• Dr. Rebecca Tyson
• rebecca.tyson@ubc.ca
• http://people.ok.ubc.ca/rtyson
• 807-8766, rm SCI 386

Here is a little autobiography I wrote for a newsletter a few years ago. It will tell you a little about my bizzarre career path and how I ended up here at UBCO!

The textbook for the course is

• Fundamentals of Differential Equations by Nagle, Saff, and Snyder (Pearson publishing) for just Math 225.

Don't get the book with "and Boundary Value Problems" included in the title, as the text for Math 319 is likely to change next year. Any edition from the 4th on up will do. You will need to make sure however, that you have a friend with the current edition so that you can make sure that you are doing the correct homework problems.

My office hours are 8:30am-9:30am Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. I will generally be unavailable outside of these hours, though you can always try and make an appointment. If you need help, your tutorial sessions and the Math Study Centre both offer excellent opportunities to obtain assitance.

The best way to communicate with me is in person, before or after class or during my office hours. You may also use email (to rebecca.tyson@ubc.ca - do not use the Canvas email feature), but my inbox is so full that we need to have a few rules to maximize my ability to answer your emails.

I will read email related to Math 225 once each day. I will do my best to make it through all of the emails sent to me, but will not be able to do so if the volume becomes unmanageable. In order to increase the chances that I actually read and respond to your email, use the following format:

1. The subject line must contain two things:
   • the word "Math 225" or "Math225"
   • a few words telling me what is the content (e.g.: "pre-lecture homework #1", or "help on hwk q#3", or "registration problem", etc)
2. keep the content of your email as brief as possible
3. if at all possible, consult with your friends and your assignment group before sending me homework questions, as email is a terrible medium for answering homework questions
4. if I don't get back to you within 24 hours, and the question is truly urgent, please send the email again, as your original email is now buried in the backlog and won't get answered

Differential Equations are a lot of fun! In Math 225 you will learn the tools to set up and solve a wide variety of ordinary differential equations. In this way you will learn a great deal about expressing real-life systems in mathematical language and about finding meaningful solutions.

You will also learn to write scientifically about differential equation models. The ability to communicate in writing is extremely important, and the writing component of this course will give you a strong introduction to the whole writing process, from the literature review to the final paper. We will therefore spend a significant amount of time in class and/or in tutorial sessions learning how to read and evaluate writing critically.

In this course, the concepts are as important as the calculations, and the midterms and final exam questions will reflect this. The text has been selected for its clarity, and especially for its attention to motivating the problems we address in the course.

More specifically, in this course we will have time to cover direction fields, the phase line, first order differential equations (separable equations, linear equations, exact equations), applications (compartmental analysis), linear second order differential equations (linear differential operators, fundamental solutions of homogeneous equations, homogeneous linear equations with constant coefficients, auxiliary equations with complex roots, superposition and nonhomogeneous equations, method of undetermined coefficients, variation of parameters, qualitative solution of variable-coefficients and nonlinear equations, applications), introduction to the phase plane, theory of higher-order linear differential equations (basic theory, homogeneous linear equations with constant coefficients, undetermined coefficients), and matrix methods for linear systems (linear systems in normal form, homogeneous linear systems with constant coefficients, complex eighenvalues).

There is a great deal of basic material to cover in the 13 weeks we have available! Staying current with your reading and homework will be essential to doing well in the course.

Several classes throughout the term will be used for group work, taking all or part of the class time. Group work dates are not posted, as the appropriate classes for group work depends on our progress through the material. Your participation in these group work activities will be evaluated and will comprise your group work mark for the term. These group work activities are an important part of the learning process, whether you are in the position of someone needing help from classmates, or someone teaching the material to others. You must therefore be present in order to obtain the mark.

For all important dates including the last day for withdrawal with or without a "W", the last day for conversion from credit to audit, as well as holidays and the exam period please visit the website for the UBC Okanagan academic calendar.

If you require disability related accommodations to meet the course objectives please contact the Coordinator of Disability Resources located in the Student development and Advising area of the student services building. For more information about Disability Resources or about academic accommodations please visit the UBC Okanagan disability services website.

There are two different ways in which your final course mark will be calculated. The best will be used to determine your mark in the course. The two formulas for determining your final mark are as follows:

Item	Number	Formula A	Formula B
Group Work Assignments	~8	10%	10%
Assignments	8, lowest mark dropped	20%	5%
Midterms (Two-Stage)	two	30%	5%
	individual portion 85% (at most)
	group portion 15% (at least)
Final Exam (Individual)	one	40%**	80%**
Total		100%	100%

Notes:

• Two-Stage Test Marks: The mark for each two-stage test is calculated as a weighted sum of the individual and group components as follows: Test Mark = a*(individual mark) + b*(group mark), where a+b=1, and a is no more than 0.85 and b is no less than 0.15.
• ^**Final Exam Mark: You must obtain at least 50% on the final exam in order to pass the course. If your mark on the final exam is less than 50%, your final mark is either the one computed by Formula A or 47%, whichever is lowest. Note that when predicting your performance on the final exam, it is your performance on the individual portion of each midterm that matters most.

There will be assignments roughly every week (except in midterm weeks - due dates are indicated on the agenda). Assignments may be done in groups of up to 5 people (each group should hand in one assignment).

Assignments are due in class on Wednesdays. If you and everyone in your group attends the previous tutorial, however, you earn a 2-day extension on the assignment, which is then due in class on Friday.

No other extensions to assignments will be granted, as this delays the posting of solutions. So make sure you start your assignments early, so that you are ready to hand them in on time. Each assignment is based on the material from the previous week, so by Friday at the latest you will have enough information to complete the assignment due the following Wednesday. Assignments vary in length and difficulty.

Tutorial time will be chiefly used to provide help with the assignments and midterms. Problems done in tutorial are considered part of the material covered in lecture, and are therefore valid subject material for tests.

If you and everyone in your assignment group attends tutorial in a given week, then you will earn a 2-day extension on your assignment (due Friday instead of Wednesday). The TA will take attendance at the beginning of tutorial.

1. Midterms must be written at the time and place which the professor designates and out-of-time tests will not be permitted. Dates are posted on the agenda.
2. If you believe that you have a legitimate reason for missing a test, you must contact your professor as soon as the reason arises, and explain the situation. Legitimate reasons include those of a medical or compassionate nature. Written documentation may be required.

The final exam will be a comprehensive, three hour, individual test held during the final examination period at the end of the term. See the UBC Okanagan academic calendar for the dates of the exam period. The specific date, time and location of the exam for this course will be announced later in the term. Failure to write the final examination at the scheduled time without a legitimate excuse will result in an automatic failing grade for the course. In order to obtain a passing grade in the course, you must obtain at least 50% on the final exam.

Math 225 uses the standard UBCO marking scheme as described in the UBCO calendar. A 50% is required for a passing mark and a 60% is required to use this course as a prerequisite for further coursework.

The UBCO Mathematics Assistance Center (MAC) is located in the University Centre. Many of the math TAs at the MAC are able to provide you with help in problem solving. If you are seeking help with the course material and you are unable to reach me or a classmate, the MAC is a good alternative.

A scientific calculator is required.

The academic enterprise is founded on honesty, civility, and integrity. As members of this enterprise, all students are expected to know, understand, and follow the codes of conduct regarding academic integrity. At the most basic level, this means submitting only original work done by you and acknowledging all sources of information or ideas and attributing them to others as required. This also means you should not cheat, copy, or mislead others about what is your work. Violations of academic integrity (i.e., misconduct) lead to the break down of the academic enterprise, and therefore serious consequences arise and harsh sanctions are imposed. For example, incidences of plagiarism or cheating usually result in a failing grade or mark of zero on the assignment or in the course. Careful records are kept in order to monitor and prevent recidivism. A more detailed description highlighting the salient points of academic integrity, including the policies and procedures, may be found at here. The unabridged document can be found under the website for academic misconduct. If you have any questions about how academic integrity applies to this course, please consult with your professor.

• Some Student Study Strategies collated by UBC http://www.studygs.net