M408R, Calculus for Biologists


  • Unique numbers: 55425, 55430
  • Lectures MWF 9-10, ETC 2.108
  • Discussion Sections:
    55425: TuTh 4-5, UTC 1.132
    55430: TuTh 5-6, UTC 1.132
  • Web page: http://www.ma.utexas.edu/users/sadun/F14/M408R
  • Professor: Lorenzo Sadun, RLM 9.114, x1-7121, sadun@math.utexas.edu
  • Teaching Assistant: Clark Pennie, cpennie@math.utexas.edu
  • Sadun office hours: Tu 10-11 and Th 2-3. I generally keep an open door and welcome visitors at all times.
  • Calc Lab: The Math Department Calculus Lab (see www.ma.utexas.edu/academics/undergraduate/calculus-lab/ ) is open starting on September 2, M-F 2-7, in Painter 5.42 (except for a few days when the first hour will be down the hall in Painter 5.33). This is a joint TA session for all calculus classes taught at UT, and will be staffed at all times by at least two TAs and 3 undergraduate Learning Assistants. No matter what your question, you can always get help at Calc Lab.
  • Textbook (required): Calculus in Context, by Callahan et al, Available free online at www.math.smith.edu/Local/cicintro/ . (If you want a hard copy, it costs about $80 new on Amazon, and a lot less used.)
  • Laptops and software: Please bring a laptop or tablet to the MWF lectures and especially to the Tuesday-Thursday discussion sections, where most days will be devoted to going through tutorial worksheets. Computers won't be needed every day, but you'll find them useful as often as not.
  • Goals for the class Calculus has a reputation of being a hard class that features a million different equations to be memorized. Most classes focus on formulas and calculation techniques and then apply them to contrived problems. (Who really cares about the biggest rectangular fence that can be built along a river using a fixed amount of fencing material?) Instead, we're going to start with some real-world examples, like the spread of an epidemic or the devastation caused by a recent flood, and develop the ideas needed to deal with these examples.

    • In this class, you won't be asked to compute the integral of the arcsine of x, or apply the limit comparison test for the convergence of an infinite series. However, you will be expected to understand what derivatives and integrals mean, how to get a computer to approximate them numerically, and how to model real-world problems using them.

    Put another way, there are three questions associated with every mathematical idea in existence:

    1. What is it?
    2. How do you compute it?
    3. What is it good for?
    Compared to most math classes, we're going to spend a lot more time on the first and third questions, and a lot less on the second. By the end of the semester, I expect you to understand the six basic ideas that calculus is based on, which I call the six pillars of calculus:
    1. Close is good enough (limits)
    2. Track the changes (derivatives)
    3. What goes up has to stop before is can come down (max/min)
    4. The whole is the sum of the parts (integrals)
    5. The whole change is the sum of the partial changes (fundamental theorem)
    6. One variable at a time.
    I expect you to learn how to use these ideas. As for formulas, I expect you to learn the easy ones, know where to look up some more complicated ones, and above all, know how to get a qualitative feel for the solutions without every using a formula. That's what's going to help you in your careers in biology.

  • Exam schedule: There will be in-class midterm exams on Wednesday, September 24, Friday October 24 (a little over a week before drop day), and Friday November 21. The final exam will be on Friday morning, December 12, 9-12. Exams are closed book, but you will be allowed a single sheet of handwritten (by you!) notes for the midterms, and two sheets for the final exam.
  • Calculators: You are welcome to use whatever you want in class and for homework, but only very basic calculators will be allowed on exams. If it has a screen that shows anything besides numbers, or if it allows programs of any kind, or if it has built-in statistical functions like linear regression, it is not allowed. So don't waste your money on a fancy graphing calculator. Save the expense and buy MATLAB for your laptop instead.
  • Classroom procedure: We will provide you with a variety of online learning resources on Quest, keyed to sections of the book. These learning modules were prepared by Bill Wolosensky and me, and are intended to explain and supplement the sections of the book that we are covering. You are expected to study the material and answer some fairly easy online questions before lecture. Then, in a typical lecture session, we will discuss what you've studied (bring questions!) and you will work in teams on harder and more thought-provoking problems, while I circulate and talk with you about them.
  • Discussion sections and worksheets (10% of course grade): Much of your learning will come from working on tutorial worksheets on the different topics. These are intended to be done in groups of 3 or 4. We may start on some tutorials in lecture, but the Tuesday-Thursday discussion sections is the main place where you will work on these. Attendance is required, and the worksheets are to be turned in at the end of the hour. If you are absent you will receive a 0 for the worksheet, and if you did not actively participate in your group's discussion, you may receive a reduced grade. I will drop your lowest 4 worksheet scores at the end of the semester.
  • Mini-projects (6% of course grade) These are larger assignments to be done over a longer time scale. As with the worksheets, they should be done in groups of 3 or 4. I will drop your lowest score at the end of the semester.
  • Individual homework (9% of course grade): You will also be given homework, mostly from the book, due roughly once every one or two weeks. Unlike the worksheets and mini-projects, these are to be done largely on your own. You are welcome to talk about these problems with me, or with your friends, but each student should turn in his or her own work, and what you turn in should reflect your understanding. Copying somebody else's solution is cheating. I will drop your lowest score at the end of the semester.
  • Preclass/Learning Modules (5%): Our online content delivery system is called Quest, which can be accessed by going to the page at quest.cns.utexas.edu, logging in, and selecting this class. There are learning modules, also known as preclass assignments for each section of the book that we are covering. These include videos, text, and questions for you to answer. The questions are intended to be easy, and are mostly intended to get you ready to learn the material in more depth in lecture. The questions are due at midnight the night before the class in which that section is scheduled to be taught. Your three lowest Quest scores will be dropped at the end of the semester.

    • No late work will be accepted for any reason other than religious holidays. As noted elsewhere, I will drop some of the assignment scores to allow for the fact that stuff happens, much of it beyond our control. Please do not ask if I will accept a late assignment. I won't.

  • Academic honesty: The University is a place of honor and mutual respect, and students deserve to be treated with courtesy and trust. However, betraying that trust is dishonorable and unforgivable. On an evolutionary scale, cheaters belong somewhere between tapeworms and cockroaches. If you are caught cheating, you will be penalized as harshly as possible under the rules of UT. Most students are honest, honest students do not like cheaters, and they do report what they see.
  • Grading: Each midterm counts 15%. The final exam counts 25%. The preclass homework counts 5%, the worksheets 10%, the individual homeworks 9% and the mini-projects count 6%. If you do badly on a midterm, or miss a midterm for any reason, then I will substitute the final exam in its place. (E.g., if you bomb one midterm, then your grade will based on 15% each for the other midterms and 40% for the final.) If you do badly on (or miss) two or more midterms, you're out of luck. The final exam will not substitute for the preclass, worksheet, homework or mini-projects.

    The final grade distribution is neither a straight scale nor a fixed curve. The cutoffs will be set at the end of the semester, based on overall class performance, with the following qualitative standard for the major grades (with obvious adjustments for plusses and minuses): Grading isn't an exact science, and I'm only going to adjust cutoffs. Nobody will leapfrog anybody else; if you have more points than your buddy, then your grade will be at least as good as your buddy's. Furthermore, a 90% average will guarantee you at least an A-, an 80% average a B-, and a 70% average a C-. My cutoffs are usually more generous than that, but each semester is unique.
  • Disabilities: The University of Texas at Austin provides upon request appropriate academic accommodations for qualified students with disabilities. For more information, contact the Office of the Dean of Students at 471-6259, 471-4641 TTY
  • Drop dates: The deadline for dropping the class without the course appearing on your transcript is September 12. After that date, a "Q" will appear on your record. The deadline for dropping, period, is November 4.
  • Religious Holidays: I have tried to schedule major class events to avoid religious holidays, and I apologize if I overlooked something. If you expect to miss class or miss an assignment because of a religious holiday, please let me know 14 days in advance, and you will be given the opportunity to make up the missed work within a reasonable time.
  • UT Core Requirements: This course may be used to fulfill the mathematics component of the university core curriculum and addresses the following three core objectives established by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board: communication skills, critical thinking skills, and empirical and quantitative skills.
  • Stress: If at any time you feel overwhelmed by your coursework, or by campus life, please contact the

    Counselling and Mental Health Center
    Student Services Bldg (SSB), 5th Floor
    Hours: M--F 8am--5pm
    512 471 3515
    www.cmhc.utexas.edu

    For what it's worth, I had serious anxiety issues myself about 10 years ago. I know how hard it can be. A combination of counselling and medication helped me turn things around. There is no shame in seeking help, and the upside can be enormous.