Models of Computation - Mathematics 450 - Spring 2005

Class Meetings: MWF 9:30-10:25, FN 5.

Textbook: N. J. Cutland. Computability, An introduction to recursive function theory. We will cover most of Chapters 1-6, and depending on availability of time, parts of Chapters 7 and 8, plus an introduction to Complexity (not in this textbook).

Homework: HW will be assigned every class day and posted on the class website, due the next class day.

Midterms: We will have three midterms: W 2/9/05, W 3/9/05, W 4/13/05.  Changes to these dates, if any, will be announced ahead of time.

Final : The final exam will be on Monday May 2, 1:00-4:00 PM. Please make sure you do not have any exams or other plans (like travel plans) that conflict with this date and time; I do not give early or late finals.

Exam Make-ups: No make-up exams will be given. If you miss a midterm with a valid excuse (e.g., a medical reason), and provide documentation for it, that exam will simply not count for you—instead, all your other exams will count proportionally more. This policy does not apply to the final exam.

 

Grading: Your grade for the semester will be computed according to this table:

Homework 5% Midterms 1, 2, 3 15%, 20%, 20% Final 40%

Attendance: You are responsible for everything that goes on in every class meeting, such as announcements, handouts, taught topics that are not in the book, etc.  This means whenever you miss a class, it is your responsibility to contact me and find out what you missed.

E-mail: When necessary, I will make announcements via the class mailing list, instead of in the classroom. You are responsible for checking your email at least once a day. I encourage you to use our class email list math450-L@oxy.edu to contact others in class regarding homework questions or any class related issues.

Academic Honesty: I feel strongly about protecting honest and hard-working students against unfair and dishonest actions sometimes committed by a few. I don't give warnings; I refer all suspicious cases to the Judicial Examiner without hesitation.

Students with learning disability: Please see me and the CAE to arrange for any special needs.