math 75A problem session. This way you can get more of your questions answered in the company of your peers (who may just ask the question you didn't know you had!), without having to wait for me to answer questions from students in a different course.
I hope to see you at our first problem session on Wednesday, September 5 at 6:00pm in S2 210.
- 9/11
- The Homework List has been updated with current deadlines.
- The quiz this Friday will cover Sections 2-E through 3-A of Ebersole, section 1.2 of Stewart, and Worksheet W1 (i.e., the homework due this week). You should know how to
- Understand and graph piecewise functions, including absolute value functions
- Recognize and be able to graph all the special functions discussed in class
- Recognize and be able to graph transformations of graphs (vertical and/or horizontal shifts, reflections, and dilations/compressions)
- Combine two functions to get a new function by adding, subtracting, multiplying, dividing or composing ("f of g of x")
- 9/15
- The Bookstore now has copies of Ebersole's textbook, A Companion to Calculus, available. If you have not already done so, please purchase your copy as soon as possible.
- The quiz this Friday will cover Section 3-B of Ebersole and sections 1.3 and 1.4 of Stewart (i.e., the homework due this week). You should know how to
- Recognize and use the notation for the limit of a function
- Estimate the limit of a function, including one-sided limits, whether the function is given as a formula, T-table, or graph
- Factor and cancel to simplify a quotient (the top and bottom may be polynomials, fractions, radicals, or a combination)
- Calculate the limit of a function exactly using the technique of factoring and canceling
- 9/16
- The Homework List contained some typos which resulted in incorrect deadlines being shown. They have now been fixed. Sorry for any confusion!
- 9/23
- A collection of practice problems for this week's midterm is now available above (under the red Exams and Practice Exams heading). Solutions will be available soon. You are urged to complete them under test conditions as much as possible (no notes, no calculator, no interruptions) in order to give yourself a good "dress rehearsal."
- There is no paper homework due this week. The Homework List contained some typos which resulted in incorrect deadlines being shown. They have now been fixed. Sorry for any confusion!
- A reminder that our problem session this week will be longer to give us extra time to go over problems before the test. It will be from 6:00 to 7:30pm. It will be beneficial to you and to everyone else if you have thoroughly gone over the solutions to the practice problems before this session (see above). I will be happy to answer any questions that are asked; however, we will have time for many more questions if everyone is asking questions like, "In your solutions, on #3, I get all the steps except this part...", rather than, "I didn't get #3. No, I haven't tried to read your solutions."
- We have gone over a lot of difficult material in this course so far. You have all worked very hard and learned a lot. I feel that with continued study and practice everyone in our class is capable of doing well on this exam. I will be rooting for all of you! Good luck!
- 10/6
- The Old News link above is now active and contains the news and notes from August and September. As old news accumulates it will periodically be moved there.
- The Homework List has been updated with current deadlines.
- 10/16
- The Homework List has been updated with current deadlines.
- 10/26
- Special note on WeBWorK for next week: This year Daylight Savings Time ends November 4, a week later than in previous years. WeBWorK is still programmed to resume standard time on October 28. So for the assignments due Wednesday, October 31 you will see a due time of 10:30pm... Do not panic! The assignments are still due at the regular 11:30pm (Daylight Savings) time. Of course, you all will be done and snug in your beds by then anyway, so it should not matter. :-) Please see me if you have any questions about when the assignments are due.
- 10/28
- There is a practice midterm available above, with solutions this time! As usual you are urged to complete the practice problems under test conditions as much as possible. Check your answers only after you have completed the problems to the best of your ability.
- Problem session will be rescheduled next week, time and location to be announced. The time will probably be Wednesday 12:30-2:00pm. As soon as I can find a room for that time, I will announce the information officially. Good luck studying for the midterm!
- As usual, my Friday office hours after the midterm exam will be cancelled. If you would like to meet with me, please do not hesitate to contact me.
- Ooops! I forgot to include trigonometry questions on the practice midterm. I have now posted an updated version above, along with updated solutions.
- By the way, I have not checked the practice exam or the solutions very carefully (I am concentrating on making sure the actual exam is error-free!). If you see any typos or other errors, or if you don't understand something I wrote, please let me know.
- 11/11
- The Homework List has been updated with current deadlines. In particular, the problem list for section 2.5 has changed. Please see the Homework List for details.
- 11/27
- The Homework List has been updated with current deadlines. In particular, the problem list for section 3.1 has changed, and a problem set has been added for this week. Please see the Homework List for details.
- I have also added a WeBWorK set to this week's homework. I apologize for the late notice, but it shouldn't take you too long. It is S3-3_1 on derivatives of exponential functions (they are the problems involving e that were accidentally assigned in previous HW sets), and I've given you an extra day to complete them. So set S3-3_1 will be due on Thursday, November 29.
- The end of the term is coming fast. Here are some highlights of events to come:
- Our last QUIZ will be this Friday, November 30 on exponential functions and their derivatives, and inverse functions (but not logarithms! Save those for the MIDTERM (see below)).
- On Friday you will be completing student ratings of instruction at the end of class. I hope you will give some thought to your comments, as I find the feedback valuable!
- Our last MIDTERM will be Friday, December 7.
- The last day of class is Wednesday, December 12. Consequently, all remaining paper homework will be due on that day. There will be no late homework accepted. As this represents a change in HW policy, I will be distributing written notice of this change in class. Thank you for your understanding.
- I will be compiling grades (except for the last paper HW assignment; see above) on or before the last day of class, so you can figure out whether or not you need (or want) to try to raise your grade by taking the final. (Remember that I drop the lowest of your major grades, so if you are satisfied with your grade going into the final, you may use the final exam as your dropped score. Please refer to the syllabus for more details.)
- Although the last day of class is officially a Wednesday (see above), I am planning to hold consultation hours on Friday, December 14 in our regular classroom at the regular class time. Your attendance is not required; however, if you are taking the final exam I urge you to come so that you will have an opportunity to get your questions answered.
- In order to ensure the academic integrity of this course, I will be checking your student ID at or before the final exam. Please bring it to class or office hours before the final exam so you do not have to worry about it on the day. If you decide to skip the final exam, you will still need to bring your ID to me before you start your winter break! Your grade for this course will not be processed until I have verified your ID. The only exception will be if you earn an F for the course. Thank you for your cooperation.