• Text: none. It is best if you have a home computer or laptop, as this course requires quite a bit of computer work. But you can use the computers at LSUS for all your needs, if necessary.
• Prerequisites:
  1. Any math course numbered above Math 121 will suffice. Course requirements will depend on academic experience. The more you know, the more you are expected to accomplish in this course. Students should have mostly B's or better in all attempted math classes or obtain permission of the instructor (Dr. Rick Mabry, 797-5352, rmabry AT lsus DOT edu) or perhaps the department chair (Dr. Tibor Szarvas, 797-5377).
  2. Students should be well motivated and love math. No slackers, please.
• Goals/objectives (I don't really understand the difference between goals and objectives, but here's what we'll do):
  1. Drawing geometrical objects and figures using mathematics and mathematical software.
  2. Writing descriptions of these objects using mathematical typesetting software.
  3. Creating web pages (and some posters) to display the results of the two preceding items.

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Mathematical images are everywhere. How are they made? If you see a geometric shape, even a simple one, can you define it mathematically using what you've learned in algebra, trigonometry, calculus? And if can you define it (using lines, arcs of circles, common functions, say), can you make it appear on the screen or a printout? And what if you need to change it slightly? Have you defined it using sufficient flexibility that you don't have to completely redo it? These are some of the issues we'll tackle. Look on my web page for some relatively simple images (and some not-so-simple ones). The background images and horizontal "rules" on our department webpage are fairly simple examples. (Refresh that page for different backgrounds. Soon you'll be making me more to use there!) Elsewhere on the web you'll see tons of stunning images. Mine are simple, and we'll concentrate on such things in this course. To generate images, we'll mainly use Mathematica, a very powerful state-of-the-art software system, available to you at no cost while you're a student at LSUS.

Also, we want to be able to produce mathematical documents, perhaps to go along with our mathematical images. The mathematical typesetting software LaTeX (pronounced "LAY-tek") will be used for this. The software is free and is used by mathematicians, scientists, and many publishers to create first-class documents. (I recommend the version from MiKTeX.org—you can started right now if you like!) As an example, here is a paper produced using LaTeX (a first-class one, at that!) and that also has embedded graphics. How is this done? Soon you will know.

And you'll learn how to make documents like this one.

This is not going to be a difficult course, but it will be a demanding one. Be careful—you can get hooked on this stuff very easily! If that is what happens, it is almost certain you'll get a high grade in the course. (No guarantees, now.) But this will probably be unlike any other math class you've taken. Many of those courses have allowed (or even required) you to be passive sponges, absorbing information and squeezing it back out into bit-buckets called "tests". There will be no exams in this course. Your job is to be creative. Yes, you'll probably learn a ton of math, but you'll probably come to better understand the math you already know. Or knew. Nothing makes you understand it like actually using it, doing it. And use it you will...

This is a course for anyone who wants something beyond the usual, standard math classes. If you like math but have been a bit bored in some of those courses (you can admit it), then this might just be for you.

Let me hear from you—use the mail address above or stop by my office in BH 416. Please excuse the mess. We'll talk about your readiness for the course. Chances are, just showing up means you're ready. But let's talk. The enrollment is capped at 25 in this course, so think about it and contact me soon.