Math 404A: Introduction to Modern Algebra

Professor William (Monty) McGovern 
Spring 2008


Instructor:
Monty (or William) McGovern
Office: Padelford C-450
Phone: 206-543-1149
Email: mcgovern@math.washington.edu
Office Hours: W 10:30, Th 1:30 or by appointment, Padelford C-450; grader's hours T 10:30, office PDL C-113, email mjkorson@math.washington.edu
Lectures:
Monday, Wednesday & Friday, 9:30-10:20 a.m., Thomson Hall 135
Required Text:

Algebra, by Michael Artin, (Prentice Hall, 1991).

Prerequisites:
Math 403 or the equivalent. 
Exams:

1st Midterm: Friday, May 2, in class.
2nd Midterm: Friday, May 23, in class.
Final: Wednesday, June 11, 8:30 a.m. (Note: this is one hour earlier than our normal starting time.)

Grading:
Your grade will be based on weekly homework, two midterms, and a final exam, each of these accounting for 1/3 of the final grade. The final exam will be comprehensive. If you must miss an exam because of illness or emergency, I would very much appreciate advance notice. If you cannot complete a homework assignment on time, you can always turn it in by 4:00 on the day it is due to the grader's (Matt Korson's) mailbox. PLEASE turn in WHATEVER YOU CAN rather than nothing. In all tests you may use two letter-sized pages (one sheet front and back of notes in your own handwriting). class.
Incompletes and Drops:
The grade of Incomplete will be given ONLY if a student has been doing satisfactory work until the end of the quarter and then misses the final exam for a documented illness, religious reason, or family emergency.
What to Expect:
I will be finishing up Galois theory (Chapter 14) this quarter and then moving on to module theory over PIDs (Chapter 12) with applications to linear algebra (and a surprising application to Galois theory). Later, as time permits, I may do some representation theory of finite groups (Chapter 9). I will broadly follow the text and try to indicate at all times where and how it treats the material I am discussing, but I will feel free to omit certain topics, cover others in greater depth, and discuss still others that are not in the text at all.

             Homework

Due:
Problems:
Apr 11
14.5.9,10 [\alpha is a root of f],12; 14.Misc.3,4: read 14.7-14.9
Apr 18
12.1.1,5,6b; 12.2.1,4: read 12.1,12.2
Apr 25
12.2.2; 12.4.3,4; 12.6.1,4: read 12.4-12.6
study problems, first midterm (May 2)
12.6.2; 12.7.2,4-6: review Chapter 12 through 12.7
May 9
12.8.1; 9.1.1,4,8,9: read 12.8,9.1,2
May 16
9.2.4,6; 9.4.2,4; 9.5.3: read 9.4,5
study problems, second midterm (May 23)
9.5.9-12,17ad: read 9.7,9
May 30
9.5.12,13; 9.Misc.1,8,9: finish Chapter 9
study problems, final
14.9.9; 12.7.17; 12.1.6; 9.8.1; 9.4.6


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