Graphs & Optimization
MAT 182 Section 01 Fall 2009

Instructor: Paul R. Zuckerman
Office: Department of Computer Science, Modular Faculty Office Building
Office Hours:
Monday & Thursday: 9:30 - 11:30 A.M.
Tuesday: 2:00 - 3:00 P.M.
Other Times: Please feel free to drop by, or call or write to make an appointment.
Phone: 257-3516
E-mail address: zuckerpr@newpaltz.edu
Web page: http://www.newpaltz.edu/~zuckerpr

Prerequisite.
Math Placement Level 3. This course fulfils the GE3 Mathematics requirement.

Text.
David M. Clark, Graphs & Optimization, Save the Trees Press. You can download and print a copy of the text from the Blackboard site for this course. Please bring a copy of the text to every class.

Syllabus.
The objective of this course is to give you an understanding of mathematical inquiry and reasoning through a study of finite graphs and their applications. The problems and techniques you will study are probably unlike those that you encountered in pre-college mathematics. The text's table of contents is a topical outline of this course. If you look thougth the text, you can get an idea of the problems we will study.

Attendance.
Each class is an opportunity for you to build and validate your understanding. Therefore, I expect you to attend and be actively engaged in every class. Attendance means that you are in class ON TIME and stay for the entire class period. I will assume from your presence that you have constructed some useful understandings from the class. I will infer from your absence that you have not. Accordingly, I will deduct one-half point from your course average for each absence beyond two. (I will compute your course average on a twelve point scale on which A = 12, A- = 11, etc.) Please do not offer excuses for classes you miss. I assume that every absence is necessary. The grade deduction is not a penalty. It is part of the method I use to assess and report what you have learned from the course.

Class preparation.
I expect you to be present and prepared to participate in each class. Your presence and participation will be important parts of your learning experience.

Assignments and other course material.
I will post assignments and other material for this course on Blackboard. One week after we conclude the study of a chapter of the text, I will collect the problems I have assigned for that chapter. You will get either full credit or no credit for each chapter. In order to enable you to get full credit, I will give you an opportunity to turn assignments in early so that I can make corrections and return you work to you. This will enable you to revise you work as often as you like until the due date. The collection of assigned work will be a portfolio that I will evalulate at the end of the course.

Submit you work on 8-1/2 x 11 paper, on pages that are not torn from a spiral notebook. Start each problem on new sheet of paper and write on only one side of a page. I will not grade work that does not comply with these standards, or is sloppy, or late.

Examinations.
I will give three in-class exams during the semester. I will announce the dates of the exams in advance.

The date and time for the final exam is listed in the College Schedule of Classes.

The location of the in-class exams or final exam may not be the normal meeting place for this class. You should check Blackboard for announcements concerning the locations of the exams.

I do not give make-up exams for those exams missed during the semester. I can excuse you from an in-class or final exam only if you present substantial documentation of a serious illness or personal emergency that prevented attendance.

Canceled Classes
If I have to cancel a class, I will try to post an announcement on Blackboard. Be suspicious of announcements posted in the classroom.

Grades.
I will compute your grade from a course average with the following weights:
Three in-class exams - 10% each.
Assignment Portfolio: 35%
Final exam - 35%.
I will adjust this average according to the attendance policy.

Notice.
I do not permit my classes to be recorded.
I enforce the College policies that prohibit eating and drinking in classrooms. Please cooperate by respecting these regulations. The College policies concerning student behavior, academic honesty, and related matters apply to this course. You are responsible for knowing and following these rules.