Course Guidelines Math 433
Dr. R. Beezer Fall 2003
Text   We will be using Contemporary Abstract Algebra (Fifth Edition) by Joseph A. Gallian. We will cover material from Chapters 0 through 11, and 24 - see the attached tentative schedule for the exact sections covered.
Home Page   Start at http://buzzard.ups.edu/courses.html to locate the WWW page for this course.
Office Hours   My office is Thompson 321G; the telephone number is 879-3564. Making appointments or simple, non-mathematical questions can be handled via electronic mail - my address is beezer@ups.edu. Office hours will be 10:00-10:50 on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and 9:30-10:50 on Tuesday. I will always be available during these times on a first-come, first-served basis. If these times are not convenient, please do not hesitate to make an appointment with me for another time. You are also welcome to drop by my office without an appointment at any time that I am in (2 P.M. to 4 P.M. is a good time to try). Office hours are your opportunity to receive extra help or clarification on material from class, or to discuss any other aspect of the course.
Homework   Homework will be assigned for each chapter, but will not be collected. Of course, you are not limited to working just these assigned problems. Once a week, generally on Friday, we will have a problem session where we can discuss these problems. It is your responsibility to be certain that you are learning from the homework exercises. The best ways to do this are to work the problems diligently when assigned and to participate in the classroom discussion. If at this point you are still unsure about a problem, then a visit to my office is in order. Making a consistent effort outside of the classroom is the easiest way to do well in this course.
Mathematics not only demands straight thinking, it grants the student the satisfaction of knowing when he is thinking straight. - D. Jackson
Mathematics is not a spectator sport. - Anonymous
I hear, I forget.
I see, I remember.
I do, I understand.
    - Chinese Proverb
Reading Questions   Reading questions will be posted on the course WWW page for each chapter. Your answers are due back to me by 10 P.M. the night before we begin discussing a new chapter (usually this will be Monday night).
Quizzes   There will be thirteen one-hour quizzes - see the attached sheet for tentative dates - though mostly they will be on Monday, at the conclusion of each chapter. The lowest two of your quiz scores will be dropped. The comprehensive final exam will be given at Noon on Monday, December 15. The final exam cannot be given at any other time, so be certain that you do not make any travel plans that conflict, and also be aware that I will allow you to work longer on the final exam than just the two-hour scheduled block of time.
Grades   Grades will be based on the following breakdown: Quizzes - 75%; Reading Questions - 5%; Final - 20%. Homework, attendance and improvement will be considered for borderline grades. Scores will be posted on the World Wide Web at
http://buzzard.ups.edu/courses.html. A reminder about withdrawals - a Withdrawal Passing grade (W) can only be given during the third or fourth weeks of the semester, after that time (barring unusual circumstances), the appropriate grade is a Withdrawal Failing (WF), even if your work has been of passing quality. See the attached schedule for the last day to drop with an automatic `W' and please read The Logger about these often misunderstood grades.
Attendance   Daily attendance is required and expected, and is a pretty good idea.
Purpose   At this point in your college career, you should be well on your way to being an independent scholar, who appreciates the beauty of mathematics and understands the effort needed to master new and difficult ideas. Consistent with that, I will be giving you a fair degree of freedom to learn this material in a manner that suits you.
Read the book before the lectures, work the exercises diligently, tidy up your class notes each evening, and ask questions. Arriving late to class, or having conversations with others during class, not only disrupts your peers, but tells me you are not serious about your education. I will not routinely check attendance, but our class is small enough that I will notice when you are not here, and again this will be another way that you signal me about your commitment to the endeavor.
Many consider group theory (the branch of Abstract Algebra that we will concentrate on this semester) one of the most fascinating areas of mathematics. The investment of your time and energy applied to studying it will be amply repaid by a full understanding of its deeper ideas.
Homework Exercises
ChapterPageComputationalTheoretical
0 23 4, 16, 29, 38, 41, 46 8, 12, 14, 15, 21, 24
1 37 4, 13, 19, 22 6, 7, 8, 9
2 53 3, 5, 8, 13, 22, 24, 37 12, 14, 16, 17, 19, 29, 33
3 67 9, 24, 27, 28, 31, 33, 34, 41, 42 10, 13, 14, 16, 19, 21, 22
4 82 19, 22, 33, 40, 45, 46, 55, 65 24, 31, 41, 54, 56, 62, 64
5 111 4, 6, 24, 25, 32, 33, 36, 43 13, 16, 22, 31, 40, 45, 46
6 129 3, 4, 5, 7, 12, 16, 22, 23 2, 10, 30, 32, 33, 34, 35
7 145 1, 2, 3, 6, 8, 12, 13, 26, 33 10, 15, 19, 21, 23, 24, 36
8 162 5, 8, 12, 18, 20, 22, 26, 30, 40, 49, 51, 53 3, 14, 16, 55
9 186 3, 4, 5, 9, 12, 14, 21, 24 6, 10, 30, 37, 41, 43, 46, 48, 49, 58
10 205 2, 6, 10, 11, 14, 17, 19, 20 22, 37, 38, 42, 45, 46, 53 (see #7 p. 169)
11 219 3, 4, 6, 7, 8, 12, 15, 19, 25, 28 20, 30, 32, 34
24 407 5, 7, 11, 12, 18, 21, 44 1, 4, 10, 33, 36, 39, 42
Tentative Daily Schedule


Monday Tuesday Wednesday

Friday

Sep 1
Labor Day

Sep 2
Chapter 0

Sep 3
Chapter 0

Sep 5
Problem Session

Sep 8
Quiz #1

Sep 9
Chapter 1

Sep 10
Chapter 1

Sep 12
Problem Session

Sep 15
Quiz #2

Sep 16
Chapter 2

Sep 17
Chapter 2

Sep 19
Problem Session

Sep 23
Quiz #3

Sep 24
Chapter 3

Sep 25
Chapter 3

Sep 27
Problem Session

Sep 29
Quiz #4

Sep 30
Chapter 4

Oct 1
Chapter 4

Oct 3
Problem Session

Oct 6
Quiz #5

Oct 7
Chapter 5

Oct 8
Chapter 5

Oct 10
Problem Session

Oct 13
Quiz #6

Oct 14
Chapter 6

Oct 15
Chapter 6

Oct 17
Problem Session
Mid-Term
Tentative Daily Schedule


Monday Tuesday Wednesday

Friday

Oct 20
Fall Break

Oct 21
Quiz #7

Oct 22
Chapter 7
Thurs: Chap.  7

Oct 24
Problem Session

Oct 27
Quiz #8

Oct 28
Chapter 8

Oct 29
Chapter 8

Oct 31
Problem Session

Nov 3
Quiz #9

Nov 4
Bonus Day
RSA Crypto

Nov 5
Bonus Day
RSA Crypto

Nov 7
No class

Nov 10
Bonus Day
Rubik's Cube

Nov 11
Chapter 9

Nov 12
Chapter 9

Nov 14
Problem Session

Nov 17
Quiz #10

Nov 18
Chapter 10

Nov 19
Chapter 10

Nov 21
Problem Session

Nov 24
Quiz #11

Nov 25
Chapter 11

Nov 26
Chapter 11

Nov 28
Thanksgiving

Dec 1
Problem Session

Dec 2
Quiz #12

Dec 3
Chapter 24

Dec 5
Chapter 24

Dec 8
Problem Session

Dec 9
Quiz #13

Dec 10
Housekeeping

Final Examinations
Monday, December 15 at Noon


File translated from TEX by TTH, version 3.40.
On 14 Aug 2003, 10:12.