ABSTRACT MATHEMATICS & COMPUTER ALGORITHMS 2010-2011

Description: This course is open to students who have successfully achieved a minimum score of 4 on the AP Calculus BC exam or a B+ in AP Calculus BC. Students spend fall term exploring the foundations of abstract mathematical thought, which includes the following topics: logic, truth tables, proofs using binary logic, and tautologies, algebra of sets, relations, partial and linear orders, equivalence relations and classes, the construction of the rational numbers, and a formal approach to functions with a focus on the special mappings such as injective, surjective, bijective, existence of inverses, and composition. Computer programming is an integral part of the course. Winter term starts with a crash course in HTML and students complete an introductory course in object-oriented programming. Projects and examples are often selected from the AP Calculus curriculum. In the spring students study various topics from linear algebra and elementary number theory, and often complement the learning with laboratory and programming projects.

Prerequisite:  Minimum score of 4 on the AP Calculus BC exam, B+ in AP Calculus BC, and departmental permission. 

Offered: Full Year