MAT101

CONTEMPORARY MATHEMATICS

TEXTBOOK: Blitzer, Thinking Mathematically, Second Edition, Prentice Hall Publishing Co., Upper Saddle River, NJ, 2003.

UNIVERSITY MISSION STATEMENT:

Lee University seeks to provide education that integrates biblical truth as revealed in the Holy Scriptures with truth discovered through the study of the arts and sciences and in the practice of various professions. A personal commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior is the controlling perspective from which the educational enterprise is carried out. The foundational purpose of all educational programs is to develop within the students knowledge, appreciation, understanding ability and skills which will prepare them for responsible living in the modern world.

CATALOG DESCRIPTION:

A survey of mathematical topics designed to develop an appreciation of the uses of mathematics. Selected topics will include problem solving, mathematical modeling, logic and sets, statistics, and the mathematics of finance.

PREREQUISITES: Students scoring below 18 on the mathematics portion of the ACT must take appropriate pre-core courses before enrolling in Contemporary Mathematics. Three Credit Hours

I. PURPOSE: The purpose is to present the basic fundamentals of mathematics, to give students a general mathematics background so that they will be able to meet the needs of mathematics in everyday life, and to develop in students the ability to think and work accurately in terms of quantitative relationships and logic.

II. OBJECTIVES OF THE COURSE

A. GENERAL LEARNING OBJECTIVES

The goals of this course are:

1. that students learn to value mathematics and its contribution to society and other

disciplines

2. that students develop confidence in their ability to use and make sense of

mathematics

3. that students develop the ability to become mathematical problem solvers in real

life situations

4. that students learn to communicate mathematically through representing concepts in variety of ways and through writing

5. that students learn to reason mathematically-making conjectures, gathering evidence, and building arguments.

B. SPECIFIC BEHAVIORAL OBJECTIVES

As a result of this course the student should be able to:

1. Demonstrate understanding of the differences between inductive and deductive reasoning as it relates to mathematics and the physical sciences.

2. Demonstrate an ability to solve problems using ratio, proportion, and variation.

3. Use the rules of logical conclusion in a mathematical argument.

4. Work with sets and subsets.

5. Use and understand tables and graphs developed from statistical data.

6. Demonstrate an appreciation of the role that mathematics plays in society, both past and present.

7. Interpret Venn diagrams and their applications to sets.

8. Demonstrate understanding of the structure of the number system.

9. Identify and utilize the properties of the number systems.

10. Solve linear and quadratic equations of a single variable.

11. Solve word problems using mathematical models (equations)

12. Utilize the basic properties of probability and statistics.

13. Solve everyday problems of finance.

14. Use percent in the solution of everyday problems.

15. Graph using the rectangular coordinate system.

III. TOPICS TO BE COVERED

A. PROBLEM SOLVING AND CRITICAL THINKING

1. Inductive and Deductive Reasoning

2. Estimation

3. Problem Solving

B. SETS

1. Definition and concepts of sets and subsets

2. Set operations

3. Venn diagrams

4. Applications of sets

C. LOGIC

1. Statements and logical connectives

2. Truth tables

3. Valid arguments

4. Equivalent statements and variations of the conditional

D. NUMBER REPRESENTATION AND CALCULATION

1. Types of systems of numeration

2. Place-value

3. Introduction to different base systems

E. NUMBER THEORY AND THE REAL NUMBER SYSTEM

1. Prime and Composite numbers

2. Order of Operations

3. The Rational Numbers

4. The Irrational Numbers

5. Real Numbers and Their Properties

6. Exponents

F. ALGEBRA: EQUATIONS AND INEQUALITIES

1. Algebraic Expressions and Formulas

2. Solving Linear Equations

3. Applications of Linear Equations

4. Ratio, Proportion, and Variation

5. Solving Linear Inequalities

6. Solving Quadratic Equations

G. CONSUMER MATHEMATICS

1. Percent

2. Simple Interest and Compound Interest

3. Installment Buying

H. PROBABILITY

1. The nature of probability

2. Empirical and Experimental probability

3. Tree diagrams and sample space

4. Theoretical probability

5. "OR" and "AND" problems of combined probability

6. Applications

I. STATISTICS

1. Measures of central tendency

2. Measures of dispersion

3. The normal curve

4. Applications

IV. INSTRUCTIONAL PROCEDURES

A. Lectures on all subjects with accompanying demonstrations

B. Reading assignments

C. Daily assignments of problems

D. Class discussions

V. RESPONSIBILITIES OF STUDENTS

A. Class attendance. Regular attendance is essential to realize the purposes of this course. You are expected to attend every class! Read the university catalog concerning attendance. (page 40)

B. Prompt and timely execution of reading and problem assignments

C. Read textbook and take notes in class

VI EVALUATION

(Each faculty member will supply the evaluation criteria.)

VII. STUDENTS WITH DISABILITES:

Lee University is committed to the provision of reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities, as defined in Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. Students who think they may qualify for these accommodations should notify their instructor immediately. Special services are provided through the Academic Support Program.

VIII. ACADEMIC INTEGRITY:

As a Christian community of scholarship, we at Lee University are committed to the principles of truth and honesty in the academic endeavor. As faculty and students in this Christian community, we are called to present our academic work as an honest reflection of our abilities; we do not need to defraud members of the community by presenting others’ work as our own. Therefore, academic dishonesty is handled with serious consequences for two fundamental reasons: it is stealing – taking something that is not ours; it is also lying – pretending to be something it is not. In a Christian community, such pretense is not only unnecessary, it is also harmful to the individual and community as a whole. Cheating should have no place at a campus where Christ is King because God desires us to be truthful with each other concerning our academic abilities. Only with a truthful presentation of our knowledge can there be an honest evaluation of our abilities. To such integrity, we as a Christian academic community are called

IX. READING LIST:

A. Required: The textbook

B. Supplemental:

1. Wright, D. Franklin, Arithmetic for College Students, Seventh edition, D. C. Heath and company, 1995, Lexington, Massachusetts.

2. Angel and Porter, A Survey of Mathematics with Applications, Fourth edition, Addison -Wesley, 1993, Reading, Massachusetts.

3. Smith, Richard Manning, Mastering Mathematics, Wadsworth, 1991, Belmont, California.

4. Johnson, Mildred, How To Solve Word Problems in Algebra, McGraw-Hill, 1992, New York, New York.

5. Crawford, Dr. Carol Gloria, Math Without Fear, New Viewpoints/Vision, 1980, New York, New York.