m355syl

Math 355 - Mathematical Modeling - Spring 2008		Instructor: Professor Ellen Hill
Maclean 169		Mathematics
MWF 8:30 am - 9:20 am		Office: Maclean 375S
3 credits		Office phone: 477-4023
Textbook: Mathematical Modeling and Computer Simulation, by Maki and Thompson		elhill@mnstate.edu
web.mnstate.edu/elhill		Office Hours: 8:30-9:30 Th, 1:30-3:00 MTu, 2:00-4:00WThF
		Yahoo Messenger Id: ThadeusFrog

Techniques of developing and analyzing mathematical descriptions of physical phenomena. Prerequisite: Math 323 and Math 327. In addition, Math 335 (Prob/Stats I) will be helpful. Math 327 (Linear Algebra) may be taken concurrently with this course.

The Student Academic Conference (SAC) is Wednesday, April 9, in the afternoon. You will present your group project during the SAC. As a result, attendance at the SAC is a requirement of this course, and you will need to make sure that any work schedules you may have will not interfere. As for other classes, I will provide a memo for you explaining your participation in the SAC. It is possible that you may be required to present at the SAC for some other course or activity you are involved in as well.

This course has been indicated as being a writing intensive course. By its very nature, Mathematical Modeling is a course that talks about real-world applications. In it we not only solve problems at the level of the real world, but we communicate how the problem is translated into mathematics, how the problem is solved mathematically, and how the solution translates back to the real world. At the end of this course you should be able to explain to a non-math person (such as your boss) how and why you could use math to solve a problem as well as the solution and either how it could be implemented or how it would manifest itself, based on the nature of the problem that you are solving. This is often done in a combination of mathematics and English, and how to combine the two in an understandable manner is part of the goals of this course. As a result, you will write a great deal in this course. In addition to two projects (which will be formal writing assignments), the daily homework will often include short informal writing assignments designed to get you to think about how mathematics or models show up in the real world.

The following are the Dragon Core Written Communication competencies that this course will address at least in part.

· Use a coherent writing process including invention, organization, drafting, revising, and editing to form an effective final written product.
There will be two projects in this course, an individual and a group project. For the first project, I will ask you to submit a draft of your final paper. I will then comment on it and return it to you for corrections. I will be looking at both the mathematics and the writing. I would like to point out that my experience tells me that most of my comments that relate to the writing are still mathematical in nature. They tend to be along the lines of how to refer to your functions correctly, how to break long equations into shorter lines when necessary, etc.. In other words, issues that relate to how the math and the English interrelate, and are not likely to have been addressed in your previous writing courses (especially if you have not taken any courses that used a lot of writing from either the Math department or a science department).

· Consult effectively and appropriately with others to produce quality written products.
One of the two projects will be a group project, so will include working with others in the class. In addition, I expect you to seek advice from me or others if you have questions about either the mechanics of the writing or the mathematics. I also expect you to be using both the textbook and other resources in the library, on the web, or in some cases in the community to help with the projects.

· Locate, use, and cite appropriately primary and secondary source materials from both print and electronic resources.
The projects and some of the daily assignments will likely require you to search for ideas from other sources in the textbook, the library, the internet, or the community. The ideas gleaned from such sources are expected to be integrated into your existing body of knowledge, and I expect you to cite those sources when appropriate.

· Create logical, engaging, effective written products appropriate for specific audiences and purposes.
In most cases in your informal writing, you should write as if your audience is a coworker or supervisor in a business setting. Therefore, the audience is someone who understands what the question is, but does not necessarily have the answer already. In other words, you want to explain your answer to someone who does not know it, not convince your instructor that you know what you are talking about. For the projects, your audience should be viewed as a similar group of people, but who don’t know what the question or project is about. Most mathematical papers start with an explanation of why you would want to do this particular analysis or project.

· Use correct grammar and mechanics in writing.
Anything you write for this course will be graded at least in part on spelling, grammar, and coherent sentences, whether formal or informal. I grade answers in any class in part on these, even lower level courses such as Math 127 or Math 229. For the projects, the grade will have both a mathematics component and a writing component to it.

I do not take attendance. However, it is my experience that students who frequently miss class (one absence every month) frequently do not do well in mathematics courses of this level. Skipping class is an extremely bad idea. If you do miss class, it is up to you to get copies of the notes. My notes are usually useless to students. I also expect you to turn in any homework early if you know that you will miss class. This includes those instances when the absence is due to an official university activity.

For all graded work in this class, you must show work for credit and give exact answers unless otherwise specified. In general, if you have to write it down, you have to show it to me. My rule of thumb when grading is either whether I could do a similar calculation in my head or on a calculator and not make a mistake or if the point of the problem is being met (i.e., if the point of the problem is to show a known result, you have to show it in some detail). If I feel that you needed to show more work, I will indicate it.

I very rarely give extra credit, and when I do it is to the entire class. If you come to my office at the end of the term and ask if you can do extra credit to improve your grade, my answer will be no. The grading scale and weights for the course are given here.

I will in general return any work the next class day. If you are not there, I will not give it to friends, nor will I give out grade information on the phone or via email. (These restrictions are not arbitrary - they are based on federal law regarding student privacy.) Normally, I include any old assignments with any current ones, but I do not try to pass them back a second time unless you have turned in the most recent assignment. I will bring the old assignments with me every day, so if you ask at the end of class you can get them then.

As in any college class (or any level, for that matter), cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated. On the other hand, when doing the daily homework and when working on the projects I do encourage you to work together (especially the group project!). This is not the same as copying from each other, however. Working with someone else in a small study group is often very conducive to learning mathematics and most other subjects (as long as you stay on task!). Working together, however, will not be allowed on exams, so you must make sure that you learn the material yourself. See also the statement on academic honesty in the student handbook.

We will make extensive use of Mathcad or Maple throughout the course, but it won't necessarily be on a daily basis. I expect that you have gone through Math 260 sometime when you took the Calculus sequence and therefore I do expect you to be reasonably familiar with Mathcad or Maple, depending on when you took Math 260. We will occasionally use features of the programs that were not covered in Math 260. On exams, I try to write them so that a lack of familiarity with the computer program would not be a significant factor for the grade on the exam. Most students find a calculator useful on the exams.. During the regular run of the course, however, we will probably just use Mathcad or Maple if we need to do any calculation.

I will assign homework on most days. The problems may or may not be from the textbook. Every homework assignment will be given a grade out of ten points, and all assignments will be weighted equally. In general, homework will be due the second class period after it is assigned. Specific due dates will be given when the homework is assigned. Homework will be due by 2 pm on the due date. If you do not submit it in class, please bring it to my office, and slide it under my office door if I'm not there. It can be submitted by friends, roommates, spouses, etc. if you are ill or otherwise unable to come to campus. Late homework will not be accepted for a grade for any reason except a long illness (requiring you to miss class for at least three class days), National Guard duty lasting more than a week, or a similar reason. A short illness, family event, and the like are not sufficient. I suggest that you start the homework as soon as it is assigned so that it can be submitted on time even if you are unable to come to class.

In addition to homework, there will be two projects that you must complete in this course. For more information, see the project page.

The only exam will be the final scheduled for Friday, May 2, at 9:00 am. If you have to miss the exam for any reason, I expect to be notified as soon as possible. In particular, this means before the exam. If it is a reason that I would expect you to know now (such as a MSUM official activity, a family commitment such as a wedding, etc.) I expect to be notified no later than Wednesday, January 16. If you do not notify me by that time, I may not give you a makeup exam. If you are sick on the day of the exam, I expect a phone call or an email before the exam starts. I also assume that if you are sick enough to miss an exam then you are sick enough to go to the health center - after all, you don't want to be sick longer than absolutely necessary. In any event, if you miss the exam, I insist on written documentation before I grade a makeup exam. This can be a dated and timed note from the doctor's office saying that you were seen (I do not need to know what you were seen for), a program from the wedding, a published obituary notice, a copy of the police report from an accident you were in on the way to the exam, etc.. If a relationship is not clear, I may ask you to write a sentence stating what the relationship between you and the appropriate person in your documentation is and to sign it.

Note: For any university-sanctioned activity, I expect to be notified at least two weeks prior to the event, as required by the Student Absence Policy. Failure to meet this deadline will be a problem for you. Note that this means that you will likely have to get on your coach's case - few coaches or academic advisors meet this deadline without prompting, in my experience.

If you have any special needs that may affect your success in this class please let me know as soon as possible so that accommodations can be made. This includes (but is not limited to) any physical or learning disabilities that you may have.

Students with disabilities who believe they may need an accommodation in this class are encouraged to contact Greg Toutges, Coordinator of Disability Services at 477-5859 (Voice) or 1-800-627-3529 (MRS/TTY), CMU 114 as soon as possible to ensure that accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion.

Cellular phones and other distracting devices generally have no place in a formal or semi-formal setting, such as a classroom. If your phone rings audibly during class, I will require you to leave the classroom for the remainder of the period. This includes those days we have exams. Hence, if your cell phone rings during an exam, you will have to turn in what you have completed up to that point. No extra time will be given. I strongly suggest that you always remember to turn off your phone. (You are free to return to class the next day, and there will be no other consequences.) Note: I have found that cell phones on vibrate, when in a backpack next to a textbook, are still quite loud since they reverberate against the book. If I can hear it at the front of the room or if most of the students next to you react to it, it is still an audible ring. Keep it on something soft or on your waistband or in your pocket.

In addition, during exams, I will not allow any electronic devices except for a calculator in a location that is visible to me or to you. This includes your waistband. I will require that you put your cell phone in a covered pocket in your bookbag. Better yet, don't bring it at all on exam days.