Department : Department of Mathematics, Statistics, and Physics
Instructor : Justin Mears
Office Location : Jabara Hall Room 328
Office Hours : 1:10 PM to 2:00(ish) PM (CST) or by Appointment
Telephone : 316-978-6786
E-mail : mears@math.wichita.edu
Preferred Method of Contact : e-mail
Prerequisites : Math 243 with a C or better.
Semester : Summer 2020
CRN # : 30743
Classroom : Online
Days and Times : Monday through Friday from 12:10 PM to 1:10 PM (CST) on Zoom (will be recorded)
Mid-term Exam : Friday, 26 June 2020
Final Exam : Friday, 24 July 2020
This syllabus provides you with information specific to this course, and it also provides information about important university policies. This document should be viewed as a course overview; it is not a contract and is subject to change as the semester evolves. If a change is required in the course syllabus, an email will be sent regarding the update.
Introduces the use of MATLAB© in computational algorithms. A bridge to upper-division courses in numerical methods and applied mathematics.
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- Exhibit proficiency using the MATLAB© user interface and programming environment.
- Construct arrays and matrices to represent mathematical problems. Reference matrices, perform array operations and build matrix functions to solve these problems.
- Use scripts, functions and work spaces effectively.
- Compose scripts and functions using structured programming and control flow.
- Employ structured programming to accomplish complex tasks with handles; anonymous, nested and recursive functions; and subfunctions.
- Create graphical representations of data that selectively communicate properties of the data.
- Demonstrate understanding of memory allocation, vectorization, scope, strings and data structures.
- Deploy both real and symbolic expressions to evaluate and solve algebra and calculus problems.
- Author and present an individual project demonstrating the outcomes and principles of this course.
Textbook
Learning MATLAB by Tobin A. Driscoll;
SIAM, 2009 (ISBN 978-0-898716-83-2)
Bonus Free Reference Book written by the person who invented MATLAB©:
Numerical Computing with MATLAB© by Cleve B. Moler;
SIAM, 2004 (ISBN 978-0-898716-60-3)
Other Equipment/Materials
- This class requires daily access to a computer with sound capabilities and high-speed Internet.
- Additionally, you will be expected to use and learn to program in MATLAB©. MathWorks© offers a Student Version of MATLAB©
(which you can keep) for $99, which I encourage you to consider purchasing...however...
- You do NOT need to purchase MATLAB© for this course. Your alternative options for purchasing MATLAB© are the following:
- An account has been created for each student on a Linux server available here that gives you access to MATLAB© by MathWorks©.
One must enter one's myWSU credentials twice to access their remote account. The internet \href{https://peano.math.wichita.edu/guacamole/#/}{address} resolves to the \href{http://www.apache.org/}{Apache} \href{https://sourceforge.net/p/guacamole/news/2015/09/guacamole-098-released/}{Guacamole} HTML5 Clientless Remote Desktop Authentication Extension.
After successfully using one's myWSU credentials to create a virtual networking session with the server, one must use their myWSU credentials again to log onto their account. \ifpaper (\url{https://peano.math.wichita.edu/guacamole/#/}) \fi
- Additionally, you can download and install GNU Octave which is an open-source, free, alternative to MATLAB© which uses the same language and many of the same commands. (I will most likely be using Octave to do a lot of examples in class.)
As we all know, the summer semester will be held entirely online. To that end, the class will have the following structure:
- Every weekday I will conduct a Zoom meeting where I will answer your questions and cover the scheduled topics.
- These meetings will be recorded and uploaded to YouTube immediately afterward each day.
- The notes I make will also be made available to the students after each lecture through Blackboard.
- Prior to attending these meetings and/or watching the recordings, it is expected that the student has
- Read the corresponding section in the textbook or any other linked material by the instructor.
- Read through the provided lecture notes and watched all videos provided in those notes.
- Worked through the examples available in the section and the provided lecture notes.
Though this is an online class, participation is still crucial. "Participation" involves the student
- Reading the assigned sections thoroughly,
- reading through the provided lecture notes and watching all videos including updated videos added by the instructor throughout the semester,
- attending the Zoom meetings or reviewing the recordings daily,
- contributing to any and all class discussions in a respectful manner, and
- completing all online assignments, quizzes, and exams.
To be successful in this class, the student should be
- checking their student email daily,
- logging into the course at least five (5) times (or more) per week, and
- spending 15 to 20 (or more) hours per week doing homework, reading, and working out examples from the book and lectures.
Additionally,
- If the student is having difficulty with course material (including homework problems), they should promptly seek help. The instructor can be reached by email and by appointment.
- Electronic aids (e.g. calculators, cell phones, google glasses, etc.), notes, etc. are not allowed during any quiz or exam; using such aids during an exam constitutes cheating. (Devices approved by the
Office of Disability Services (DS) for use during exams should be brought to the attention of the instructor, who will communicate with the DS office.)
Although the student may attempt to reach the instructor by phone but e-mail communication is always preferred. Feel free to e-mail the instructor with any questions or concerns following these guidelines:
- Always use the course name in the subject line of the email.
- The student should always remember to sign their name.
- The student should always email the instructor from their WSU email address. Email sent from personal email servers like Gmail, Yahoo, etc.,
have a tendency to end up in spam folders and thus, are never see them. The student may also email the instructor through Blackboard
via the Email My Instructor tab.
- There will also be an Ask My Instructor forum on Blackboard which allows common questions to be seen and responded to publicly.
- The student should NOT contact the instructor for technical support.
- Any technical problems involving student's computer, or issues regarding file uploading or sharing, should
go through the OneStop. They can be contacted at 316-978-3909. Additionally, the student can also fill out a request for help form at
their website.
- However, if there is a problem with access or uploading assignments, the student should let the instructor know before the assignment is due.
It is a good idea to accompany this notification with the file in question, so that the instructor can verify that it is completed by the due date/time.
The instructor will respond to your e-mails between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday. If a student e-mails the instructor during the weekend, the instructor will respond at their earliest convenience.
WSU uses a +/- grading scale for final grades and to calculate grade
point averages. In this class, grades are assigned according to the
following. (Other classes might assign grades differently so be sure to understand
the different grading scales in all of your classes.)
| Percentage |
Letter Grade |
Interpretation |
| 91%-100% |
A |
A range denotes excellent performance |
| 90% |
A- |
|
| 87%-89% |
B+ |
|
| 81%-87% |
B |
B range denotes good performance. |
| 80% |
B- |
|
| 77%-79% |
C+ |
|
| 71%-77% |
C |
C range denotes satisfactory performance. |
| 70% |
C- |
|
| 67%-69% |
D+ |
|
| 61%-67% |
D |
D range denotes unsatisfactory performance. |
| 60% |
D- |
|
| 0%-59% |
F |
F denotes failing performance. |
Get free math tutoring online with the WSU Math Lab! Our Online Math Lab has "drop in" first-come-first-served tutoring on Zoom or if you just want some to look at your paper we can do that, too.
To get started, sign up on Blackboard by following the steps below:
- Log into Blackboard.
- On the homepage, you will see a box in the middle of the page that says ONLINE TUTORING LABS.
- In that box is a link to the Math Lab Online. Click on that link. You will be directed to the Math Lab Online organization. Please note: the Math Lab online is a Blackboard "organization", not a course.
- You will be directed to the Math Lab Online page. Follow the instructions on that page to enroll in the organization. You must be enrolled in order to access the information about virtual tutoring.
Once you have enrolled, click on the About the Math Lab link in the menu on the left side of the page. There you will find instructions on how to connect virtually with a tutor.
Have a quick question? You can easily upload the question for a tutor to reply electronically.
Want more in-depth help? Connect with a tutor on Zoom:
- Monday - Thursday 10am - 7pm (CST)
- Friday 10am - 2pm (CST)
You're working from home, but you don't have to work alone!
