Math 325

Linear Algebra

Fall 2015

Handout

Course Information

Instructor: Serkan Hosten

Lecture: Section 01: MWF 9:10-10:00 TH 326;
Office: TH 944, Phone: 338-7723
E-mail: serkan@sfsu.edu

Section 03: MWF 1:10-2:00 TH 335

Prerequisite: Math 227 with C or better; CSC 330 or MATH 301 recommended.
The prerequisite is strictly enforced. It will be assumed that
you know the concept of a function along with special classes of functions such as polynomial,
power, trigonometric, exponential, and logarithmic functions.
you know how to differentiate the above classes of functions
you know how to integrate the above classes of functions
you have familiarity and openness to do simple proofs.
Student Learning Outcomes: Upon successful completion of the course, students should be able to
Use matrix methods to solve systems of linear equations and analyze overdetermined and underdetermined systems
Find bases for subspaces (e.g. kernels) of real Euclidean space and prove simple theorems about
subspaces
Compute orthogonal bases for subspaces in real inner product spaces
Compute minimizers of quadratic functions and least-square solutions
Find eigenvalues and eigenvectors including defective cases, recognize special eigenvalue properties
of symmetric matrices, and prove simple theorems about eigenvalues and eigenvectors.
Compute and use singular values.

Text: Applied Linear Algebra by Peter J. Olver and Chehrzad Shakiban. Bring the textbook along to each
lecture.

iLearn: The course has an official iLearn webpage. I will post reading notes, handouts, homeworks and
other material there. Bookmark this site and visit regularly.

Office Hours: Monday 2:10-3:00, Wednesday 11:10-12:00, Friday 12:10-1:00, in TH 944.

Exams
Exam 1 : Wednesday, October 7.
Exam 2: Friday, November 20.
Final Exam: Section 01: Wednesday, December 16, 8:00-10:45 am;
18, 10:45 am -1:15 pm

Section 03: Friday, December

Grading: Your grade will be based on three components:

The written work produced during lecture while doing an in-class exercise, worksheet, or a small
quiz (10%)
1

The verbal answers to questions in lecture when called upon (10%)

The written work in homeworks (30%), the two exams (15% each), and the final exam (20%).
The written in-class work will usually consist of completing a short exercise relavant to the lectures topic.
Sometimes these will involve group discussion/work. To make sure that you have completed and understood
assigned reading I may also give a short quiz. Anytime during lecture time I may call you to answer a
question related to the current lecture or previous topics. I will expect from you to make a good faith
effort to try to answer these questions in a clear and precise way.
A student who develops an understanding of the topics of the course at the most basic level and who can
articulate this understanding in verbal and written fashion should collect 60 70% of the total available
points and receive a grade of C or C+. A student who shows proficiency both in understanding and verbal
and written articulation is capable of collecting 7085% of the available points and will receive a B-/B/B+.
Students who developed a deeper understanding and strong mathematical communication skills will collect
more than 85% of the available points that correspond to a course grade of A- or A. Towards the end of
the course, I will announce the precise cutoff points of the grades.
Homeworks and Reading Assignments: There will be 8-10 homework assignments throughout the
semester that will generally be due Friday. I will not accept late homeworks. Please do not put me in the
uncomfortable situation where you have your homework in your hand, but it is 2 hours after the due date,
and I now have to say NO to you. This is not nice. The rule is clear, no late homework.
You could work on homework problems with your classmates. However, I have one recommendation and
one rule that goes with this. I recommend that before you discuss the homework problems with your
study group you spend enough time thinking about them on your own so that you bring something to the
discussion. The rule that I will enforce without exception is that you need to produce the final written
answers on your own. For this I recommend that you produce the answers that you return to me after
you discuss them with your classmates and not while you are discussing them. Also, I cannot emphasize
strongly enough the value of coming to office hours and asking questions directly to me.
You will receive a reading assignment each lecture to be completed by the following lecture. This is
absolutely crucial to the success of the following lecture. Reading 3-4 pages of your textbook or lecture
notes must be taken seriously and enough time should be spent on it. You must force yourself to think while
you are reading while scrutinizing every sentence and statement. I highly recommend that you arrange to
complete the readings with some of your classmates and check your understanding by asking and answering
questions. If you do not ask yourself questions I certainly will ask you those questions.

Course Conduct: Here are some rules that I expect you follow (and the action I will take if the rules
are broken).
(1) Come to lecture by 9:10 am (or 1:10 pm). If you are going to be late for an important reason let
me know ahead of time (talk to me at the end of the earlier lecture or send me an e-mail prior to
the lecture). If you arrive after the start of the lecture, do not enter the classroom. Wait outside (
next to the door and quietly!) until I find a good break during lecture and come and get you (this
might take 5-10 minutes). I will not repeat what I have said during this first part of class time for
the late-comers. If you are late, it is your responsibility to find out what happend during this time.
(2) Turn off your cell phone, put your laptop or iPad in your backpack. If your cell phone rings during
lecture you will be asked to leave the classroom and you will not be able to come back to the
lecture.
(3) No eating during lecture is allowed.

(4) Please use the bathroom before the lecture so that there is no need for leaving classroom. You are
not allowed to leave the classroom for going to the bathroom.
(5) If you need to leave the lecture for a particular well-established reason let me know about it at the
beginning of the lecture. If a need arises that you have to leave the lecture, do not sneak out when
my back is turned towards you. Raise your hand and ask for permission to leave.

Add/Drop: Last day to add/drop is Friday, September 4. After this day, in order to withdraw you
need my permission. The withdrawal deadline is Friday, November 20. Withdrawal after this date is not
permitted except for serious and compelling reasons that could not have been predicted at the beginning
of the semester. Not doing well in the course does not count as a reason. If you need to withdraw after
November 20, please bring to me the filled-out withdrawal petition form, a copy of your transcript, and any
supporting documents. A serious and prolonged illness or injury is a valid reason if medical documentation
is provided. A serious change in your personal life that negatively affects your schoolwork (for instance, all
of a sudden you have to work full-time, you cannot afford childcare, you need to be away for a prolonged
time etc) is a valid reason to withdraw. Again the need has to be documented. Withdrawals after December
11 (the last day of classes) are absolutely not permitted. The deadline for deciding to audit the course
is September 4. The deadline for the CR/NC option is Monday, October 19. For more information on
the Fall 2015 procedures about adding and dropping courses, credit/no credit option, and auditing a class
please consult the document posted on the iLearn Course Webpage.
Students with Disabilities: Students with disabilities who need reasonable accomodations are encouraged to contact the instructor. The Disability Programs and Resource Center (DPRC) is available to
facilitate the reasonable accomodations process. The DPRC is located in the Student Service Center and
can be reached by telephone (Voice/TTY 415-338-2472) or by e-mail (dprc@sfsu.edu).