Syllabus for Calculus I - Fall 2021

Professor: Mark McClure

Course purpose

Calculus was first developed in the late 17th century by Isaac Newton. Newton developed calculus as a tool to understand Kepler's laws of planetary motion. In the process, he answered questions dating literally past the edge of recorded history, ushered in the modern scientific era, and created mathematical tools with applications to sciences still being discovered today. In this course we will:

• Develop a stronger understanding of infinity and infinitesimal (infinitely small).
• Develop an understanding an understanding of area of complicated regions bound by curves.
• Improve algebraic skill

Materials

• The text: We will use the Active Calculus textbook by Matt Boelkins. This is an outstanding, freely available, open source text that you can browse online. It is available in several formats:
  • HTML
  • PDF
  • Print ($20 from Amazon)
  You do not need to purchase the Print version, but you may if you like having a book in your hand. The HTML and PDF versions are free and we might occasionally refer to the HTML version in class.
• WebWork: We will have regular auto-graded homework using WebWork. Your username is the same as your UNCA username and your initial password is your student ID number.
• Math Discourse: We'll use an online discussion forum called Math Discourse to facilitate communication. We'll also do a few assignments using this tool.
• Zoom: Everyone at UNCA learned more about Zoom than they wanted to know over the last year and a half. While I certainly hope that we are transitioning away from using it so much, the flexibility it offers makes it worth keeping it in our toolbox. It's possible that I will occasionally teach remotely and will definitely do so on the first Friday of class.

There are some tools that we will not use:

• Calculators: While we will use computers for visualization and serious computation, the use of hand held calculators generally obscure the main conceptual points of mathematics. We will not use them on exams.
• Moodle: All material will be disseminated via our class web page.

Grades

• Exams: There will be three exams during the term worth about 100 points apiece. There will also be a final exam worth around 170 points. The likely dates for all those exams are already listed on our course calendar.
• Qizzes: We will have a quiz about every other week that will be worth anywhere from 15 to 25 points. Likely dates for those quizzes are listed on our course calendar.
• Homework: There will be three types of homework:
  • Textbook assignments, which will not be collected but offer important practice
  • Online, automatically graded HW, and
  • Forum assignments, which give us an opportunity to collaborate.
• In class problems: We will often work on problem sheets in class together. Quiz and exam problems will be closely related to these sheets. In addition, you will gain points simply for participating regularly.
• Final grades: I will determine final grades using a scale not more stringent than the standard 90-80-70-60 scale. You will be apprised of your standing as the term progresses.
• Late work: In general, I don't accept late work.
• Cheating: I don't deal with cheating. If I suspect cheating strongly enough, I simply refer you to the provost and fail you for the class.

Your rights and responsibilities

It's worth understanding your rights and responsibilities as a student at UNCA. One of my responsibilities is to make sure you have the information that you need to do that. Since this is common to all classes, I've got that information on this legalese document.