I'm Monday's lecture I showed you some pictures showing the "basins of attraction" for the three complex solutions to z^3-1=0. The applet used to generate those pictures is here. This is another nice page discussing Newton's method in the complex plane. It has several nice examples on display. It also has a more versatile generation form.
The boundaries between the basins of attract on for z^3-1=0 are fractals. Another interesting fractal that I mentioned yesterday is the Mandelbrot set. Wikipedia has a lot of interesting information about the Mandelbrot set, with some really beautiful pictures, like this one.
Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Monday, October 29, 2007
Exam #2 Results
The results are in for Exam #2. Here are the gory details. The grade cutoffs are the standard array
A cutoff - 85
B cutoff - 75
C cutoff - 65
D cutoff - 50
The page of statistics also has the updated grade cutoffs for cumulative averages:
A cutoff - 79
B cutoff - 69
C cutoff - 59
D cutoff - 44
You can compare your weighted average from blackboard to these cutoffs and determine where you stand in the course.
A cutoff - 85
B cutoff - 75
C cutoff - 65
D cutoff - 50
The page of statistics also has the updated grade cutoffs for cumulative averages:
A cutoff - 79
B cutoff - 69
C cutoff - 59
D cutoff - 44
You can compare your weighted average from blackboard to these cutoffs and determine where you stand in the course.
Saturday, October 27, 2007
Assignment for Week #10
The assignment for this week is posted now. It's a little longer than usual, but not too bad.
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Final Exam
I just want to point out that our final exam is schedued for Friday 14 December, from 8:30-11:30am, not 1:00-4:00pm, as has posted on the schedule page.
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Exam #2 Review Session
I've scheduled the review session for Exam #2. It will be 7:30-9:00PM on Monday 22 October. The session will be in DH 2210.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Exam #2
I've posted the review page for Exam #2.
As you probably know, Exam #2, like Exam #1, will be given at 7:30AM in multiple rooms. Students enrolled in 33-111 will note that the scheduled time overlaps with your Physics exam. If you are enrolled in 33-111, you can take the 21-122 exam after your Physics exam, at 9:30 in our regular classroom, PH 100.
Unfortunately, I cannot extend this offer to students who are not taking 33-111. If PH 100 had enough room to accommodate you all, I would give the exam during class time to begin with.
To students inclined to think the 33-111 students are getting an advantage I would point out that (1) these students get only an extra half hour of sleep, and (2) they must prepare for two back to back exams.
In any case, I'll update the review page as needed - with the time and place for the review session, in particular.
As you probably know, Exam #2, like Exam #1, will be given at 7:30AM in multiple rooms. Students enrolled in 33-111 will note that the scheduled time overlaps with your Physics exam. If you are enrolled in 33-111, you can take the 21-122 exam after your Physics exam, at 9:30 in our regular classroom, PH 100.
Unfortunately, I cannot extend this offer to students who are not taking 33-111. If PH 100 had enough room to accommodate you all, I would give the exam during class time to begin with.
To students inclined to think the 33-111 students are getting an advantage I would point out that (1) these students get only an extra half hour of sleep, and (2) they must prepare for two back to back exams.
In any case, I'll update the review page as needed - with the time and place for the review session, in particular.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Assignment for Week #8
The reading and homework assignments for week #8 are now available. Follow the link from the schedule page.
Note that, since Friday is the mid-semester break, the homework will be due on Thursday, either in recitation or in your TA's mailbox.
Note that, since Friday is the mid-semester break, the homework will be due on Thursday, either in recitation or in your TA's mailbox.
Friday, October 5, 2007
Assignment for Week #7
The reading and homework assignmet for Week #7 has been posted. Follow the link from the schedule page.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Comments on Grading and Grade Cutoffs
I've had a number of people asking me about what the grade cutoffs announced in class mean. Let me take a moment to tell you how I will be calculating your grades. At the end of the semester I will compute a weighted average of your grades, using the weights announced at the start of the semester (15% homework, 60% mid-terms, 25% final).
To determine the final grade cutoffs for these final averages, I will average the grade cutoffs in the same way. For instance, to get the A-cutoff for your final averages, I will compute a weighted average of the A-cutoffs for each assignment. Thus a student who gets precisely the A-cutoff on each assignment will receive an A for the course, but anyone with an average below that will get a B or lower.
For midterm grades, I'll take 60 times your first exam score and 15 times your homework average, add them together, and divide by 75.
If you want to know where you stand right now, you can look at your weighted average (I just added this feature) in Blackboard. You should then compare it to the "Grade Cutoffs" in the "Cumulative Average" section of this (updated) statistics page. That will tell you your current letter grade.
To determine the final grade cutoffs for these final averages, I will average the grade cutoffs in the same way. For instance, to get the A-cutoff for your final averages, I will compute a weighted average of the A-cutoffs for each assignment. Thus a student who gets precisely the A-cutoff on each assignment will receive an A for the course, but anyone with an average below that will get a B or lower.
For midterm grades, I'll take 60 times your first exam score and 15 times your homework average, add them together, and divide by 75.
If you want to know where you stand right now, you can look at your weighted average (I just added this feature) in Blackboard. You should then compare it to the "Grade Cutoffs" in the "Cumulative Average" section of this (updated) statistics page. That will tell you your current letter grade.
Monday, October 1, 2007
Exam #1 Results
I distributed the graded exams in class this morning. I'll pass them along to your TA's, so if you didn't get yours this morning, you can pick it up in recitation tomorrow.
The statistics (with grade cutoffs) that I displayed in class this morning are right here. I hope it won't spoil the suspense if I tell you the cutoffs: A-70, B-60, C-50, D-35. Not all the homework grades have been added to the Blackboard system, so some of the averages in the homework section are a bit out of kilter.
The exam grades are now available on the Blackboard site as well.
The statistics (with grade cutoffs) that I displayed in class this morning are right here. I hope it won't spoil the suspense if I tell you the cutoffs: A-70, B-60, C-50, D-35. Not all the homework grades have been added to the Blackboard system, so some of the averages in the homework section are a bit out of kilter.
The exam grades are now available on the Blackboard site as well.
Assignment for Week #6
The reading and problems for Week #6 have been posted. You can follow the link from the Schedule page.
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