Instructor: Terence Tao, MS 5622, ph. 206-4844 (tao@math.ucla.edu) Note: I get a lot of spam e-mails these days, so please mark your e-mails with "Math 33A" or something similar in the subject line, or send the e-mails from an UCLA address, otherwise it may get lost in the spam.
Lectures: MWF 1-1:50 pm, at Franz 1260
Section: Tu 1-1:50pm, at MS 5138 (2A); Th 1-1:50pm, at Royce 156 (2B); Tu 1-1:50 pm, at MS 5148 (2C); Th 1-1:50 pm, at MS 5137 (2D)
Office hours: Mon 3-5, Thu 11-12
TA: Rahul Fernandez MS 6617F rahul@math.ucla.edu (2A/2B), Danielle O’Donnol MS2954 daodonno@math.ucla.edu (2C/2D)
TA Office hours: Thu 10-12, SMC Thu 12-1 (2A/2B); Tu/Th 2:40-4:30 (2C/2D)
Textbook: O. Bretscher, Linear Algebra, 3rd Ed., Prentice Hall. We will be following the official syllabus closely.
Homework: Homework will be assigned every week. It will not be collected; however, each week (starting in second week) a five-minute, closed-book quiz based on one of the homework questions will be given in the discussion section. Quizzes can only be taken in the section you are assigned; in particular if you miss your Tuesday quiz you cannot take the Thursday quiz. However, the lowest quiz score will be dropped, so it is possible to miss one quiz without impacting your grade. Different sections will usually have different quiz questions. The last week’s homework will not be quizzed. However, one of the questions from the last week’s homework will appear on the final.
Examinations: There are two mid-terms, on Wednesday Feb 2 and Friday Feb 18, both in Franz 1260 at 1-1:50 pm. The final is at Wednesday, Mar 23, 3-6 p.m (exam code 06), at Franz 1260.
Grading: The final grade is based on the quizzes (15%), mid-terms (20% each), and the final examination (40%). An additional 5% weight will be given to the best of your three exams, for instance if your second midterm had the highest grade then it would be weighted 25% instead of 20%. Examinations are a mixture of short answer questions and multiple choice. Multiple choice questions require no supporting explanation for your answer, but your solution to short answer questions should include at least a brief explanation of your work in addition to your final answer.
If you cannot make one of the examinations, contact me as soon as possible, preferably one week in advance of the exam. Retroactive, or last-minute requests for a make-up or of a reweighting of the examination grades (other than that given above), will most likely be denied.
Calculators and written materials: You may use whatever resources you wish to do the homework, including calculators, textbooks, friends, TAs, etc., although by the end of the course you should be able to do all the homework questions without any assistance. Quizzes are closed-book and closed-notes, but a scientific calculator (with no communication or storage capability) is permitted. For each midterm and the final, a calculator (as above) and a 4x6 index card will be permitted.
Mathematical level: The emphasis in this course is computational. Theoretical aspects of linear algebra will be covered in Math 115AB.
World-Wide Web: You are encouraged to visit the web-page for this section at
http://www.math.ucla.edu/~tao/32b.2.05w
This page will contain all the official information for the course, the latest homework, lecture notes, handouts, Virtual Office Hours, solutions to previous homework, sample exams and quizzes, updates, and other pieces of information.