Mathematics 130 §A, Spring 2009

• Homework assignments will be posted on our class Blackboard site. Homework will be collected on Mondays (by 12:30 pm---drop it off at my office, Chambers 3043) and on Thursdays (in class). Ordinarily, corrected homework will be returned at the next class meeting after it is collected.

• Your homework will be checked by a qualified student assistant to the Mathematics Department. The evaluation scale for homework is...

  vg	Very Good	all problems attempted; no or only a few minor "non-calculus" errors
  g	Good	nearly all problems attempted; some errors, but student seems to understand the key concepts
  ok	Okay	most problems attempted; student is successful on at least half of the assigned problems
  H	Seek Help	many problems not tried and/or substantial difficulty with key concepts
  late	Late	Homework turned in late.

  
  The normative evaluation is expected to be "good."

• In general, answers require supporting work. The reader is instructed to complain about a "naked" answer which is deemed not to follow quickly from the question. (The query "WORK? " or the imperative "SHOW WORK! " written next to the answer conveys the desired message.)

• You should organize your work and compose your responses in (nearly) complete sentences. Readers are instructed to complain if work is too cryptic or illegible. (If papers are illegible, or nearly so, the reader may return it without correction or evaluation.) A "sentence" can be encapsulated by mathematical notation, e.g., 

  f '(π) = 2 cos(π) = -2

  Correct notation is important. One of my pet peeves is incorrect notation, especially the common abuse of "=", as in

  f(x) = sin(x) = f '(x) = cos(x) = f '(0) = 1

  When the reader sees something like this, a small venting of disgust is mandated. (I often cross out the offending "="-signs and write something like "arrggghhhhhh! ")

• Late Homework : My general policy is to accept late papers, though they are corrected at the reader's convenience. The only recorded assessment is "late" (the rest of the qualitative scale does not apply).