CALCULUS I Dave’s
Syllabus Fall 2004
Over the next three months, you will see some of the most influential ideas
humans have ever imagined, ideas that are essential
for most of the technological wonders that have graced our world over the last
hundred years, ideas that allow us to explain the physical world around us and
make predictions about it. Calculus is the study of how things change. And
everything changes.
Random Facts:
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Professor: |
Dave Kung |
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Office: |
175 Schaefer Hall, x4433 (or 240-895-4433) |
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Email: |
dtkung (at smcm.edu) |
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TA: |
Jeff Lee |
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jglee (at smcm.edu) |
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Random Fact: |
I used to have long hair |
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Office Hours: |
and by appointment. |
Class Philosophy: One learns math by doing it, not by watching other people do it. Consequently, you will be required to participate actively during class, and work very hard outside of it. The payoff is big: Calculus is one of the truly monumental achievements of the human species, and, by the end of this class, you will have begun to understand and appreciate it.
Throughout the semester, I will be giving each of you ideas about what you
need to do to improve your understanding of Calculus. Some of these apply to
everyone: read the section we will cover before coming to class, try some of
the homework problems ahead of time, do lots and lots of homework problems
(more than I assign to hand in), don't fall asleep in class, etc. Others will
be more directed, and probably suggested to you when you come to my office
hours (see above). The flip side of this is that you need to give me ideas
about the course, and how to make sure you get the most out of it. I will give
a few surveys, but if at any time you have something to share with me, just let
me know.
Workshops: On Tuesday evenings when we don't have exams (see below), there will be a workshop in SH134. In these sessions, we will finish the worksheets we start on Monday in class. Attendance is required.
Where to go for help: You have three
main resources to draw on when you need help in this class. The first and most
important is your fellow classmates. Calculus will go much smoother for all of
us if you start getting to know them and start studying with them outside of
class early in the semester – hence the first-day activity where you met all of
them. The second is me – my contact info and office hours appear above. I will also be around at other times - feel free to drop by and see if I'm in. If you can't find me, email or call, and
we'll schedule an appointment that works for both of us. In an emergency, you should drop me an email
(I check it very frequently). Your third resource will be your TA, Jeff Lee.
Grading: Calculus
can be learned at two levels. At the
basic, mechanical level, you will learn how
to do calculus (e.g. techniques of integration, finding
There will be a variety of ways to show that you are
learning Calculus. They will contribute
to your final grade as follows:
Assessment Date Percent
Exam I Sept. 28th 13
Exam II Oct. 26th 13
Exam III Nov. 16th 13
Group Project Dec. 6th 13
Homework all
semester 10
Class Participation all
semester 10
Textbook Questions all semester 8
Final Exam Dec. 13 (M)
Total 100
The exams are in the evening starting at
Textbook
Questions:
At least 24 hours before most classes, I will email you all
a question or two regarding the textbook reading. After doing the reading, you should reply to
the message, answering as best you can. Grading
for these questions will be entirely on effort.
If you do not check your email frequently, please talk to me.
Extra Credit:
You can earn a 1% increase in your grade by attending and writing a one page
report on one of the NSM Colloquium talks. This can be repeated up to three
times for a total of 3% extra before calculating your final grade. Talks are
for a general audience of science majors in the areas of Mathematics, Computer
Science, Biology, Chemistry and Physics. The lectures are in Room 106SH every
Wednesday at
Conclusion:
Learning
in this class is considered to be everyone's shared responsibility. Part of that responsibility is attendance;
when you are not here, not only do you miss important work, but the entire
class misses out on your contribution.
The Class Participation portion of your grade will reflect that. Congrats for reading this far. You will get five bonus points if you email
me a message with subject line “hi dave”
by Wednesday at