News and Notes -- Last update 12/11 [Skip to new postings]

• Old News
• 11/9
  1. New item for download, available above under Selected Paper Homework Solutions: selected solutions to HW 8 problems.
• 11/18
  1. New items for download, available above under Exams and Practice Exams: Quiz 8 and Quiz 9.
  2. I have decided to postpone the homework for section 5.4 until after Thanksgiving. Consequently, it will not be on Friday's quiz. It will, however, be on the midterm after we come back. Please see the Homework List for details.
  3. News and Notes for October have now been moved to Old News.
• 11/20
  1. New item for download, available above under Selected Paper Homework Solutions: selected solutions to HW 9 problems.
  2. New item for download, available above under Exams and Practice Exams: Midterm II.
• 11/25
  1. New item for download, available above under Exams and Practice Exams: last Friday's quiz.
  2. New item for download, available above under Worksheets and Handouts: Monday's bonus assignment, with solutions. There was an error in the assignment given in class. The corrected version is above.
  3. New item for download, available above under Exams and Practice Exams: a practice midterm, with solutions. As usual, you are urged to complete the practice exam under test conditions as much as possible (no notes, no calculator, no interruptions) in order to give yourself a good "dress rehearsal."
  4. Important note. I have not exhaustively proofread the solutions to the practice midterm. (I am concentrating on making sure the actual exam is error-free!) If you find any errors or typos in these solutions, please let me know as soon as possible so I can fix them.
  5. A reminder that our problem session next week will be longer to give us extra time to go over problems before the test. It will be from 4:35 to 6:00pm. It will be beneficial to you and to everyone else if you have thoroughly gone over the solutions to the practice problems before this session (see above). I will be happy to answer any questions that are asked; however, we will have time for many more questions if everyone is asking questions like, "In your solutions, on #3, I get all the steps except this part...", rather than, "I didn't get #3. No, I haven't tried to read your solutions."
  6. Do you get nervous before exams? Your first line of defense is to be as well-prepared as possible. The following suggestions may help:
     1. Practice all the types of problems many times, until you reach a high level of accuracy and feel completely comfortable.
     2. Talk over difficult problems and concepts with your study group; you might try doing this at the tutoring lab, where you can get help if your group gets stuck.
     3. Of course, you should not hesitate to see me (or email me) with any questions.
     With continued study and practice everyone in our class is capable of doing well on the exam. I will be rooting for all of you! Good luck!
• 11/26
  1. New item for download, available above under Selected Paper Homework Solutions: selected solutions to HW 10 problems.
• 12/11
  1. New item for download, available above under Exams and Practice Exams: Midterm III, and a collection of practice problems, with solutions, for the upcoming final. As usual, you are urged to complete the practice under test conditions as much as possible (no notes, no calculator, no interruptions) in order to give yourself a good "dress rehearsal." Please let me know as soon as possible if you spot any errors or typos.
  2. As announced in class, I will assume you are taking the final exam, unless you tell me otherwise or have earned an A already. If you decide, for any other reason, not to take the final exam, please email me to let me know, so I can save paper by not printing an exam for you. If you later change your mind, let me know a minimum of one hour before the exam begins.
  3. I will be holding consultation hours this Friday in our regular classroom at the regular time. Hope to see you there!
  4. I will be in my office on Monday, December 15 from 10:00-12:00. Please come if you have last-minute questions. You may also feel free to email me in the meantime. Good luck studying for the final!