V63.0122: Calculus II
Coordinator: | Alexander Hanhart |
---|---|
Term: | Spring 2011 |
Date: | November 11, 2011 |
Goals and Topics
Welcome to Calc II!
"The book of the universe is written in the language of mathematics." Galileo wrote this four hundred years ago, even before Newton and Leibniz discovered calculus. The statement is as valid today as ever: We use functions in all the sciences, and calculus allows us to analyze the functions and draw scientific conclusions.
Calc II is a second semester calculus course for students who have previously been introduced to the basic ideas of differential and integral calculus. Over the semester we will study three (related) topics, topics that form a central part of the language of modern science:
- applications and methods of integration,
- differential equations,
- infinite series and the representation of functions by power series.
The material we take up in this course has applications in physics, chemistry, biology, environmental science, astronomy, economics, statistics, and just about everything else. We want you to leave the course not only with computational ability, but with the ability to use these notions in their natural scientific contexts, and with an appreciation of their mathematical beauty and power.
Course Details
Class Meetings
Sections meet MW or TR for 110 minutes each class period. A list of sections, their meeting times and locations, and their instructors can be found on through the Registrar's Class Schedule Search. If you enter "Calculus II" in the course name search field, the current term's listings will automatically come up.
Homework
There are two media for homework in Calculus II.
There will be weekly on-line assignments administered through the on-line homework software WebAssign, which is a required course material. WebAssign problems are computational in nature and assess the techniques introduced in class. Many of these problems will resemble examples in the textbook or from class. You will get immediate feedback on your progress and will get several chances to ensure it. WebAssign is accessed directly through the course's blackboard website.
There will also be problems to write up on paper each week and turn in. These problems will require more than just procedure, might connect two or more things together, and will more closely resemble the harder exam problems.
One of the major goals of college-level mathematics education is to move students from computational processes to conceptual thinking and communication. That is the biggest difference between this course and a high school course, even an Advanced Placement course. Mathematics is more than a bag of tricks and there are not a limited number of "types" of problems that can be asked. The goal in class is to prepare you to do the homework and not necessarily to show you how to do your homework. The learning occurs when you can move yourself into the unknown territory.
Graders will grade the written homework promptly. Graders will be expecting you to express your ideas clearly, legibly, and completely, often requiring complete English sentences rather than merely just a long string of equations or unconnected mathematical expressions. This means you could lose points for unexplained answers.
In fairness to fellow students and to graders, late homework will generally not be accepted. Because sometimes things more important than math homework come up, you have some free passes: Your lowest problem set score will be dropped in the final grade calculation.
By all means you may work in groups on the homework assignments. Collaboration is a big part of learning and of scholarship in general. However, each student must turn in his or her own write-up of the solutions, with an acknowledgment of collaborators.
There is free math tutoring sponsored by the math department, meeting in room 524 of Warren Weaver Hall. Check the signs posted throughout WWH and the tutoring web page.
Exams
There will be one midterm and one final exam, with dates to be determined.
Exams will contain a mixture of computational and conceptual problems. Some of them will resemble homework problems, while some will be brand new to you.
Quizzes will also be given during class or recitation. Quiz scores will be averaged together, again dropping the lowest. Quizzes may be traditional individual timed assignments, or they may be group exercises, or untimed take-home exercises, or other. The quiz schedule and assignment type will be determined by your instructors and TA's and you will be notified in advance about the schedule.
Policy on out-of-sequence exams and missed quizzes
We are only able to accommodate a limited number of out-of-sequence exams due to limited availability of rooms and proctors. For this reason, we may approve out-of-sequence exams in the following cases:
- A documented medical excuse.
- A University sponsored event such as an athletic tournament, a play, or a musical performance. Athletic practices and rehearsals do not fall into this category. Please have your coach, conductor, or other faculty advisor contact your instructor.
- A religious holiday.
- Extreme hardship such as a family emergency.
We will not be able to accommodate out-of-sequence exams, quizzes, and finals for purposes of more convenient travel, including already purchased tickets.
Scheduled out-of-sequence exams and quizzes (those not arising from emergencies) must be taken before the actual exam. Otherwise, please talk to your instructor before you return to class.
If you require additional accommodations as determined by the Center for Student Disabilities, please let your instructor know as soon as possible.
Prerequisites
Students who wish to enroll in Calculus II must meet one of the following prerequisites:
- Calculus I (V63.0121) with a C or higher.
- A score of 4 or higher on the Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus AB test
- A score of 4 or higher on the Advanced Placement (AP) Calculus BC test
- Our department's Calculus II placement test.
See the math deparment's placement web page for more information.
Grades
Your course score will be determined as the following weighted average:
Item | Weight |
---|---|
Midterm | 20% |
Homework | 15% |
WebAssign | 15% |
Quizzes | 15% |
Final | 35% |
Total | 100% |
We will convert this score to a letter grade beginning with these values as cutoffs:
Cutoff | Letter Grade |
---|---|
93 | A |
90 | A- |
87 | B+ |
83 | B |
80 | B- |
75 | C+ |
65 | C |
50 | D |
These cutoffs might be adjusted, but only in the downward direction (to make letter grades higher).
Textbook and Materials
You need a textbook and you need WebAssign access. The nest paragraph indicates the variety of option for purchasing these. Before reading through the option please note that you can purchase WebAssign access directly through blackboard so many of these options might be moot!We have tried to provide as many options as possible for you to achieve this.
Essential Calculus, Early Transcendentals by James Stewart is the official textbook for the course. NYU has a custom imprint of this text which is sold bundled with access to Enhanced WebAssign. Enhanced WebAssign includes a hyperlinked electronic format of our textbook accessible through the web.
In addition to the hardcover custom textbook, the NYU bookstore also has a limited number of looseleaf printings on three-hole punched paper, bundled with access to Enhanced WebAssign. These are less expensive up front, easier to carry around (since you don't have to carry the entire textbook at once), but cannot be sold back to the bookstore.
You may also buy the latest edition of Essential
Calculus,
Early
Transcendentals, ISBN-13 978-0-495-01428-7 non-customized,
elsewhere. Then you can buy WebAssign (regular
or Enhanced) from them
on-line
directly. Finally, you may decide to go completely electronic with
Enhanced WebAssign alone.
Which one is right for you? If you want to minimize your total costs but want some kind of paper textbook, it's either a used textbook and regular WebAssign or the official looseleaf edition which includes Enhanced WebAssign. If you don't desire a paper text, get Enhanced WebAssign and nothing else.
If you want the most textbook for your dollar, you probably want one of the paper textbook plus Enhanced WebAssign bundles sold in the bookstore. You'll have the full paper version and the full hyperlinked electronic version. The hardcover can be sold back, but the looseleaf is more convenient.
The calculator question
A graphing calculator is encouraged for class discussion and on homework, but not allowed for exams. No specific calculator is endorsed, so do not buy a new one. If you have one already, continue to use that one; if you do not, try free alternatives such as Wolfram Alpha.
Conclusion
We look forward to seeing you in Calculus II!