MCS 118, Calculus with Pre-Calculus Review 1a
(1:30-2:20 MTuThF online and in OHS 318)

Syllabus: Here is the syllabus.

Class meetings: Our class meets online Mondays and Thursdays and in person on Tuesdays and Fridays. You can find the meeting code for the online class meetings further down this page.

Office hours for the rest of the semester:

• 2:30-4:00 Thu, 12/16, online
• 2:30-4:00 Fri, 12/17, online
• 2-3 Sat, 12/18, in person and online
• 2-3 Mon, 12/20, in person and online

Online resources:

• The meeting code for our online classes on Google Meets is egh-fqow-nhm.
• Webwork is where you do your online homework.
• I use Moodle to post your grades periodically throughout the semester
• The grade calculator allows you to input your current running total from Moodle and see what kind of score you need on the final exam for each kind of letter grade. The calculator is a Google Sheets document, so you need to be logged in to a Google account to access it. It is supposed to work with any Google account, not only your Gustavus account. Click Use Template in the upper right corner to start. You can also download an Excel version of the calculator if Google Sheets does not want to cooperate.
• Here is a list of the topics we have covered. It is updated before each exam.
• Here are the notes to help you read your textbook
  • 1.1. Functions and Their Representations
  • 1.2. A Catalog of Essential Functions
  • 1.3. The Limit of a Function
  • 1.4. Calculating Limits
• Desmos is everyone's favorite graphing website.
• Here is an app for visualizing sine, cosine, and tangent on the unit circle.
• This app illustrates the connection between the unit circle and the graphs of sine and cosine.
• Here is another app for visualizing the connection between the unit circle and the graphs of trig functions, including tangent, cotangent, secant, and cosecant.
• This app shows how you can view the graphs of tangent and cotangent as ratios of sine and cosine.
• This app helps to visualize the roles that δ and ε play in the formal definition of limits.
• Wolfram MathWorld is an interactive math encyclopedia.
• Wolfram Alpha gives you access to many features of Mathematica, an extremely powerful computer algebra program, without paying $$$ and learning Mathematica syntax. It does not only do algebra.

Homework:

Assigned	Due	Read	Exercises
9/7		1.1	No exercises to turn in this week.
9/10	9/17	1.1	Webwork: HW0 (this does not count as part of your grade) Offline: Decide if f: S → T is a function. Carefully justify your answer. S = set of current Gustavus students, T = set of dorms at GAC, f(x) = the dorm x lives in, S = set of people who have ever lived, T = set of people who have ever lived, f(x) = x's father, S = set of people who have ever lived, T = set of people who have ever lived, f(x) = x's youngest brother, S = set of people who have siblings, T = set of people who have ever lived, f(x) = x's oldest sibling, S = set of all triangles, T = set of all line segments, f(x) = x's longest side.
9/17	9/24	1.1 and 1.2	Webwork: HW1 Offline: 1.1.4, 18, 20, 52 Recommended but optional: 1.1.11, 15, 19, 27, 45, 49
9/24	10/1	1.2	Webwork: HW2. Offline: 1.1.42, 50, 62, 66 Recommended but optional: 1.1.51, 57, 59, 61, 65 and 1.2.3, 9, 11
10/1	10/8	1.2	Webwork: HW3. Offline: 1.2.4, 6, 14 and attend a talk that looks interesting at the Nobel Conference and write a brief (1-2 paragraph) account of what you learned there. Recommended but optional: 1.2.1, 5, 7, 13, 15
10/8		1.2, 3	Homework holiday. Review for the upcoming exam.
10/15	10/22	1.3	Webwork: HW4. Offline: 1.2.26, 44, 61, 66 Recommended but optional: 1.2.19, 27, 31, 37, 43, 55, 57, 63
10/22	10/29	1.3	Webwork: HW5. Offline: 1.3.2, 20 Recommended but optional: 1.3.1, 13, 15, 17, 19, 21
10/29	11/5	1.3	Webwork: HW6. Offline: 1.3.4, 6, 10, 22 Recommended but optional: 1.3.3, 5, 7, 9, 27
11/5		1.3, 4	Homework holiday. Review for the upcoming exam.
11/12	11/19	1.3, 4, Advice on writing limits	Webwork: HW7. Offline: 1.3.24, 32, 38, 44 Recommended but optional: 1.3.23, 25, 26, 29, 33, 35, 37, 43
11/19	11/23	1.4 and pp. A15-A19 in Appendix C	Offline: 1.3.40, 46 Recommended but optional: 1.3.27, 39, 41 and 1.4.1-3, 7, 11
11/19	11/29		Webwork: HW8.
11/23	12/3	1.4 and pp. A15-A19 in Appendix C	Webwork: HW9. Offline: 1.4.4, 6, 10, 20 Recommended but optional: 1.4.15, 17, 19, 23, 25, 27, 29
12/3	12/10	1.4 and pp. A15-A18 in Appendix C	Webwork: HW10. Offline: 1.4.30, 40, 44, 64 Recommended but optional: 1.4.21, 22, 37, 39, 41, 43, 61, 63
12/10	12/14	1.4 and pp. A15-A18 in Appendix C	Webwork: HW11 (closes on 12/17). Offline: 1.4.32, 60 Recommended but optional: 1.4.31, 33, 35, 49, 51

Exam solutions:

• First midterm exam pdf
• Second midterm exam pdf
• Final exam pdf

Past exams and solutions: You can use these as practice exams as you review and prepare for current exams.

• From MCS 118 in fall 2018:
  • First midterm exam and its solutions
  • Second midterm exam and its solutions
  • Final exam and its solutions
• From MCS 118 in fall 2019:
  • First midterm exam and its solutions in Section 1
  • First midterm exam and its solutions in Section 2
  • Second midterm exam and its solutions
  • Final exam and its solutions
• From MCS 118 in fall 2020:
  • First midterm exam and its solutions
  • Second midterm exam and its solutions
  • Final exam and its solutions

Educational links:

• A serious paper on teaching/learning at the university level by Prof. Steven Zucker

Some scholarship opportunities for prospective teachers:

• Knowles Science Teaching Foundation