INSTRUCTOR Dr. Clarence Wilkerson
OFFICE Blocker 623A
E-MAIL cwilkers@math.tamu.edu
URL http://www.math.tamu.edu/˜cwilkers/Math304F11/ Bookmark this page!
CLASS TIME MWF 1:50–2:40 PM , CE 222
OFFICE HOURS MW 10:30 – 11:30, Th 1:30-2:30 or by appointment.
HELP SESSIONS Blocker evemings, TBA
PREREQUISITES Math 152.
BOOK Linear Algebra with Applications by Steven J. Leon 8th ed. (2010).
GRADING Your grade will be determined by two tests (100 pts each), final (150 pts), and weekly homework (50 pts) and quizzes (80 pts).
90%–100%==A, 80%–89%=B, etc.
HOMEWORK and QUIZZES HW will be assigned and collected on
Fridays. Late homework will not be accepted, but your two lowest scores will be dropped. There will be a short (10 minute) quiz on a
HW type problem each non-test week. The lowest two will be dropped.
COURSE DESCRIPTION Introductory course in linear algebra covering abstract ideas of vector space and linear transformation as well as models and applications of these concepts, such as systems of linear equations, matrices and determinants. The theory of eigenvalues and eignvectors will be one of the major applications covered. MATH 323 is designed to be a more demanding version of this course.
1

LEARNING OBJECTIVES Students will become proficient in the topics listed in the Course Description with particular emphasis on mastering computational aspects of the material.
SPECIAL SERVICES Students with disabilities can get assistance from the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (845-1637).
SYLLABUS The following is approximate and subject to change depending on the needs of the class. There are 42 class periods in the semester
(Tuesday December 6 is a redefined Thursday) and I expect to use 6 or 7 of these for reviews and tests. Material for the remaining lectures is as follows:
Lecture 1: Systems of linear equations. 1.1
Lecture 2: Gaussian elimination. Leon 1.1-1.2
Lecture 3: Applications of systems of linear equations. Leon 1.2
Lecture 4: Row echelon form. Gauss-Jordan reduction. Leon 1.1-1.2
Lecture 5: Matrix algebra. Leon 1.3
Lecture 6: Diagonal matrices. Inverse matrix. Leon 1.3
Lecture 7: Inverse matrix (continued). Leon 1.3-1.4
Lecture 8: Inverse matrix (continued). Elementary matrices. Transpose of a mat rix. Leon 1.3-1.4
Lecture 9: Determinants. Leon 2.1-2.2
Lecture 10: Evaluation of determinants. Leon 2.1-2.2
Lecture 11: Subspaces of vector spaces. Span. Leon 3.1-3.2
Lecture 12: Span (continued). Linear independence. Leon 3.2-3.3
Lecture 13: Linear independence (continued). Leon 3.3
Lecture 14: Basis of a vector space. Leon 3.3-3.4
Lecture 15: Basis and dimension. Leon 3.4
Lecture 16: Basis and coordinates. Leon 3.5
Lecture 17: Rank and nullity of a matrix. Leon 3.6
Lecture 18: Linear transformations. Kernel and range. Leon 4.1
Lecture 20: General linear equations. Matrix transformations. Leon
4.1-4.2
Lecture 21: Matrix of a linear transformation. Leon 4.2-4.3
Lecture 22: Similarity of matrices. Leon 4.3
Lecture 23: Orthogonal subspaces. Leon 5.2
Lecture 24: Orthogonal projection. Least squares problems. Leon 5.2-
5.3
Lecture 25: Norms and inner products. Leon 5.4
Lecture 26: Inner product spaces. Leon 5.4
2

Lecture 27: Orthogonal sets. The Gram-Schmidt process. Leon 5.5-
5.6
Lecture 28: The Gram-Schmidt process (continued). Leon 5.6
Lecture 29: Eigenvalues and eigenvectors. Characteristic equation.
Leon 6.1
Lecture 30: Eigenvalues and eigenvectors of a linear operator. Leon
6.1, 6.3
Lecture 31: Bases of eigenvectors. Diagonalization. Leon 6.1, 6.3
Lecture 32: Matrix exponentials. Leon 6.2-6.3
Lecture 33: Complex eigenvalues and eigenvectors. Symmetric and orthogonal mat rices. Leon 5.5, 6.3-6.4
Lecture 34: Rotations in space. Leon 5.5, 6.3
Lecture 35: Orthogonal polynomials. Leon 5.7
IMPORTANT DATES Note the following dates.
Friday November 4: Q-drop day.
Final exam, Tuesday, December 13, 10:30am – 12:30pm.
MAKE-UPS These will only be given in cases authorized under TAMU
Regulations. If you miss an exam you must contact me immediately .
SCHOLASTIC DISHONESTY Copying work done by others, either in-class or out of class, is an act of scholastic dishonesty and will be prosecuted to the full extent allowed by University policy. Collaboration on assignments, either in-class or out-of-class, is forbidden unless permission to do so is granted by your instructor. For more information on university policies regarding scholastic dishonesty, see
University Student Rules .
COPYRIGHT POLICY All printed materials disseminated in class or on the web are protected by Copyright laws. One xerox copy (or download from the web) is allowed for personal use. Multiple copies or sale of any of these materials is strictly prohibited.
3