G E O R G E T O W N   C O L L E G E
CSC/MAT327 [insert semester here] Syllabus

CSC/MAT327 Intro. to Numerical Methods, [insert time and place here]
Danny Thorne, Asher 121, 502-863-8362, danny_thorne@georgetowncollege.edu, http://spider.georgetowncollege.edu/mpc/thorne/

Course Description Number representation and errors, locating roots of equations, interpolation, numerical differentiation, numerical integration, eigenproblems, numerical solution of linear systems of equations, approximation by spline functions, numerical solution of differential equations, and the method of least squares.

Course Objectives Understanding of and ability to implement algorithms associated with topics listed under Course Description.

Text Cheney and Kincaid, Numerical Mathematics and Computing, Fifth Edition. We will cover (at least parts of) Chapters 1 through 12 and hopefully have time for some selections from the remaining chapters. See the authors' online material: http://rene.ma.utexas.edu/CNA/NMC5/index.html  .

Grading Categories and weightings: Homework 0.55, Exam One 0.15, Exam Two 0.15. Final 0.15. Numerical scores between 0 and 1 (0% and 100%) are computed for assignments, quizzes and exams by dividing the total number of points earned by the total number of points possible. Scores for categories are computed by averaging the individual scores in the categories. The score for each category is then weighted according to the above weights to give an overall course score between 0 and 1. The overall score for the course is then mapped to a letter grade for the course as follows: [0.925,1.000]-->A, [0.875,0.925)-->AB, [0.825,0.875)-->B, [0.775,0.825)-->BC, [0.700,0.775)-->C [0.600,0.700)-->D [0.000,0.600)-->F .

Homework There will be a mix of theory (pencil-and-paper problems) and practice (computer problems). To a degree, the balance between theory and practice can be tailored to the proclivities of the individual student. Furthermore, some assignments may be done collaboratively, thus bringing a variety of strengths to bear on the problems.

Exams Tentative, approximate dates for the midterm exams are [insert date here] for Exam 1 and [insert date here] for Exam 2. If you must miss an exam and want to make it up, arrange it with me at least a couple of days before the exam date, and provide a documented reason for missing.

The Final Exam is scheduled for [insert final exam time and date here]. We may have a (possibly group-based) final project instead of a pencil-and-paper final exam.

Approximate Course Outline 
  Weeks 1,2   -- floating point representation, finite precision arithmetic and errors
  Week  3     -- root finding methods
  Weeks 4,5   -- interpolation
  Weeks 6,7,8 -- numerical differentiation and numerical integration
  Weeks 9,10  -- numerical solution of linear systems of equations
  Week  11    -- eigenproblems
  Week  12    -- splines
  Week  13    -- numerical solution of ordinary differential equations
  Week  14    -- numerical solution of partial differential equations
  Week  15    -- method of least squares

Attendance Your attendance will be monitored. There is no explicit category for attendance in the grading scheme for the course. However, missed exams and homework will affect your grade. Furthermore, attendance will flavor my decisions about borderline scores at the end of the semester.

Office Hours My office hours ( [insert office hours here] ) are posted on my door and on my web page. They might change, so check my door or the web page to confirm. I am at your disposal independently of office hours. You may call ahead, make an appointment or just drop by and see if I am available. If I am unavailable due to work-related business when you drop by, I will let you know; otherwise, I am happy to see you anytime.