Math 210

Spring 2011

Schedule of lectures and readings

Last modified 1/5/2011

Please see The Official Schedule for details of the schedule for University events.  Please note that if any date in the following conflicts with the official schedule and exam schedules, the official schedules apply.

Spring 2011 Exam Schedule:

• Exam #1 will be Friday, February 11
• Exam #2 will be Tuesday, March 1
• Exam #3 will be Friday, April 8
• Exam #4 will be Friday, April 29 (Poincaré's birthday (1854)!).  Please note that this is in the last full week of the term.
• The final exam for this class is scheduled for Monday, May 9, from 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM.  It will be a comprehensive two hour exam having the weight of two hour exams.  University regulations require that all students in this section take the final exam at this date and time.

This is a tentative schedule of lectures and readings, and is likely to change as we progress through the semester.  I will try and keep exam dates fixed (and will provide adequate notice of changes in exam dates), but all else is subject to change.  The date and time of the final exam is set by the University and is not subject to change.

Week 1:  Monday, January 17

• Topics
• Introduction to the course
• The role of mathematics in computer science
• An introduction to combinatorics
• Reading
• 1.1 - 1.2
• Other Notes
• Monday is Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday.  No classes or office hours
• Office hours begin next week.

Week 2:  Monday, January 24

• Topics
• Binomial Coefficients
• Relations and data models
• Reading
• 1.3 - 1.5
• Other Notes
• Office hours begin this week

Week 3:  Monday, January 31

• Topics
• Number theory and its applications
• Reading
• 2.1 - 2.2
• Other Notes
• Monday, January 31, is the last day to drop without record.
• Hour exam #1 will be next Friday (February 11)

Week 4:  Monday, February 7

• Topics
• Representation of data and some consequences
• Reading
• TBA
• Other Notes
• Hour Exam #1 will be Friday, February 11

Week 5:  Monday, February 14

• Topics
• Keeping data and communications confidential - RSA cryptography
• Reading
• 2.3
• Other Notes

Week 6:  Monday, February 21

• Topics
• RSA Cryptography and an introduction to computability
• Reading
• 2.4
• Other Notes
• Hour Exam #2 will be next Tuesday, March 1

Week 7:  Monday, February 28

• Topics
• Propositional logic, truth tables, and digital circuitry
• An NP-complete problem
• Reading
• 3.1
• Other Notes
• Monday, February 28, is the last day to drop with an automatic 'W'
• Hour Exam #2 will be Tuesday, March 1
• There will be no class or office hours on Friday, March 4 (Columbia History of Science Conference)

Week 8:  Monday, March 7

• Topics
• Predicate logic, proofs, databases and knowledge representation
• Reading
• 3.2 - 3.3
• Other Notes
• Friday, March 11, is mid-term (not an exam day for us)

Week 9:  Monday, March 14

• Topics
• Spring Break!
• Reading
• Other Notes

Week 10:  Monday, March 21

• Topics
• Induction and Recursion
• Reading
• 4.1 - 4.2
• Other Notes

Week 11:  Monday, March 28

• Topics
• Asymptotic Analysis
• Reading
• 4.3 - 4.5
• Other Notes
• Hour Exam #3 will be next Friday (April 8)

Week 12:  Monday, April 4

• Topics
• An Introduction to the theory of computation
• Scanners, command language interfaces, and finite state automata
• Reading
• TBA
• Other Notes
• Hour Exam #3 will be Friday, April 8

Week 13:  Monday, April 11

• Topics
• Parsers, compilers, and push-down automata
• Reading
• TBA
• Other Notes

Week 14:  Monday, April 18

• Topics
• Turing machines and computability
• What is computable?  NP complete problems again
• Reading
• TBA
• Other Notes

Week 15:  Monday, April 25

• Topics
• As necessary
• Reading
• TBA
• Other Notes
• Hour Exam #4 will be Friday, April 29.  Please note that this is in the last full week of the term.

Week 16:  Monday, May 2

• Topics
• Review and wrap-up
• Reading
• TBA
• Other Notes
• Tuesday, May 3, is the last day of class.  No work (except for the final exam, of course) can be accepted past class time on Tuesday.

Week 17:  Monday, May 9

• Topics
• Final Exams
• Other Notes
• The final exam for this class is scheduled for Monday, May 9, from 8:00 AM to 10:00 AM.  It will be a comprehensive two hour exam having the weight of two hour exams.  University regulations require that all students in this section take the final exam at this date and time.