Lecture Information
• Lecture: MATH 5900: Topics in Math: Actuarial Mathematics II
• Room: NS202
• Days/Time: Tuesday-Thursday 12:25 - 13:45
Instuctor’s Information
• Instructor: Nicos Georgiou
• Office: 202 LCB
• E-mail: georgiou@math.utah.edu
• Webpage: http://www.math.utah.edu/∼georgiou
Book
The textbook for the class is “Actuarial Models, the Mathematics of Insurance”
by Vladimir I. Rotar.
Office hours
• —————————• Thursday 11:15 am - 12:15pm.
If you cannot make either of the office hours and there is a question that cannot be
answered shortly before or after lecture, we can schedule an appointment. As soon as an
appointment is made for the week, it will be notified to the whole class so more people can
attend. You may also try to just knock on my door, but I might not be there!
ADA Statement
The Americans with Disability Act requires that reasonable accommodations be provided
for students with cognitive, systemic, learning and psychiatric disabilities. Please contact
me at the beginning of the semester to discuss any such accommodations you may require
for this course. Please inform me in a timely manner, don’t just bring this up on the day
of the exam.
Exams
There will be three 80 minute midterms and NO final exam. Each midterm is worth
25% of your grade. Here is a table with the examination dates. In the case where a
student feels that a bad midterm score will affect their grade they have the
option of dropping the midterm and requesting a comprehensive final exam
(all of the semester’s material). In this case, the date will be decided jointly
with the instructor but it cannot be after Wednesday, May 1 (the actual exam
date). If a final is requested, it worths 40% of the final grade and each of the
remaining midterms and HW 20%.
Exam Type
Date
Maximum Score
Midterm 1
02/ 19 (T)
100
Midterm 2
03/ 25 (T)
100
Midterm 3
04/ 23 (T)
100
Total Score from Midterms
300
1
2
Here are some answers to possible questions:
• All midterms will happen during lecture time, in our usual room (LCB
225).
• At least 60% of the total midterm points will come from Homework
problems (see section: Homework). This does not mean that the problems
will be identical. It means that numbers might change or that the main idea is
similar.
• The midterm material is not cumulative: Each material will cover material that was covered after the midterm preceding it. However, it’s
possible that some prior knowledge is needed - for example definitions
or concepts.
• I have a strict rule of no LATE make-up exams (with a possible exception
of sudden illness or life and death matters). If for any other important
reason you cannot attend the midterm at the specified time, you should
tell me at least a week in advance so I can prepare an early midterm for
you.
Homework
Homework is worth the remaining 25% of your grade. Homework will be assigned every
week (approximately) and you will be notified on the due date. The problems and due
dates will be reported on my website. No late homework will ever be accepted, so
please be prompt. After each HW is assigned, I will a choose a problem for you the
day before is due to hand in for grading. The remaining problems will not be graded but
you are more than welcome to ask about any of them during office hours. Naturally, all
problems assigned for HW are fair game for the midterms.
Also, due to the size of the book is conceivable that many examples from the book are left
for you to read. Some will be left as reading assignments and will be clearly marked in
my notes, in class or explicitly mentioned in a week’s HW assignment under ”Independent
Reading”. these examples are also fair game for the midterms, so please ask questions
about them if something is not clear.
Here are the answers to some possible questions:
• You may work in groups, as long as each member of the group writes
their own solution. If you decide to do that, I’ d like to know the other
members of the group (just mention their names in your papers). If it
ever becomes obvious to me that someone copied, the total score will
be divided equally among all members of the group. Please note: Someone
who just changes the symbols in an answer did NOT write their own solution. The
problems are long and a lot of explanation is required for full credit - please use
your own words !!
• Write clearly, in a tidy manner. If I cannot follow your work or reasoning,
I cannot give credit!
• You may discuss your problems with me. You might not get an answer,
but a gentle push in the correct direction never hurt anyone :)
Grading Policy
3
The total grade is computed out of 500 in the following manner.
Exam Type Total Score
Homework
100
Midterms
300
Total Score
400
The following grades are guaranteed: This means that if you get an average of 75 you
cannot do worse than a C. It is possible that by the end of the semester the cut-offs
will be lowered but not raised.
Grade Percentage
A
90%+
B
77%+
C
63%+
D
55%+
Electronic devices
Disruptive use of electronic devices is not allowed during class time. This includes i-pads,
i-macs, i-pods and i-don’t-know-what-else. If the usage of electronic devices disturbs any
person in class (including myself) you will be (kindly) requested to exit the room without
the annoying little device. FYI, I am short on i-phones these days.
In particular this implies a strict policy of NO CALCULATORS unless explicitly
mentioned. You are definitely not going to need (or be allowed to use) them during any of
the midterms, so please, for the sake of practice, do not use them for the homework either.
An answer of π is much more correct than an answer of 3.14159 (why?).
Annoying habits of the instructor.
• I never reply to e-mails after 6 pm. If I can answer immediately, you will have
your answer by noon the next business day. If I cannot answer immediately, I’ll tell
you before noon the next business day and then reply again as soon as I know an
answer, or discuss it during lecture. If neither of the above happens, I didn’t receive
your e-mail; please resend.
• I NEVER (and I cannot stress this enough) do math or solve problems over e-mails.
The probability of reading such an e-mail is 0. If you send a TeX-ed pdf as an
attachment, the probability of reading such an e-mail is 10%, but I will never reply.
Instead I will talk about it during lecture.
• I much prefer people coming to office hours. Don’t be afraid, I won’t bite. I think
is much more instructive to see the thought process. If you are too scared to come
alone, bring a friend!
Some tips: (Feel free to ignore)
Learn how to read a math book. Reading a math book properly requires pencil and
paper. Follow along with the book. Treat example problems, theorems, and formulas as
exercises with solutions. Know the definitions and boldface terms. Be able to work each
4
example problem. The example problems are designed to cover all the basic ideas, they
are a great tool for review and an excellent pool for exam problems, since they give the
instructor and grader an idea on who read the book and studied.
Exam preparation. Mathematics is not a science that you can do well just by memorizing information. Apparently people find it helpful to learn the solution to a problem by
heart. THIS WONT HELP IN THIS (OR IN ANY OTHER) CLASS! Recognition knowledge isn’t enough. You need to be able to do the problems without looking at a book.
Don’t blindly memorize. This might lead to problems, especially if one is ” evil” enough
to give similar sounding problems that need a different method. You need to know the
method you want to apply, recognize the type of problem rather than the problem itself.
Organize the material.
The more the better. Seek an academically supportive environment. For example,
people prefer studying at libraries, or coffee-shops (misery loves company after all:-). Its
completely normal if you don’t understand everything from the beginning, so it’s extremely
important to help one another out. There are many ways to do this. For example you can
have a of couple note-buddies. Form a note-taking pool. One person can take notes while
the others listen (though people usually prefer their own notes) or one person can write
down what the instructor says rather than write, and then exchange notes.
Questions. Answering questions is one of best ways to solidify your own understandingbut please make sure you know what you are talking about. If you are unsure, ask a third
person. Don’t do others’ work for them. Encourage people to do their own thinking (even
if they are your best friend). The purpose of getting help is to become able to do the
problems without help, not make someone eternally grateful to you. Don’t be afraid to ask
for help when you are stuck, but especially don’t hesitate to speak up when you are lost.
We want to answer your questions. We want you to understand. Highlight what you don’t
understand; don’t hide it. If your instructor checks work, write questions on your work.
Come to office hour with questions.