Course Description:  Logic, sets, probability and statistics, problem solving strategies. May not be taken for credit by those who have earned credit in MDS 119. Prerequisite:  MSCTC 0090, PDEV 100 or a minimum ACT Math score of 24 or a minimum MNSCU math placement score of 10.  Some prior knowledge of algebra is expected.

Course Organization:  The course will be largely lecture-based, with time for homework questions.  There will be frequent graded lab assignments and five exams.  There will be at least 22 lab assignments, of which the best 18 will count towards your grade.  There will be five regular exams and a cumulative final exam.  The lowest regular exam grade can be replaced by the final exam grade (assuming that your final exam grade is higher than your lowest regular exam grade).

Course Goals and Student Learning Outcomes:

Students will be able to

• Determine whether arguments are valid.

• Solve real-life problems by using the principles of set theory.

• Make decisions regarding the possible events that are governed at least in part by chance.

• Apply the basic concepts of statistics, such as collecting data; drawing graphs; finding measures of average, variation, and position; and solving problems using the standard normal distribution.

• Demonstrate understanding of selected concepts in logic, set theory, probability, and statistics by solving a real-life problem and communicating their work to the class orally and/or in writing. 

Attendance:  Attendance is mandatory, and attending a class means that you are in class at the beginning of class and that you are in class at the end of class.  Coming excessively late or coming late as a matter of habit will mean that you will be recorded as absent.  Leaving early will also be recorded as absent.  Any more than five absences will affect your grade.  See the grade page for more information.  Note that if you do miss class, I will not give you the lecture on a one-on-one basis in my office.  Regardless of why you miss, missing class will likely mean that you won't understand the material as well as you should and your lab and exam grades will likely suffer as well.  Unfortunately this statement is true whether you miss class because you just didn't want to get up that morning or if you miss class because you had a major emergency (in fact, the better the reason for missing class is, the more students tend to not understand the material no matter how much they try to make it up, since they are distracted by other concerns in their lives).  Missing class is strongly discouraged.

For a known absence due to military duty, jury duty, or other legal requirement, you must give me notice as soon as feasible and prior to the absence if it will require missing an exam.  Also, documentation will be required for a makeup exam to be graded.  For an absence due to an official university activity, you must give me written notice at least two weeks prior to the absence, as per university policy, for a makeup exam.  I feel it is necessary to point out that relatively few faculty members or coaches remember to provide this notice in that time frame, but it is up to you to remind them, since insufficient notice will be your problem, not theirs.  For an absence due to personal reasons such as illness or family emergencies, you should notify me as soon as feasible, before the absence in the vast majority of cases.  In order for a makeup exam to be graded, written documentation of the reason for the absence will be required.  Examples are:  a note from the doctor saying you were seen (it does not have to say what you were seen for), a copy of the police report for a minor car accident, funeral program or obituary, etc..  (In the case of a funeral, if your relationship is not clear, I may ask you to write a short sentence saying what the relationship is and to sign it.)  If I do grant a makeup exam, it will be given on Study Day (this semester, MSUM's Study Day is Wednesday, May 6).

I do not accept late labs for any reason other than illness or military/jury duty lasting more than six class days.  There will be at least 22 lab assignments, of which only the top 18 will be kept.  Therefore, a normal minor illness should not affect your grade.

Absences due to family vacations, reunions, weddings, etc., are not excused absences and you will therefore not be allowed to take a makeup exam unless you inform me of them by the first class period of the second week (for the MW section, that is Wednesday, January 21; for the TH section, that is Tuesday, January 20).  I expect you to schedule such events around your class schedules if they come up during the session, especially since the exam dates are already set.  In addition, if a one-day illness occurs on an exam day, I expect you to go to the health center to get checked out.  After all, you don't want to be sick any longer than you have to.

Academic Honesty: You are expected to do your own work.  You may certainly work with others and get help on homework assignments and labs, but the work you submit should be your own work.  Note that during exams you will not be allowed to get help from others.  Make sure that you learn the material while you do the homework and labs - that is the purpose of the assignments.  Then during the exam you can demonstrate your knowledge - that is the purpose of the exams.  Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated in any college course (or any course at any level).  See the MSUM Academic Honesty policy for more information and possible consequences of cheating.

Special Accommodations: 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.

Course Requirements:  You are expected to complete daily homework, complete and submit the labs, and take and pass all the exams on the scheduled date.

Evaluations Standards: Your course grade will include lab and exam grades.  For more details, see the grade page.

Course Outline:  See the course schedule for your section (MW or TH).

Calculators:  For this course, a scientific calculator will be required (graphing calculators are allowed but not required).  The feature that you will need on the calculator is the ability to do combinations and permutations.  These are normally second functions (written in blue, beige, or some other color above the key) and will usually look like either C(n,p) and P(n,p) or like _nC_p and _nP_p.  They may also be in a menu system accessed by a key labeled PRB or PROB.

A basic scientific calculator costs $10-$20 at Target, Kmart, CVS, Office Deport, or some similar store.  Students often find a model with a two-line display easier to use (one line is for what you type, the other for the answer).

General Comments:  For all graded work in this class, you must show work for credit and give exact answers.  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 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 want to emphasize that showing work is a lesson you would much rather learn on the labs than on the exams.  My criteria is the same for both.  Note that you need to tell me, at a minimum, what you are typing into your calculator.

I do not curve courses of this level.  I have given a class average of a B+ in a course of this level, and I have also given a class average of a D+.  I grade you as individuals, and by whether or not you personally have mastered the material.  I also 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 homework and exams 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, roommates, or siblings/spouses/children/parents, 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.

I expect you to be responsible for yourself as far as getting notes from a classmate if you miss class.  I also expect you to turn in any labs early if you know that you will miss class.  This includes those instances when the absence is due to an official university activity.

Help Resources:  In addition to my office hours, there is both a Math 102 tutor lab and a Math department tutor lab.  All three of these are walk-in help, you don't need to make an appointment or call ahead.  The hours and locations for both tutor labs will be announced when they have been decided.  They will start on Thursday, January 15 or Friday, January 16.  In addition, tutors might be available through the Academic Resource Office (ARO) (for free).

Cell Phones:  Turn off your cell phones when you go to class (this class or any other class).  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.  In fact, it applies especially on those days when we have an exam.  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.  Or better yet, turn it off entirely.  This policy applies to any other distracting device, such as a pager or alarm clock, as well.

In addition, during exams, your cell phone (or any other electronic device other than a calculator) may not be visible at all - you must put it in your closed bookbag or something similar.  If you use it for your watch, you will have to bring a different clock to exams or use the classroom clock.

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