Math 32 Pitzer College

Calculus III: Calculus with Several Variables

Course:  Math 32, Spring 2018

Time &h; Place:  MW 1:15 pm — 2:30 (Fletcher Hall 110)

Instructor:  Jorge Basilio (jorge_basilio@pitzer.edu)

Office:  Avery 220

Office Hours:

Office Phone:  909.607.7961

Math Tutoring (Free!)

Where: Atherton 103

More info: here

Handouts

Good vs Bad Cheat Sheets

Exam Preparation — Notes

Prereq Review Sheets

On Reading Mathematics

Announcements

Cheat Sheets for Final Exam

I forgot to mention this in class this morning, but I will allow a cheat sheet on the final exam under certain rules. 

Please read the document "GoodvsBad" Cheat Sheets. It was written for a different school but the info obviously is school independent. 

The key to making a Good Cheat Sheet (GCS) is that it has to be done by hand and well-organized. Printing one out from the internet will not be allowed.

I will collect your cheat sheets at the beginning of the exam and will check them individually to see if they satisfy the requirements of a GCS. If they pass, it will be returned to you and you can use it for the remained of the text (approximately 15-20 minutes after the exam begins). However, if it's a bad cheat sheet then I will not return it and you will not be able to use it on the exam.  Please follow the following rules/requirements:

REQUIREMENTS FOR GCS:

If you have any questions, you can email me or ask me during the final exam review session on Friday.

Final Exam Review

I noticed that Friday is a designated reading day so there will not be office hours on Friday morning.

Instead, we will have an optional final exam review session on Friday from 2-4 pm. Just find us in our of the classrooms near my office.

Exam 3 — Take-Home Instructions

Here is Exam 3. DUE: Monday at 5pm in my office (Avery 220).

>>Directions:

Good luck!

PS. I will be traveling all day and will not be able to check my email until the evening (hopefully by 6pm or so). Just keep that in mind if you email me questions. I will be happy to reply and answer questions when I have internet access again. 

Exam 2 Extra Credit

For our second exam, instead of test corrections I would like to offer everyone the opportunity to retake the exam to increase your grade.

If you would like to retake the exam, please email me to schedule a date and time (during regular office hours would be preferable).

This will not be done during the regular class time.

More details:

Exam 2 Extra Credit

There is an opportunity to increase your Exam 2 score by doing "test corrections:"

Instructions for Test Corrections:

Students who meet the above requirements will have their Exam 1 scores improved according to the following formula: Example: Exam 1 score is 70. Then after extra credit the new score is 70+35 %*[40] = 84.

Exam 1 Extra Credit

There is an opportunity to increase your Exam 1 score by doing "test corrections:"

Instructions for Test Corrections:

Students who meet the above requirements will have their Exam 1 scores improved according to the following formula: Example: Exam 1 score is 50 (a D). Then after extra credit the new score is 50+10 %*[30] = 53, which is a 66 % which is now in the C range.

Exam Preparation

I posted the document Math32-CalcIII-Notes.pdf under the hand-outs.
This document has tons of helpful info to help you prepare for our upcoming exam.
It explains basic test info, sections covered, notes that summarizes the key points of the sections covered, and at the end it has practice exam problems from the textbook.
The answers to odd problems are available via the ebook on WebAssign and the even numbered problems are provided in the document itself.
Happy studying!

Online Graphing Calculator for 3D Plotting

As I showed in class, "CalcPlot3D", is a very useful tool to help you visualize 3D plots of curves, functions etc.

You can use this on some of the tougher WebAssign questions as an aid.

Hope you find it helpful and straightforward to use :-)

Math Lunch!

This semester the Pitzer Math faculty: Jemma Lorenat, Jim Hoste, and myself
will be hosting MATH LUNCH every Monday from 12-1 pm in the dinning room (look for the cheesy hand-written "Math Lunch" sign).
What is MATH LUNCH?
It's an informal way to come and chat with us. We can talk about math, or not about math….that pretty much covers everything!
See you there!

New Office Hours!

These are my updated hours for this semester: Please update your schedule!

Office Hours Poll

Using the google doodle link, https://doodle.com/poll/zm2bcpbs7tvrwmh9, please select ALL the times that fit into your schedule where you can attend office hours.
I will select the THREE times that have the largest number of selections at the end of the week and begin holding these hours next week.
In the meantime, I'm sticking to the hours posted on the Syllabus: MW 10:45-11:45 am, F 11-11:50 am
Hope this helps :-)

Section Key

Sections marked with a "*" = Optional sections to be read but no RP. Students who plan to take more advanced courses using calculus (e.g. econ, physics) are encouraged to read these.

WebAssign Access and Class Key

Jan 16 2018
Here is the "Class Key" to register and access WebAssign, which is the online homework system that we will use.

Please purchase access to the "homework AND e-book" which is approximately $100 total and is the best deal.
Sign-up immediately since registration is FREE for the first two weeks of class.
Email me with any questions.
Week 1 will start learning vectors. I will assume you know Calculus I & II so please review this material on your own. It is a good idea to print the review sheets and have them handy in your folder.

Hello!

Welcome everyone to Calculus III!
I'm excited to begin the new semester and to meet all of you tomorrow. I'll post important information here.
I posted the course syllabus below--for students who have not taken a course with me please read it carefully.
More info coming soon...

Week Class Exams
1
  • 1/15
  • 1/17
  • {M} MLK Holiday — No classes!
  • {W} Class introductions; 12.1 - Three-Dimensional Coordinate Systems;
2
  • 1/22
  • 1/24
  • {M} 12.2 - Vectors & 12.3 - The Dot Product;
  • {W} 12.4 - The Cross Product;
3
  • 1/29
  • 1/31
  • {M} 12.5 - Equations of Lines and Planes;
  • {W} 12.6 - Cylinders and Quadric Surfaces
    & Review before class: 10.5 Conic Sections;
4
  • 2/5
  • 2/7
  • {M} 13.1 - Vector Functions and Space Curves & 13.2 - Derivatives and Integrals of Vector Functions;
  • {W} 13.3 - Arc Length and Curvature;
5 Exam 1 (60 min) {M} 2/12
@ 1:30 — 2:30 pm
5
  • 2/12
  • 2/14
  • {M} Exam 1;
  • {W} 13.4 - Motion in Space: Velocity and Acceleration & 14.1 - Functions of Several Variables;
6
  • 2/19
  • 2/21
  • {M} 14.2 - Limits and Continuity;
  • {W} 14.3 - Partial Derivatives;
7
  • 2/26
  • 2/28
  • {M} 14.4 - Tangent Planes and Linear Approximations;
  • {W} 14.5 - The Chain Rule;
8
  • 3/5
  • 3/7
  • {M} 14.6 - Directional Derivatives and the Gradient Vector;
  • {W} 14.7 - Maximum and Minimum Values;
9
  • 3/12
  • 3/14
  • {M} Spring Break!
  • {W} Spring Break!
10
  • 3/19
  • 3/21
  • {M} 14.8 - Lagrange Multipliers & 15.1 - Double Integrals over Rectangles;
  • {W} Exam 2;
10 Exam 2 (60 min) {M} 3/21
@ 1:30 — 2:30 pm
11
  • 3/26
  • 3/28
  • {M} Continue 15.1 & 15.2 - Double Integrals over General Regions;
  • {W} Continue 15.2;
12
  • 4/2
  • 4/4
  • {M} 15.3 - Double Integrals in Polar Coordinates
    & Review before class: 10.3 Polar Coordinates & 10.4;
  • {W} 15.4 - Applications of Double Integrals;
13
  • 4/9
  • 4/11
  • {M} 15.6 - Triple Integrals;
  • {W} Continue 15.6;
14
  • 4/16
  • 4/18
  • {M} 15.7 - Triple Integrals in Cylindrical Coordinates
    & 15.8 - Triple Integrals in Spherical Coordinates
    Note: we will do only a few examples of an integral from 15.7 and 15.8 as we need to finish both on Monday, so I recommend you read these sections before class;
  • {W} 16.1 - Vector Fields & 16.2 - Line Integrals
    Note: 16.1 will be brief and I’ll rely on the e-textbook to explain examples. We’ll focus on 16.2 setting up line integrals. ;
15
  • 4/23
  • 4/25
  • {M} 16.3 - The Fundamental Theorem for Line Integrals;
  • {W} 16.4 - Green’s Theorem & proof
    Note: This class will be devoted to stating precisely Green’s Theorem and giving its proof. The proof I will give is one of my favorite proofs of all time and is not in the book so I encourage you to come to class on Wednesday to enjoy some seriously cool mathematics! For those, interested in advanced mathematics, you can’t miss it :-) ;
16 Exam 3 (Take-home) {W} 5/2
@ 5 pm
16
  • 4/30
  • 5/2
  • {M} 16.8 - Stoke’s Theorem;
  • {W} Review - Last Day of Class
17 Final Exam (3 hrs) {M} 5/7
@ 9 am — 12 pm

Course Policies

Please consult the Course Syllabus for a more detailed description.

What is this class?

This course extends the thread of mathematical inquiry of the dual topics of differentiation and integration for functions of several variables. Whereas functions of one variable may be visualized as curves on the plane, we may visualize a real-valued function of two-variables as a surface in three-dimensional space. But what does it mean to take a derivative or a defnite integral of a surface? We will address this question and more in this course. Like in Calculus I &p; II, we will see that there is a beautiful geometry associated with functions of several variables.

Our frst task will be to develop a useful language for easily describing geometric objects in two and three dimensions using vectors. Then we will continue to study vector-valued functions, partial derivatives, the gradient vector, Lagrange multipliers, double and triple integrals and line integrals, culminating with the fundamental theorems of Green, Stokes, and Gauss. We will also apply these ideas to a wide range of problems that include motion in space, optimization, arc length, surface area, volumes, and centers of mass, time permitting.

The students should be able to interpret the concepts of Calculus algebraically, graphically and verbally. More generally, the students will improve their ability to think critically, to analyze a problem and solve it using a wide array of tools. These skills will be invaluable to them in whatever path they choose to follow, be it as a mathematics major or in pursuit of a career in one of the other sciences.

Prerequisites

Completion of Math 31 (or equivalent experience with college-level Calculus II), a suitable score on the mathematics placement exam, or permission of the instructor.

Online Homework via WebAssign

Computation is an important component of mathematics, and is a key part of any calculus course. I will select problems from the textbook to be done and checked online via the platform WebAssign.

Textbook

The textbook is Calculus: Early Transcendentals, 8th Ed., by James Stewart. We will cover most of the material in Chapters 12 – 16. You should read the relevant section of the text before we cover the material in class, and then again while doing the homework.

The textbook comes with access to the WebAssign system. So if you are ok with studying from an ebook then you DO NOT have to buy a hard copy of the textbook.

You can buy an earlier edition for cheaper if you plan to use it as a future reference or resource. Since the HW is done online you will not need the textbook for the homework, only to read the book and study.

Additional Textbooks and Resources

Grading

The grade will be based on the following:

Participation 5%
Online Homework 20%
Exams (3 @ 15% each) 45%
Final Exam 30%

Exams

The in-class exams are one hour long, and will take place on

Dates are subject to change. Exams are scheduled during the end of the class period, approximately 60 minutes long. The first 15 minutes will be reserved for Questions and Answers from students.

The final exam is three hours long, and will be on Monday, May 7, in our usual classroom from 2-5 pm.

Calculator

This is a course of mathematical concepts and techniques, not a course of mechanical computation, so we will have little use for calculators. You may bring a calculator or laptop with you to class if you wish. If you bring a laptop please do not use it to check email or chat with friends, or do any tasks that would disturb your fellow classmates. We will discuss the free programs Desmons, Geogebra, Symbolab, Wolfram Alpha, and SAGE and how it can help in learning. Please note that no calculators of any kind will be allowed during exams.