MA 123 Calculus I—Fall 2022
This course is the initial course in BU's traditional sequence of
three calculus courses.
We discuss the two fundamental concepts—differentiation and integration.
Since both are based on the notion of
a limit, we begin the course with a thorough discussion of
limits. Next we consider differentiation and its
applications, and the course concludes with a discussion of
integration and its relationship to differentiation.
Instructional Format:
A Sections:
These sections are the weekly lectures (3 hours/week).
All students must be registered for one of these sections.
- A1: MWF 9:05–9:55 in STO B50
- A2: TR 2–3:15 in STO B50
- A3: MWF 12:20–1:10 in STO B50
- A4: MWF 1:25–2:15 in STO B50
When you register for an A section, you are also reserving
the Thursday evening 6:30–8:30 time slot.
You should not
schedule anything that conflicts with this block.
Our first midterm exam is scheduled for
6:30–8:30 on
Thursday, October 27,
and our second midterm exam is
scheduled for
the same time on Thursday, December 1.
You should not
schedule anything that conflicts with these exams.
There will also be a double quiz
administered in discussion
section during the week of
October 3–October 6.
The final exam will be given
December 15 from 6–8 pm.
Note that this exam
starts at 6 pm rather than 6:30 pm.
B Sections:
These sections are the "studio-style" discussion sections.
All students must be registered for one of these sections.
Attendance in discussion section is mandatory, and you
must attend the entire section.
- B1: M 8:00 am–9:15 am in EPC 209
- B2: M 4:30 pm–5:45 pm in EPC 207
- B3: T 8:00 am–9:15 am in EPC 209
- B4: T 2:00 pm–3:15 pm in CAS 203
- B5: T 5:00 pm–6:15 pm in EPC 207
- B6: W 8:00 am–9:15 am in EPC 209
- B7: W 4:30 pm–5:45 pm in EPC 207
- B8: R 8:00 am–9:15 am in EPC 209
- B9: R 2:00 pm–3:15 pm in CAS 203
- BA: T 5:00 pm–6:15 pm in PSY B33
- BB: R 8:00 am–9:15 am in EPC 207
During most of the discussion section, you will work in
groups of four on worksheets that we have developed to
augment the lectures and online homework. You may also
ask questions about the homework exercises.
Instructors:
-
Professor Paul Blanchard: Course coordinator and A2 lecturer
Email: paul (at) bu.edu
Office hours: T 9–10:30 and R 8:30–10
Office: Room 264, 111 Cummington Mall
-
Professor Brian Williams: A1 lecturer
Email: bwill22 (at) bu.edu
Office hours: M 11-12:30 and W 12-1:30
Office: 245, 111 Cummington Mall
-
Professor Li-Mei Lim: A3 lecturer
Email: mei121 (at) bu.edu
Office hours: W and F 1:30–3
Office: Room 237, 111 Cummington Mall
-
Professor Anna Medvedovsky: A4 lecturer
Email: medved (at) bu.edu
Office hours:
M 10 pm–11 on Zoom (link available in the Information
section of the
Blackboard/Learn site for MA123)
W 3:30–4:30 in MCS 127 and F 11 am–12 noon in
MCS 127
Office: Room 127, 111 Cummington Mall
-
Professor Thomas Enkosky: Discussion section coordinator
Email: tomenk (at) bu.edu
Office: Room 237, 64 Cummington Mall
Textbook and online homework system:
Briggs, Cochran, Gillett, Schulz: Calculus (Early
Transcendentals, 3rd edition),
Pearson, 2019.
Detailed information about the textbook options is available at
http://math.bu.edu/people/paul/123/textbook.html.
We cover most of the material in Chapters 2–5 of the text.
There are two ways to view the textbook through MyLab Math, and both can be accessed from the menu on the left in your MLM course:
- Static eBook: This menu item opens a pdf reader that shows the entire three-semester version of the textbook, and you have the option to make notes and set bookmarks.
- Interactive eBook: This menu item opens the interactive eBook. This version of the textbook contains many interactive figures that illustrate certain concepts in a dynamic fashion. It is written in CDF, the Computable Document Format that is based on Mathematica. There is a free CDF player available from Wolfram Research, and you need to install this player for the interactive eBook to work. Boston University has a site license for Mathematica, so you can install Mathematica rather than the CDF player. Note that Mathematica is a powerful technical computing environment, and learning it takes some effort.
Course web page:
Most course materials and the online homework assignments
will be available at
www.mymathlab.com.
Your course ID on MyLab Math is determined
by your A section and is available from
your lecturer.
Exams and grading:
In addition to the two midterm exams and the final,
there will be quizzes in discussion section.
Your grade
for the course will be determined using the following percentages:
Each midterm exam
|
20%
|
Final exam
|
30%
|
Quiz grade
|
18%
|
Homework grade
|
12%
|
Getting help:
-
You are welcome and encouraged to visit the
office hours of any of the lecturers for MA
123.
- The
Mathematics and Statistics Tutoring Room, MCS B36,
is open
approximately 30 hours each week from the second week of
classes until classes end in December.
The schedule is available
here.
This room is also a good place to
study between classes.
-
The Education Resource Center
offers free individual and
group tutoring.
The Center gets very busy
as the end of the semester approaches, so it is good to make contact
with them earlier rather than later.
Homework policies:
Discussion section policies:
-
Attendance at discussion sections is mandatory, and you must
attend the entire session.
-
Each discussion section will focus on a worksheet that reviews and
goes more deeply into topics discussed during lecture.
-
Even though you work in groups during discussion section, we
strongly suggest
that you
write your own solutions to the questions on the
worksheets either on a piece of paper that is separate from the
worksheet or on a tablet. We also suggest
that you revisit your solutions as you study
for the midterms and finals.
-
There will be a quiz during every discussion section
(starting the second or third
week of the semester) based on the worksheet and on the
week's homework set. If you do not attend the entire
discussion section, you will not be able to take the quiz.
-
No make-up quizzes will be given except as required by the
University's policy on religious observance (see below).
However, your lowest two quiz
grades will be dropped at the end of the semester.
-
If you are unable to make your discussion section for any reason, you are
welcome to attend a different discussion section during that week. However,
you will NOT be able to take a quiz in any discussion section except your own.
Exam and quiz policies:
-
Calculators cannot be used during quizzes and exams.
-
When you finish a quiz or an exam, raise your hand but stay seated. Someone
will come to your seat, pick up your paper and check your BU ID.
Make-up exams:
We do not give make-up exams except in truly extraordinary circumstances.
For example, if you are suffering from an illness that
requires hospitalization, we will either adjust the grading
scheme given above or administer a make-up exam. If you
miss an exam to participate in a sporting event hosted by a
club sport, you will receive a grade of zero. Note the
reference below to the University's policy on religious observance.
If you think that you might miss an exam, contact the course
coordinator, Professor
Blanchard, in advance as soon as possible.
If permission to make up an exam is granted, be
aware that the make-up exam probably will not
have the same format as
the original exam.
University Policy on Religious Observance:
This course will adhere to the University's
policy on
religious observance. Note that this policy states that
students are required to inform instructors, in writing, of
conflicts with the course schedule and requirements due to
their religious observance as early as possible in the semester.
Course announcements:
All general course announcements will be posted on the
Blackboard Learn A Site for the course.
You are responsible for any information that is posted
there.
Gradebooks:
Your homework grades will be posted on the MyLab Math sites, and
your exam and quiz grades will be posted on the
gradescope
sites for this course.
If you have any questions about those grades, you should ask about them immediately.
Questions about your exam grades should go to your instructors, and questions about your quiz grades should
go to the lead TF for your discussion section.
We expect all questions to be made in a timely manner, that is, in one or two weeks
after the assessment is graded.
Academic conduct:
Your work and conduct in this course are governed by the
Boston University Academic Conduct Code.
This code is designed to promote high standards of
academic honesty and integrity as well as fairness.
It is your responsibility to
know and follow the provisions of the code.
In particular, all work
that you submit in this course must be your original work. If you have a
question about any aspect of academic conduct, please ask.
Ensuring a positive learning environment:
The lectures and the discussion sections are times that are devoted to
learning calculus, and activities that interfere with this
process are not permitted.
Although you may use your smart phones, tablets, or laptops
to answer questions at the Learning Catalytics website
during lecture, your use of these devices at other times
during lecture and discussion section
will be subject to the approval of your lecturer or
discussion section leaders. Tweeting, texting, shopping online, and
visiting Facebook are certainly not allowed.
Important dates:
In addition to the exam dates mentioned above, you should know that the last
day to withdraw from the course without a grade of W is
October 11. The last day to withdraw from the course while
receiving a grade of W is November 14.