Course: Math 18
Title: Linear Algebra
Credit Hours: 4 (Students may not receive credit for both Math 18 and Math 31AH.)
Prerequisite: Math Placement Exam qualifying score, or AP Calculus AB score of 2, or SAT II Math 2C score of 600 or higher, or Math 3C, or Math 4C, or Math 10A, or Math 20A, or consent of instructor.
Catalog Description: Matrix algebra, Gaussian elimination, determinants, linear and affine subspaces, bases of Euclidean spaces. Eigenvalues and eigenvectors, quadratic forms, orthogonal matrices, diagonalization of symmetric matrices. Applications. Computing symbolic and graphical solutions using MATLAB.
Textbook: Linear Algebra and Its Applications, fifth edition, by David C. Lay; published by Pearson (Addison Wesley).
Subject Material: We shall cover parts of Chapters 1-6 of the text. For a detailed content plan, see the class calendar website.
Reading Assignments: Reading and doing the examples in the sections of the textbook corresponding to our discussions in lecture will be an essential aid in learning and understanding the course material better. If you work through the relevant examples in the book before you start your homework problems, you will probably solve the homework problems more easily and perform better on your exams than if you do not do the reading.
Homework: Most of the learning in math classes takes place when you work on your homework and in order to fully master the topics, it is essential that you work carefully on every assignment and try your best to complete every problem. We will have three different kinds of homework assignments in this class:
Late Homework: Written homework will not be accepted if it is late (see: homework webpage).
Canvas: We will use Canvas for the following purposes in this class:
MyMathLab: This is the online homework system associated to the textbook, through which you will submit your online homework.
Gradescope: This is an online tool used to grading. You will need to upload various assignments onto Gradescope:
MATLAB: In applications of linear algebra, the
theoretical concepts that you will learn in lecture are used together with
computers to solve large scale problems. Thus, in addition to your
written homework, you will be required to do homework using the computer
language MATLAB. The MATLAB website contains all
information relevant to the MATLAB component of Math 18, including due
dates.
Questions regarding the MATLAB assignments should be
directed to the TAs. Note:
Examinations: We will have two take-home exams for this course. There will be no makeup exams.
Full details regarding the exact implementation of the exams (closed book/open book, time restrictions etc) are still TBD but: It is your responsibility to ensure that you do not have a schedule conflict involving the final exam; you should not enroll in this class if you cannot sit for the final exam at its scheduled time.
Regrades: Regrade requests can be made using the built-in regrade request feature in Gradescope. The regrade request feature will be available for 48 hours after the exam grades are published; after that, it will not be possible to request a regrade.
Grades: Your total cumulative average will be calculated in the following way:
60% Homework (30% Online, 30% Written), 10% MATLAB (5% Assignments, 5% Quiz), 10% Midterm, 20% Final
After your weighted average is calculated, letter grades will be assigned based on the standard grading scale:
| A+ | A | A- | B+ | B | B- | C+ | C | C- | F |
| 97 | 93 | 90 | 87 | 83 | 80 | 77 | 73 | 70 | < 70 |
We may adjust the above scale to be more lenient (depending on the overall class performance), but we guarantee that we will not adjust the scale to make it harder to get a better grade.
Academic Dishonesty: Academic dishonesty is considered a serious offense at UCSD. Students caught cheating will face an administrative sanction which may include suspension or expulsion from the
university. It
is in your best interest to take pride in your work and to maintain your academic integrity (click here for more information).