Syllabus

Topics. Computer arithmetic, error propagation, condition number and stability; mathematical modeling, approximation and convergence; roots of functions; calculus of finite differences; implicit and explicit methods for initial and boundary value problems; numerical integration; numerical solution of linear systems, matrix equations, and eigensystems; Fourier transforms; optimization. Various software packages are introduced and used.

Prerequisites. Math 217, Math 309, and CSE 131 or 200 (or other programming experience with permission of the instructor).

Time. Classes meet Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, 3:00 pm to 3:50 pm, in Rudolph Hall, Room 203.

Text. The lectures will follow John H. Matthews and Kurtis D. Fink, Numerical Methods Using MATLAB, fourth edition, ISBN 0-13-065248-2, Pearson, 2004. Note: except for Chapters 5 and 8, the fourth edition is virtually identical to the third edition.

Homework. You are encouraged to collaborate on homework, and to work additional exercises from the indicated problem sections, although the homework grade will be based only on the exercises listed below. Please submit your solutions using CrowdMark. Problem sets will be assigned as follows:

HW #1, due Fri, Sep 6 HW #2, due Fri, Sep 13 HW #3, due Fri, Sep 20 HW #4, due Fri, Sep 27 HW #5, due Fri, Oct 4 HW #6, due Fri, Oct 11	HW #7, due Sun, Oct 27 HW #8, due Fri, Nov 1 HW #9, due Fri, Nov 8 HW #10, due Sun, Nov 17 HW #11, due Fri, Nov 22 HW #12, due Fri, Dec 6 (last class)

The lowest HW will not be counted, and the homework score will instead be the average of the top 11 HW percentages. Solutions must be completed by 11:01 pm on the due date. Late homework will not be accepted. The problems will often require a complete proof. The homework will be judged for correctness and clarity. When the problem requires a computed solution, it must be accompanied by a correct, well-documented computer program which will be judged for its understandability. Please submit: (i) the program, with a comment for every line, (ii) the input you gave it, and (iii) the output it produced, for at least one example run.

Tests. There will be one midterm examination in class on Wednesday, Oct. 23rd, 2019. (2019 Midterm conditions -- same as 2016 and 2018.) There will be one cumulative take-home final examination emphasizing the remaining material, due on Thursday, December 12th, 2019 by 8:00PM. It will be presented on CrowdMark.

Grading. One score will be assigned for homework, one for the midterm examination, and one for the final examination. These three will contribute in respective shares of HW 50%, MT 20%, and FE 30% to the course score. Letter grades, computed from the course score class average and standard deviation, will be at least the following:

Computing. Students are encouraged to use MATLAB and the computers available in the Arts and Sciences Computing Center for both symbolic and numerical computations. There is a freeware alternative of MatLab, called Octave. It does not have the symbolic algebra functions of MatLab, but those are available within the freeware Macsyma system.

Office Hours. Mondays and Wednesdays, 4-5pm, or by appointment, in Cupples I, room 105a.