MA101/MA160: Mathematics (for Scientists)

Calculus -- Semester 1

News and Announcements

Some news, announcements and information about MA101 will be posted here. This is in addition to any announcements made in lectures.

• 10/04/12: To help you prepare for the MA101/160 (Section 1) exam, I have posted some revision exercises. Answers to most of the questions are also provided.
• 10/04/12: Reminder: as announced by Dr Sköldberg in lectures, the format for this year's MA101/MA160-1 exam has changed a little from recent years. There will be two sections, each with 4 questions. They correspond to material your studied in Semester 1 and 2, respectively. You should attempt 3 from each section.
• 05/04/12: You can download the Calculus questions from the Semester 1 Test. Suggested solutions are also available..
• 27/01/12: Results of the Christmas test and the 3 online homeworks have been posted to the Blackboard Grade Centre. You'll find 4 results there:
  1. WeBWorK 1. You scored 1 (out of maximum of 1) if got any part of any question correct.
  2. WeBWorK 2. Max score is 3. This is computed as the best of your attempts at either "Problem Set 2" or "Extra Set 2".
  3. WeBWorK 3. Max score is 4.
  4. End of Semester test. Max score is 10.

  The "total" column should show you your total continuous assessment grade for Semester 1. The maximum possible is 18%.

  A further 12% can be earned for work in Semester 2 Calculus.

• 09/01/12: Semester 2 has started. The lecturer for this semester is Emil Sköldberg. This course webpage is at http://www.maths.nuigalway.ie/~emil/teaching/ma101
• 29/11/11: The end-of-semester test will take place on Tuesday, 13 Dec. The venues and other details were given in the final lectures. Please refer to the notes, particularly from Lecture 21.
• 05/12/11: Since the semester is over, normal tutorials have finished. Four extra tutorials have been scheduled for 10am in AC204 for each of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday during the week 05/12/11--08/12/11.
• 29/11/11: To confirm SUMS will be open Monday--Thursday, 2-5 for the weeks starting Nov 28th and Dec 5th. Its last day of operation is Thursday, Dec 8th. See SUMS: Support for Undergraduate Mathematics Students for more details.
• 11/11/11: Problem Set 3 is now available on WeBWorK. Deadline is 5pm, 24/11/11. Full details below.
• 04/11/11: A new "extra" set of problems is available on WeBWorK for those who missed Problem Set 2. Full details below.
• 03/11/11: The Thursday 9am MA100 tutorial actually takes place in AM108 and not AM109 as originally posted here. Apologies for the confusion.
• 02/11/11: Revision Set now available on WeBWorK. There is not deadline, since there is no credit available. It is just to help you practise problems. Full details below..
• 17/10/11: New Problem Set 2 now available on WeBWorK. Deadline is Friday, 28/10/11. Full details below..
• 10/10/11: Because there have been a few issue with students who registered late, and didn't contact me to have their WeBWorK account setup, I've extended the deadline for the first Problem Set until 9am, Tuesday 11/10/11

Course Information

Course calendar

This will be regularly updated with tutorial times, assignment deadlines, etc.

Lecture Summaries

Below are copies of slides used in lectures. They don't contain the hand-written notes from class.

If a set of notes is denoted draft that means they were posted before the lecture; they may contain typos, or slides that were not used in class, or might be missing some exercises. Have a look at them before the lecture, but don't bother printing them.

The annotated notes also have the scribblings that I did in class. They might be of some use to you, but don't bother printing them. Also, they don't contain any examples done on the overhead projector; refer to your own notes for those.

Assignments and Problem Sets

There will be several assignments during the semester, as well as an end-of-semester test.

The assignments will the administered using an on-line system called WeBWorK. This system will also be used for Semester 2 Calculus. It generates a unique problem set for each student. Everyone will get the same number and type of exercises, but the numbers/coefficients are different for every one.

When you enter a solution, the system tells you if it is correct or not. For true-false, and some multiple choice problems, you are only allowed one attempt. But in most case, you are allowed as many attempts as you like. After the deadline has passed, detailed solutions become available.

For each problem set, I'll provide a sample hard-copy which you can print out. Your one will have similar questions, but with different numbers/solutions. You can also download a hard-copy of your own problems yourself.

The system is hosted at http://webwork.nuigalway.ie/webwork2/1112-MA101. Your login information will be given in lectures.

Here are some useful resources that might help you, particularly if are unfamiliar with the on-line system.

• To enter the square root of x you can use either x^(1/2) or sqrt(x)
• To enter "x to the power of y", use x^y.
• A full list of available WeBWork functions. In particular, note that a⁵ is entered as a**5
• A guide to completing homework online, from the MAA site.
• WeBWorK documentation for students, also from the MAA.

Links, and Frequently Asked Questions

• Q: Is there a repeat test if I "fail" the December one?
  A: The end-of-semester test is part of the continuous assessment, like the homework assignments. There is no minimum passing grade, and no concept of passing or failing. So there is no repeat test.
  If you do not do well in the test, you can still pass the course based on your results in homework assignments and the end of year exam.
• Q: How do I know if I "passed" or "failed" Semester 1.
  A: There is no sense in which you could pass or fail Semester 1, only the year as a whole. For example, if an MA101 student gets 6% (out of a possible 18) for Semester 1 homework and test, and 4% (our of a possible 8%) for Semester 2 homework, then they will need to get 30% or more (out of 70%) in the End Of Year exam.
  The rubric for MA160 is different because that is not split into Algebra and Calculus components.
• Q: How much is the end-of-semester test worth for the final grade?
  A: It is worth 10% of the final grade for Calculus (MA101 or MA160-1). The online homeworks from Semester 1 are worth 8%, and the ones from Semester 2 will be worth 12%. The summer written exam will be worth 70%.
  Please check with your Algebra lecture(s) for what the test is worth for that course.
• Q: How can I find the past exam papers?
  A: You can find all available NUI Galway past exam papers online. Enter MA101 or MA160 as the module code. But don't obsess too much about past papers. This is not the Leaving Cert. Exams change from year to year, depending on who is teaching the course.
• Q: How can I find the past papers for the end-of-semester test?
  You can't. It is just a test, not an exam. There are no "past papers". There is no minimum passing grade for the test, and you don't have to re-sit it even if you do badly: you just have to work on improving your score in Semester 2.
• SUMS: Support for Undergraduate Mathematics Students is a free drop-in support centre for all NUI Galway students who are taking any mathematics course. It is located in Aras de Brun, C116, and is open Monday-Thursday, 2pm-5pm.
• Many typical questions are answered in the First Year Information Handbook
• Q: Is there any advantage or disadvantage to taking MA100 instead of MA180/MA102?
  A: The main advantages of taking MA180 (Honours Maths) or MA102 (Honours Maths through Irish) are
  • You have a wider choice of mathematical courses available to you in 2nd, 3rd and 4th year.
  • As mentioned on page p17 of the the First Year Information Handbook, a grade of 100% in MA100 is equated with a grade of only 60% in MA180.
  • MA102 is the same as MA180, but taught through Irish. This might suit students who have studied Maths though Irish at second level. Also, the class size is very small (about 10 students).
• Q: What is a "clicker"?
  A: A Click is an electronic polling device. It will be used in class to facilitate some interaction. Unfortunately, at the moment, only 1st Science students have clickers, and not the engineering students (CS+IT, and Construction). We will try to rectify that situation.

Quasirandom cool stuff

A selection of stuff that I like and is somewhat related to this course.

• I'm a Scientist - the Film. About novelists, bakers, belly-dancers, jugglers and photographers who are scientists. By Stephen Curry.
• Newton and Leibniz, as told by xkcd.

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