Chaos and Calculus syllabus

CC MATHEMATICS CHAOS AND CALCULUS

Course Syllabus
Block 1 of
Chaos and Calculus

Instructors:

Kathy Merrill	kmerrill@coloradocollege.edu
	Palmer 139 x6538
	Office Hours: M-F 1:30-2:30
Jane McDougall	jmcdougall@coloradocollege.edu (Block 2)

Paraprofessional:
      Yoko Shimizu: Palmer 130, x6727, mailto:yshimizu@coloradocollege.edu

Student Mentor:
     Katie Allison: mailto:k_allison@coloradocollege.edu

Class time:
     9:00 AM each morning, with occasional additional meetings in the afternoon.

Texts:
    Chaos Under Control: The Art and Science of Complexity by Peak and Frame
    Calculus (Schaum's Outline), by Ayres and Mendelson
    Arcadia, by Tom Stoppard
    Proof, by David Auburn (second block)

Grades:
    During Block 1, you will be writing two short essays and a review of a cultural event on campus; you will find the due dates in the schedule. I will let you know more about these assignments as they draw nearer. In addition, you will have three quizzes over the material (on the last three Wednesday afternoons) and regular homework problems, due within a day or two of when they are assigned. These problems will sometimes be group and sometimes individual assignments. At the end of the two blocks, you will receive a single grade for this course, but I will give you a preliminary grade report based on your work during the first block. This evaluation for the first block will be based as follows:
    15% each for the two essays,
    5% for the cultural event review,
    20% for homework,
    30% for the quizzes, and
    15% for class participation.

Honor Code:
    Each assignment will have specific instructions about how much collaboration is allowed with your classmates. No collaboration will be allowed on quizzes. On all assignments, you must give complete bibliographical references for all sources you consult, including online resources. Honor Code convictions will result in an automatic grade of No Credit for the course. For more information about the Colorado College Honor Code, see http://www2.coloradocollege.edu/Students/Pathfinder/Policies/Academic/HonorSystem.html

Schedule:

WEEK 1
Monday, Sept 2	10:30 AM: CUC Chapter 1: Introduction--the ubiquitous 2:00 PM Palmer 20: Computer experiments with the Chaos Game
Tuesday, Sept 3	CUC Chapter 4 pp 113-145: The tent map Calculus Chapters 3,6,7,8: Precalc review Trip to the CC cabin: departure at 3 p.m. Cabin activities: CUC Chapter 1: video feedback; the chaos game
Weds., Sept 4	Return to campus, departing the cabin at 11 a.m.
Thursday, Sept 5	CUC Chapter 4 pp 146-160: The Butterfly Effect and Bifurcation Diagrams Group work: generating the butterfly effect with hand calculators Writing Center visit at 9:30 AM
Friday, Sept 6	CUC Chapter 5 pp 161-169: The logistic map Calc Chapter 9: Definition of derivative
WEEK 2
Monday, Sept 9	No AM class 1:00 PM Palmer 126--View the film Run Lola Run First Essay due 1:00 PM: The Butterfly Effect
Tuesday, Sept 10	Discussion of Run Lola Run CUC Chapter 5 pp 170-175: Stability of periodic points Calc Chapters 10-12: Calculating derivatives 1:00 PM Problem session/review
Weds., Sept 11	Calc Chapters 14-15: Using derivatives to graph and optimize JOMA activity Quiz 1 available after class and due by 3PM
Thursday, Sept 12	Calc Chapters 16-18: Trig functions
Friday, Sept 13	CUC Chapter 5 pp 176-186: Universality
WEEK 3
Monday Sept 16	CUC Chapter 2 pp 41-53: parametric representation of iterated function systems
Tuesday, Sept 17	CUC Chapter 2 pp 54-73: Random iterated function systems; the Collage Theorem; labeing 1:00 PM Problem session/review
Weds., Sept 18	Calc Chapter 43: Geometric series Computer lab on geometric series Quiz 2 available after class and due by 3PM
Thursday, Sept 19	Arcadia film Introduction to entropy: excerpt from Einstein's Dreams
Friday, Sept 20	Arcadia Discussion: Come prepared to discuss study questions
WEEK 4
Monday, Sept 23	Second Essay due: Arcadia Calc Chapters 22-23: Integration
Tuesday, Sept 24	Calc Chapters 23-24: Fundamental Theorem of Calculus 1:30 PM Problem session/review Last chance to turn in cultural event write-up
Weds., Sept 25	Discussion of "Library of Babel" Quiz 3
Monday, Sept 30	Second Block begins!