Differential Equations
MATH 350, Section 01, Fall 2015
Course Information

Instructor: Dr. Mihaela Vajiac

Office: VN 107

Office hours: posted on personal webpage (see below), and by appointment.

Email and Webpage: mbvajiac@chapman.edu, http://www1.chapman.edu/~mbvajiac

Text: Elementary Differential Equations and Boundary Value Problems: Computing and Modeling, by C.H. Edwards and D.E. Penney, 4th Edition, ISBN: 9780131561076 .

Prerequisites: MATH 211: Linear Algebra
Credits: 3

Objectives: This course is a study of ordinary differential equations. Will will treat most of the chapters 1-8 of the textbook: historical background and terminology, existence and uniqueness, first order differential equations, modeling and applications, numerical methods, second and higher order differential equations, Laplace transforms, linear systems of differential equations and series solutions of second order linear equations.

Much thought and persistent work on your part will be necessary in order to achieve this goal. Making a regular and concerted effort to read the textbook will be a key to success. To prepare for exams, it is also recommended that you try working as many problems from the book as possible. Condensed answers to the some problems can be found in the back of the book to assist you in determining whether your approach is correct. Questions are ALWAYS welcome during class periods and during office hours. Attendance at each class lecture is required and expected.

Homework: The homework consists of WebWorK assignments (200 points), problems assigned in class and posted on Moodle (200 points) and projects (another 100 points). Similar problems will undoubtedly appear on the exams.
WebWork Assignments are found at: http://mathv.chapman.edu/webwork2/Math350MVF15/
Written assignments will be collected weekly on Mondays. These can be found posted weekly on the Moodle page at: http://mathv.chapman.edu/

Tests: One midterm (200 points) will be given. The date of this test will be announced in class a week in advance. Implicit in your registration for this class is the affirmation that you will be present to take all examinations on their assigned dates. No make-up exams will be given.

Final exam: The final exam (300 points) is comprehensive and you must take it on the officially scheduled date. Part of the final exam may include an extra project.

Important Note: As a general rule, there will be no make-up tests.

Grading: Total 1000 points, distributed as follows:

  1. Midterm Test: 200 points
  2. Final Exam: 300 points
  3. Homework and Projects : 500 points

Tentative scale:

Score of at least (%) 92 90 87 83 80 77 73 70 67 63 60
Letter Grade A A- B+ B B- C+ C C- D+ D D-

Course Learning Outcomes:
By the end of the class students will be able to:
1.Read, interpret, and use the vocabulary, symbolism and basic definitions used in differential equations and related application problems in science and engineering.
2.Apply the mathematics of differential equations to provide exact and qualitative solutions for problems arising in physics and other scientific and engineering applications.
3.Explore the relationship between a differential equation, its solution, and the situation being modeled.
4.Solve application problems modeled by separable, homogeneous, exact, linear first-order differential equations, and equations reducible to first-order differential equations.
5.Solve systems of linear equations using the eigenvalue method.
6.Use Laplace transform techniques to solve differential equations.
7.Use power series to solve nonelementary differential equations.
Program Learning Outcomes:
1. Graduates will be able to communicate mathematical ideas orally and in writing.
2. Graduates will be able to read university level mathematical texts.
3. Graduates will be able to prove basic results in mathematics.
4. Graduates will be able to read professional literature in mathematics.

Disabilities: Any student in this course who has a disability that may prevent him or her from fully demonstrating his or her abilities, should contact me personally in the first week of classes so we can discuss accommodations necessary to ensure full participation and facilitate your educational opportunity.

Academic Integrity: Students are assumed to be familiar with the Academic Integrity Code. Any violations of this code will be strictly dealt with in accordance with this code. You are responsible for all the information discussed in class and in the appropriate sections of the text, unless told otherwise.

Adrian Vajiac
Department of Math/CS
Chapman University.