Math 41 Autumn 2009

General Information

About this class

Math 41 is a 5-credit course in introductory calculus with an accelerated pace -- the class covers limits, derivatives, applications of differentiation, and the basics of integration (up to substitution and integration by parts). It is one of three different single-variable calculus courses taught at Stanford in the autumn quarter, so you should be deciding during the first week whether it's the right calculus class for you.

If you have recently finished a calculus class covering all of the subjects listed above and you feel confident about them, you should consider instead taking Math 42 -- even if you don't have AP credit. If you're undecided about which of Math 41/42 (or any two courses in sequence) to take, keep in mind that it will be easier to drop back than to jump ahead during the second or third week of the quarter.

On the other hand, if it's been a year or more since your last math class or you are taking math just to satisfy a GER, you should consider instead taking Math 19 -- even if you did well in calculus in high school. Math 41 moves very quickly, and leaves you very little time to get back into shape if your math skills are rusty. It is intended to develop (quickly) the necessary background for students who will need calculus for their further studies, and may be more intense than what students satisfying a GER are looking for.

On Registrar deadlines: Please pay careful attention to all Registrar deadlines, especially the add/drop deadline at the end of the third week of classes. University Advising and Research has recently reaffirmed that it will not allow changes in course registrations from Math 42 to 41 after the drop deadline. (However, UAR has a special provision in place to accept petitions for switches from Math 41 to 19 submitted in complete form before Friday, October 23 at 5pm. The instructions for how to properly complete this petition will be provided after the third week of classes, or you can for more information.)

Teaching Staff

Textbook

The textbook is Single Variable Calculus: Concepts and Contexts, 4th edition, by James Stewart. We will cover most of the material from Chapter 1 through the first half of Chapter 5. (It is not recommended that you try to use a copy of the 3rd edition: although the text is very similar, some examples, some of the homework problems, and most of the problem numbers will be different.)

Lectures and Sections

Each week you will attend three lectures and two discussion sections. The lectures are on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, either at 10 a.m., 11 a.m., 1:15 p.m., or 2:15 p.m. The discussion sections are on Tuesday and Thursday; see the Section Assignments page to view the choices for times and locations.

The lectures will be used primarily to introduce concepts and develop theory. In the discussion sections, you meet with your Teaching Assistant in a smaller group. Most of the time in sections will be used for discussing the daily homework assignments, which you should be doing after each lecture. (See the Homework page for more information.) Attendance at all lectures and sections is required. If you miss a lecture or a section, it is your responsibility to catch up on the topics that you missed. You should keep in mind that in this course, the material builds on itself; if you miss some of the material, subsequent lectures will be more difficult (or even unintelligible) for you.

Homework

There will be two different kinds of homework assignments for Math 41: daily homework and weekly homework. Daily homework should be done the same day that material is covered in lecture, will be discussed in the next discussion section, and is not collected. Weekly homework should be done once you thoroughly understand the daily homework and will be collected once a week. For more information and policies, see the Homework page.

Calculators

Calculators will not be used in a systematic way in Math 41. Calculators will not be allowed on any of the exams, nor should there be any need for one. Occasionally, homework problems may call for the use of a scientific or graphing calculator.

Exams

The midterm exams will be held in the evening on October 13 and November 10. The exact times and locations and other information will be posted on the Exam Information page. If you have a schedule conflict with one of the midterm exams due to another course meeting, you must at least one week before the exam to arrange to take it at an alternate (early) sitting.

The final exam will be held on Monday, December 7, from 7-10pm. You must take the final exam at this time.

All of the exams are closed book, closed notes, with no electronic aids. For each exam, if appropriate, you may be provided with a formula sheet, which will be available on the exam materials page prior to the exam, along with other study materials.

Grades

The basis for your grade in this class has the following components:

There are no predetermined numerical cutoffs for letter grades, and the cutoffs may turn out to be rather different from what you are accustomed to from high school. In general, the grade distribution for the class will is usually roughly as follows: around 30% of the class receive A's, around 40% receive B's, and most of the rest receive C's.

CourseWork

CourseWork is a web-based program that will be used in Math 41 to allow students to check grades online. It is a secure program, so your grades will be available through CourseWork only to you. Every student must sign into CourseWork and choose a discussion section. CourseWork will be our primary gradekeeping tool; if you do not sign up, you could lose credit for work that you have done. This is completely independent of signing up for the course on Axess -- neither program has any knowledge of the other.

Before you sign into CourseWork, make sure you read the Section Assignments page, which contains instructions on the sign-up process for discussion sections.

Again, remember that Axess and CourseWork are different programs, and you will sign up for different course components on each -- on CourseWork, you sign up for a discussion section based on the table on the Section Assignments page, but on Axess you sign up for a lecture.

Despite its other capabilities, in this class CourseWork will be used only for grades and possibly email announcements.

Links, Getting Help, and Other Resources

  • Tips for Success in Undergraduate Math Courses by Jessica Purcell
    Some very good advice for college calculus students. Read this carefully and do as it suggests.
    Note: Pay particular attention to #3 under "Weekly" and #6 and #7 under "Before the exam". Students who think they're following these tips often overlook those parts, and they're the most important ones!

  • Common Errors in Undergraduate Mathematics by Eric Schechter
    Although this document is a bit on the long side, you should read at least some of it carefully -- you'll do better in your math classes because of it. We encourage you to pay particular attention to the sections: bad handwriting, all of the algebra errors, stream-of-consciousness notations, and going over your work.

  • Free Tutoring at the Center for Teaching & Learning (runs Sunday, Sep. 27 through dead week)

  • Evening Tutoring by SUMO undergraduate members (free, but priority goes to Math 50-series students)

  • Math Department Web Page

  • Statement from the Registrar concerning students with documented disabilities:
    "Students who may need an academic accommodation based on the impact of a disability must initiate the request with the Student Disability Resource Center (SDRC) located within the Office of Accessible Education (OAE). SDRC staff will evaluate the request with required documentation, recommend reasonable accommodations, and prepare an Accommodation Letter for faculty dated in the current quarter in which the request is being made. Students should contact the SDRC as soon as possible since timely notice is needed to coordinate accommodations. The OAE is located at 563 Salvatierra Walk (phone: 723-1066)."

  • Honor Code and Fundamental Standard
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