| Fundamental principles | I will try to conduct this class according to the principles expressed in Ardila's Axioms particularly "Every student deserves to be treated with dignity and respect [by their teacher and their classmates]." I welcome feedback about how well I am doing, and I encourage students to talk to me if their experience (in my class or elsewhere) is not consistent with these axioms. |
| Prerequisites | MA 225 or CSC 226 or equivalent. This means you should have taken a course which asked you to understand proofs and write your own proofs. |
| Credit load | 3 credits |
| Instructor | Nathan Reading |
| Office | SAS 4118 |
| Telephone | 919-515-3261. This is an office desk phone that does not accept text messages. Email is a much better way to reach me than phone. |
| reading AT math DOT ncsu DOT edu | |
| Course website and Moodle | This site is https://nreadin.math.ncsu.edu/416. You will be responsible for material on this site. You will be notified by email or in class when new information is posted on the site (except for regularly occurring changes like posting of assignments and quiz/test solutions). There is also a Moodle page for this course, which you can find in the usual way through Wolfware. We will use the Gradebook and a few other features. |
| Class email list | There is a class email list. You will be responsible for any information emailed to the list. You will be expected to check your ncsu email account at least every day. |
| Class Sessions |
Mondays and Wednesdays 10:15 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. in SAS Hall 2229.
Attendance at lectures is part of the course.
Classroom Guidelines Here is the most up-to-date schedule for the class. This schedule (except for test dates) is subject to change as the course progresses. |
| If you (or I) are not well |
If you are not well, please stay home.
Class will be automatically recorded and webcast.
The webcast is available during class with a slight delay (< 1 minute).
The recordings are available soon after class.
Both webcast and recordings are at this link or on the Moodle page.
It would also be a good idea to find a "buddy" in the class (or preferably more than one) who takes good notes and is willing to send you copies of their notes after class.
Depending on how well the recordings come out, the notes may be more useful than the recordings.
I have also created folders where you can post photos of the boards.
But this is entirely crowdsourced:
If you as a class want to make this happen, make it happen.
If I am not well, but am well enough to teach online, we may move class to Zoom. There is a Zoom link on the main Moodle page. I think/hope we will not use it, but it's there so we can use it at short notice if necessary. (This is another good reason to check your email regularly.) |
| Office hours |
Mondays and Wednesdays, after class until 12:15 and Thursdays 1:00pm to 2:00pm in SAS 4118. Scheduled office hours are a "drop-in" service. No need to tell me whether you are coming. You are allowed to come to whatever part (or all) of the office hour that fits your schedule and your needs. It may be possible to make appointments at other times. To make an appointment, email me. I discourage students from simply dropping by my office outside of scheduled office hours. I also discourage students from hanging out in my office hours doing homework until they have a question. Office hours may occasionally need to be changed to allow me to fulfil all parts of my job responsibilities. |
| Text | Combinatorics by Russel Merris, (2nd edition, Wiley 2003). This book is required, and we will use it a lot. You can access it online for free (because the NCSU library has paid for online access for all of us). Online access to textbook If that doesn't work, try getting it through the library: Online access through the library The book is also on reserve (paper copies) at the library: Details on reserve copies in the library |
| Homework |
There will be a homework assignment due in class roughly every week.
You are encouraged to collaborate on solving the assigned problems as long as everyone in the group gains a thorough understanding of the solution.
Furthermore, each student must write up the solution in their own words based on their own understanding.
All homework problems are asking for an answer in clear English (with math symbols allowed), giving a careful and correct explanation of how the problem is solved. Imagine you are writing to a mathematically literate person who does not know how to solve the problem. The balance of prose vs. symbols required in the solution will vary greatly, from 2-3 words followed by a symbolic or numerical calculation to several paragraphs of prose with few or no symbols. Part of the point of this course is for the student to develop judgement about how to explain mathematics. Some things that could cause you to be marked down are: using vague language; using words like "obviously" or "clearly" to hide the lack of an explanation; relying too much on the grader to figure out "what you meant;" rambling or extraneous prose that fails to focus concisely on the core issue. Note that there are hints and answers in the back of the book to some of the assigned problems. You can treat these hints as if they were useful conversations with classmates: They help you understand the problems and then you must write up the solution in your own words based on your own understanding. Note also that the hints are rarely complete solutions, so you'll get no credit for simply copying them. Even when the hint is "the answer," you'll usually still need to explain the answer. Just as you are not allowed to copy answers from classmates, you are not allowed to copy answers from the internet or use AI tools to write answers for you. In principle, you are allowed to learn from the internet (while in practice, I'm skeptical about how much actual learning would happen), but you must still write up the solution in your own words based on your own understanding. Here are the homework assignments. |
| Reading Assignments, Lecture Schedule and Tests | Students are expected to read the text in addition to attending lectures. Here is the most up-to-date schedule for the class. This schedule (except for test dates) is subject to change as the course progresses. |
| Midterm exams | There will be one midterm exam in class on Monday, March 3. |
| Final Exam | The final exam is Friday, April 25, 8:30--11:00 a.m., in the usual room. |
| Comments and answers |
Here are some Comments and answers on quizzes and tests. |
| Grading |
The components of your grade are: Homework: 50% of grade Midterm: 20% of grade Final exam: 30% of grade. |
| Grades on Moodle | We will be keeping track of your grades on Moodle, and you can always see them there. |
| N.C. State Polices, Regulations, and Rules |
Students are responsible for reviewing the NC State University Policies, Rules, and Regulations (PRRs) which pertain to their course rights and responsibilities, including those referenced both below and above in this syllabus: Equal Opportunity and Non-Discrimination Policy Statement with additional references at https://oied.ncsu.edu/divweb/policies/ Code of Student Conduct. |
| Policy on Attendance and Make-ups | Attending every lecture is considered part of the course requirement. No provisions will be made for students to make up missed work or tests except as spelled out in the University's attendance regulation available at http://policies.ncsu.edu/regulation/reg-02-20-03 . Excused absences: If you have an excused absense on a quiz or test day, email me (Nathan Reading) as soon as possible. |
| Policy on Incompletes | Incompletes are not offered except in cases where special circumstances (such as outlined in the attendance regulation mentioned above) make it impossible for a student to complete the course. Even in these special circumstances, incompletes will not be offered unless the student was in a position to pass the class before the special circumstance arose. In particular, incompletes cannot be used as a way to "bail out" when a student feels that they cannot pass the course or feels they cannot do all the work that they put off until the end of the semester. |
| Statement on privacy | Students may be required to disclose personally identifiable information to other students in the course, via digital tools, such as email or web-postings, where relevant to the course. Examples include online discussions of class topics, and posting of student coursework. All students are expected to respect the privacy of each other by not sharing or using such information outside the course. |
| Statement for students with disabilities | Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with verifiable disabilities. In order to take advantage of available accommodations, students must register with the Disability Resource Office at Holmes Hall, Suite 304, 2751 Cates Avenue, Campus Box 7509, 919-515-7653. For more information on NC State's policy on working with students with disabilities, please see the Academic Accommodations for Students with Disabilities Regulation (NCSU REG02.20.01). |
| Academic Integrity | Students are expected to conform to standards of academic integrity as described in the Code of Student Conduct, which can be found in the Code of Student Conduct. The student, by signing or writing their name on a homework assignment or test, affirms that they have neither given nor received unauthorized aid. (See "Homework Assignments" above for guidelines on acceptable collaboration on homework.) Violations of academic integrity will be handled in accordance with the Student Discipline Procedures (NCSU REG 11.35.02). |
| NCSU Counseling center | The Counseling Center offers confidential counseling to NC State students experiencing personal, academic or vocational problems. Check out counseling.dasa.ncsu.edu. |
| Help for students in distress | Although the counseling center is a great help, sometimes it's hard to recognize when we need help. So we need to look out for each other too. Occasionally, you may come across a fellow student whose behavior worries you. You can and should report worrisome behavior to the NC State Cares website: https://prevention.dasa.ncsu.edu/nc-state-cares/about/. You can report anonymously, but if you share your contact information, they can follow-up with you personally. |