Welcome!

Most course materials can be found at the right of the page. If you have a question, please contact me or your TA, directly or by e-mail.

Some documents here are PDF files which require Acrobat Reader to read them. There's a good chance you already have this software, but if you don't you can download it for free.

Announcements:

Announced 12/1/2008: Please note the FINAL EXAM IS SATURDAY, DECEMBER 6 FROM 5:00 TO 8:00 PM. The locations can be found at the left of this page. Also note the following important announcements:
- Review sheets and suggested review problems are at the right of this page. Most notably you will find:
  - Full Written Solutions to the Spring 2008 Final
  - Dr. Loveless Final Review Problems
  - Dr. Conroy Final Review with Problems
  - Review of Chapters 1-8
  - Review of Chapters 9-17
  - Review of Chapters 18-23
  - The link to the final exams from previous quarters can be found at the right of this page.
Announced 11/26/2008: The last review sheet is online. The final exam is comprehensive.
Announced 11/19/2008: The grades are up. You are required to read all the announcements at the top of the grade page before you look at your grade. I do not discuss grade questions via email! And you should be able to read the syllabus and grade explanation to figure out what you need on the final to get a desired grade.
- The exam 2 statistics are as follows:
  - EXAM 2 MEDIAN: 43 out of 50 (86%)
  - EXAM 2 AVERAGE: 42.3 out of 50 (84.6%)
  - EXAM 2 QUARTILES: The exam scores are divided into fourths at the scores 40, 43 and 47 (thus, 75% of all students scored above 40 out of 50).
  - WARNING: The final exam can still greatly impact your grade (your GPA can go up, or down, by more than 0.5 still), so make sure you are well prepared for the final exam.
Announced 11/7/2008: The second review is online. The exam will cover Chapters 8 - 17.
Announced 10/29/2008: I have posted two extra belt and wheel examples like those in Chapter 14.
Announced 10/24/2008: The grades are up. You are required to read all the announcements at the top of the grade page before you look at your grade. I do not discuss grade questions via email!
Announced 10/20/2008: The solutions to each version of Exam 1 are at the right of this page. You will need to compate the numbers in the answers to see which version you have. Grades and score statistics will appear later this week.
Announced 10/8/2008: As promised here is the solution to 7.10. Mimic this solution to do 7.11. Note that 7.12 is not due on Friday.
Announced 10/5/2008: Please check out the updated problem list for HW 2. In addition, I have posted a review of Chapters 1-8.
Announced 9/26/2008: I have posted two hints for homework 1.
Announced 9/26/2008: ADVICE TO MATH 120 STUDENTS! Many students find the first two weeks to be the most difficult in this course. It is an adjustment and I do believe that you will get more used to it. My main advice is as follows:
- Start the homework as early as possible.
- Try all tutoring options including: the math study center, CLUE (in Mary Gates Hall Commons, 9:00 pm - midnight, Sunday - Thursday), use quiz section wisely, visit your TA's office hours, and visit my office hours
- HOMEWORK COMPLETION STRATEGY:
  - First, work through each problem systematically as we have done in class (that is, visualize, find equations for curves, translate the question, and solve for what you can). If you do all this and still get stuck, then look at examples from lecture and from the textbook. If you still are stuck, then make a note of the problem and move on to the next one. I don't want you to spend more than 10-15 minutes on your own on one problem.
  - When you have completed the problems that you can do, then you can go back and look at the problems you were stuck. Perhaps you will have fresh ideas after working on the other problems. If not, then you need to first discuss the problem with a classmate. Then ask a question during quiz section. Then visit the math study center or CLUE. In this way you can be efficient with your time. Again this does not work, unless you start the homework as early as possible.
- Please note that our grading policy on the homework allows for a little bit of flex. I select 3 problems at random to be graded carefully (out of 3 points each). I also give 6 points for overall completion and presentation. So if you occasionally cannot complete one or two problems on a given homework assignment, then it will likely not have a great impact on your grade. As long as you show some attempt on all the problems, then your homework scores will likely be in the 12-15 out of 15 range. So if there is one or two problems on this first assignment that you absolutely cannot finish, it's okay. Just don't make it a habit.
- If you are worried that you will have difficulty on the exams. It is a good idea to start looking at old midterm exams. If you see a certain type of problem on several old exams, then it is somewhat likely that a related problem will appear on your exam. So if you know the appropriate techniques for such a problem, then you can almost guarantee yourself a certain amount of partial credit.
Announced 9/22/2008: Welcome to Math 120.
Your first task is to get the textbook at Professional Copy 'n' Print at 4200 Univesity Way NE (One block South of the bookstore).
Then you need to print off a homework schedule. This is a tentative schedule, any changes will be announced in lecture. See you all in class.
Don't forget that Homework 1 is due Thursday, October 2 (START EARLY). If you finish early and would like an extra challenge, try the following problem.

COURSE RESOURCES

Syllabus (pdf)

Homework Problems

Course Calendar

Grades

Grading Scale

Two Homework 1 Hints

Solution to 7.10

Review of Chapters 1-8

Chapter 9 Lecture Example

Ch 12 and 13 Hints

Extra Ch. 14 belt and wheel examples

Review of Chapters 9 - 17

Review of Chapters 17 - 23

A List of Problems to Review

Full Written Solutions to the Spring 2008 Final

OLD EXAMS

Exam 1 Version 1

Exam 1 Version 2

Exam 2 Version 1

Exam 2 Version 2

The link below will take you to an archive which contains old exams and some solutions for previous quarters. I will not post solutions for exams which do not already have posted solutions, however I will gladly discuss any questions you have during office hours or in class reviews.

Old Exam Archive

Math 120 materials website

A student expecting to get a good grade should work through several (5+) of these old exams before each midterm and before the final. You should treat these as practice tests. Take them yourself without looking up the answers first, and then see how well you did and see what you need to work on.

CHALLENGING EXTRA PROBLEMS

Speed and Conversion Challenge

UW RESOURCES

Math Study Center

Center for Learning
and Undergraduate
Enrichment (CLUE)

Student Counseling Center

Information for Students
of International TAs

Math 120: Fall 2008

LECTURER

TAs

EXAM DATES