braj@calvin.edu
rpruim@calvin.edu
If you come for a passport session this summer or have some time when you arrive in the fall, stop by and chat with either Professor Bradley or Professor Pruim. You may also contact us by email. When you arrive in the fall you will probably also see some course announcement fliers hanging about to remind you about the seminar.
Also, at our first meeting we will give some information about both the department and the seminar. So plan to come and check us out.
No. You will be able to register for Math 190 when you arrive in the fall. On the other hand, if you have not yet registered and are interested in the seminar, you can save yourself a little bit of paperwork by registering for Math 190 when you register for your other courses.
No. Consider the first meeting your official welcome to the department. In addition to giving you some more information about the seminar (and pizza) we will also describe some other activities and events of the department (problem of the week, math competitions, fall picnic, etc.).
No. Any student interested in mathematics is welcome to participate, regardless of intended major or profession.
The seminar meets each Wednesday for about 90 minutes (3:30 - 5 pm, give or take 5 or 10 minutes) throughout the semester.
Yes (usually). The seminar is a 1-hour course (Math 190).
No (usually). As long as students are full-time and under the 17-hour limit, there will be no increase in tuition for taking Math 190. Students with 17 hours already can choose between getting credit (and paying for it), auditing (and paying a reduced amount) or participating with out credit (and no increase in tuition). Students with 16 or fewer credits should register normally for the course.
Not really. We will be doing some things during the seminar time and may give you some optional things to do outside of class, but there will be no exam and no graded homework. Regular attendance and active participation in the seminar are the only requirements. The seminar is graded on a Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory (i.e., pass/fail) basis.
For almost all college students who are interested in mathematics, science, or engineering, their only experience of mathematics in their first year is calculus. Calculus is an interesting subject and provides us the capability of doing some amazing things, but it is only one small slice of mathematics. 190 enables students to gain a much broader perspective on what mathematics is like and to enjoy doing some mathematics that is quite different from calculus.
The specific topics for this year's seminar have not yet been chosen, but there will be quite a variety of topics. Each topic will be covered in one or two (perhaps at most three) weeks. For the most part we will develop some interesting mathematical tools that you may not encounter in your other mathematics courses. In addition to strictly mathematical topics, we may also discuss such things as job opportunities for people with mathematics majors (or just an interest in mathematics), math on the internet, etc. Although this year's topics will not be identical to last year's, you might want to look at last year's list of topics to get a feel for the kind of thing that might happen this year.
Unfortunately not. Perhaps we can occasionally arrange for some sort of snack though. On the other hand, if the students spontaneously arranged for pizza on their own ... :-)
Page Created: Fri Jul 16 11:29:08 1999 Last Modified: Thu Jul 29 19:58:58 1999 Maintained by: Randall Pruim