General Information:
| Meeting Time: | Tues, Thurs, 12:30 - 1:50 |
| Location: | Jones 302
|
| Instructor: | Ryan Vinroot
Office: Jones 130
Office Hours: M 2:30-3:30, W 3:30-4:30, Th 9-10 and 3:30-4:30, or by appointment/walk-in.
|
|---|
| Textbook: | Contemporary Abstract Algebra, Seventh Edition, by
Joseph A. Gallian |
Grade
Breakdown: | 2 Tests - 20% each, Homework
- 25%, Final Exam - 35%. The
grading scale will roughly be a 10 percentage point scale, so that a final
score of 90% is in the A range, a score of 80% is in the B range, etc. |
| Attendance Policy: | You are expected to attend all lectures. Attendance
is crucial in order to succeed in the course. Especially since this is a
Tues-Thurs class, missing one lecture means that you miss an awful lot of material. Any legitimate absence for a test
must be discussed with me prior to the test date. |
| Prerequisites: | Math 214 - Foundations of Mathematics, and Math
211 - Linear Algebra. |
|
Syllabus:
In the first day of class, we will go over the highlights of "Chapter 0" of the
text, which is mainly a review of what you saw in Math 214. You should read
this entire chapter very carefully, as the concepts will be used throughout the
course. Like Math 214, this course will concentrate on the writing of proofs.
After this quick review, we will then jump right into the first main topic of the course:
groups. Chapters 1-11 of the book cover topics on groups, but we will not go
straight through this material. We will also be covering rings, and
cover some of the topics in Chapters 12-15. Many of the concepts which are
important for groups have analogies for rings, and so we will be learning this
material in parallel. By the end of the semester, we will have covered topics in Chapters 1-15.
Dates & Course Announcements:
Exam Calendar (Tentative):
| Test 1 |
Mar. 2 |
In class |
Jones 302
|
| Test 2 |
Apr. 6 |
TBA |
TBA
|
| Final Exam |
Mon, May 10 |
9-12 |
Jones 302
|
- All relevant announcements will be listed here. Check back frequently (don't forget
to refresh your browser) for updates.
- Important Dates and Class Holidays:
- Sat, Mar 6 - Sun, Mar 14:
NO CLASS (Spring Break)
- Mon, May 10, 9:00-12:00 - FINAL EXAM
- (1/21) The first homework, listed below, is due at the beginning of class on
Tues, Jan 26. The purpose of the first homework is to review crucial
concepts from Math 214.
- (2/2) On Thursday, Feb. 4, I will not have office hours 9-10 AM. Please
let me know if you would like to schedule another time to ask questions.
- (2/10) Due to the College closing today, I will not be holding my Wednesday
afternoon office hours. Please email me if you have questions. I plan on
having my regular office hours on Thursday.
- (2/23) The first midterm will be in class, on Tuesday, March 2. Here are a
list of problems that are good practice problems: pgs. 91-94 #1, 5, 6, 12,
16, 27, 30, 33, 34, 44, 47.
- (3/15) My office hours on Wednesday, March 17, will be 2:30-3:30 instead of
3:30-4:30.
- (4/19) I will not hold office hours from Mon, Apr. 19, through Wed.,
Apr. 21. I do plan on holding my regular office hours on Thurs, Apr. 22, in
the afternoon (3:30-4:30), but not in the morning.
- (4/29) The following are a selection of review problems from the book to
prepare for the Final Exam. Please note that some of these problems might
be more involved than what you can expect on the Final Exam:
pgs. 91-94 #2, 11, 28, 35, 40
pgs. 176-177 #24, 33, 35, 44, 45, 51
pgs. 230-233 #1, 3, 7, 10, 12, 15, 28, 39
pgs. 276-278 #7, 14, 15, 19, 29.
- (5/4) Here are the days and times when I will be in my office, available
for questions, before the final exam:
Wed, May 5, 2-5
Thurs, May 6, 9-12 and 2-5
Fri, May 7, 9-12 and 3:30-5
Homework:
There will be homework assigned roughly every week. Your homework score is 25%
of your final grade. Completion of all homework problems is required, and your
grade on a homework assignment will be based on completeness, as well as on the
details of the solutions of the problems graded. Individual homework
assignment should be completed by the student alone, although I am always open
for questions, either in office hours or by email.
For each homework problem assigned, a complete solution with each step
explained should be written up clearly and neatly. Be sure to explain your steps and reasoning
for calculations as well as for proofs. Homework is due at the beginning of
class on the due date of the assignment. Late homework will be marked off 20%
for every day late. Homework turned in after class on the due date is
considered one day late, and the day after 2 days late, and so on. Everything
is easier, of course, if you turn in the homework on time!
There will be a few "Group Assignments" during the semester, other than the
individual assignments. Group assignments will be completed by a group of 3 or
4 students in a collaborative effort, but only one write-up of the problems
will be required. All students in the group receive the same score for the
homework. The responsibility of writing up solutions should be shared. I
suggest rotating this responsibility among the group members.
| Assignment |
Problems |
Due Date |
| 1 | pgs. 22-24 #11, 13, 18, 22, 26, 51, 54, 55
|
Tues, Jan. 26 |
| 2 | pgs. 52-54 #11, 17, 18, 24, 28, 35, 36
|
Tues, Feb. 2 |
| 3 | pg. 36 #12, 13, pg. 54 #31, 32, 34, pg. 65 #4, 18
|
Tues, Feb. 9 |
| 4 | pgs. 65-69 #14, 19, 36, 42, 53, 55, 56
|
Tues, Feb. 16 |
| Group 1 | pg. 24 #44, 45, pg. 36 #16
pgs. 53-55 #23, 29, pg. 67
#38
|
Thurs, Feb. 18 |
| 5 | pgs. 83-85 #21, 22, 26, 28, 33, 60
|
Tues, Feb. 23 |
| 6 | pgs. 168-169 #32, 53, pgs. 243-245 #22, 40, 46
|
Tues, Mar. 16 |
| 7 | pgs. 255-257 #13, 14, 26, 45, pgs. 113-115 #1, 2, 17
|
Tues, Mar. 23 |
| 8 | pgs. 115-117 #18, 28, 36, 40, 53, 56
Optional: pg. 116 #48
|
Tues, Mar. 30 |
| Group 2 | pgs. 116-117 #50, 52
pg. 243 #24, pg. 258 #52
|
Thurs, Apr. 1 |
| 9 | pgs. 134-135 #15, 17, 22, 24, 29, 35
Optional: pg. 135 #32
|
Tues, Apr. 6 |
| 10 | pgs. 149-150 #8, 16, 20, 22, pgs. 212-215 #8, 9, 50
Optional: pg. 150 #24
|
Tues, Apr. 20 |
| 11 | pgs. 193-196 #7, 8, 14, 47, 53, pgs. 269-270 #7, 10
|
Tues, Apr. 27 |
Resources:
- There are some very useful links related to abstract algebra on the
homepage of Professor Joseph Gallian, the author of the text, which is here.
- There are several opportunities for undergraduates through the William &
Mary mathematics department, including research in mathematics. If you are interested, feel free to ask me or someone else in the Mathematics department about these opportunities. Information is available here.
|