MAE 107 - Course information



You can download the class Syllabus here.




Course Description and Objectives
This class proposes an introduction to scientific computing and numerical methods using MATLAB. Students will be confronted to the study of simple physical problems and learn the fundamental techniques or numerical analysis that are used to solve them using a computer when an analytical solution is not available. Students will learn how to use MATLAB as a programming language, to write simple codes and implement the numerical methods covered during the lectures.
During this five-week course, we will cover successively the following topics: numerical solution of systems of linear equations, root-finding and non-linear equations, interpolation, numerical integration, numerical differentiation, numerical solution of ordinary differential equation, data regression.


Textbook and other course material
- The textbook for the class is
          Applied Numerical Methods with MATLAB for Engineers and Scientists, by S. C. Chapra, Mc Graw Hill, second edition, 2008

- I have placed the following items on reserve at the Science & Engineering Library:
          Applied Numerical Methods with MATLAB for Engineers and Scientists, by S. C. Chapra
          Numerical Computation in Science and Engineering, by C. Pozrikidis
- During this class, you will learn how to use MATLAB and some problems will be assigned requiring the programming of short MATLAB routines to implement the techniques studied in class on particular physical or engineering problems. MATLAB is installed on all ACS machines and is available from your student account. For those who own a personal computer and would like to install the software on their machine, the student version of MATLAB can be purchased from the UCSD bookstore.
         

Course requirements

    -   Reading assignments
Required readings will be assigned from the textbook for each lecture. Other suggested readings will be assigned in the books placed on reserve in the S\&E Library. The list of the assigned readings will be posted on the class webpage.


    -   Homework assignments

Four homework will be assigned and posted on the class webpage, due no later than the end of the lecture on Wednesdays August 12, 19, 26 and September 2. When the assignment includes the writing of short programs or Matlab routines, the text of the code as well as its output must be turned in on hard copy with the rest of the assignment.
 
    -   Quizzes
Short quizzes will be assigned at the beginning of the lectures on Mondays August 10, 17, 24 and 31 on the lectures and reading assignments of the previous week. The format of these quizzes will be multiple-choice questions (with possibly a couple questions requiring only short answers), and will be no longer than 15 minutes. The purpose of these quizzes is not to be an additional test but to offer students a chance to check their understanding of the important concepts and identify the topics they need to dedicate more study time, before we move on to different subjects. Only the three best grades out of four will be counted, and the total weight of quizzes on the final grade will be minor.

    -   Midterm & Final Exams

A 1h30 midterm exam will be held on Wednesday, August 19 at the beginning of lecture. This will be a closed-book exam. The midterm exam will be based on the material covered during the lectures up to Monday, August 17 and the corresponding reading assignments, as well as the material of homeworks 1 and 2.
The final exam will be held on Friday, September 4 and will be a 3-hour closed-book exam. The final exam will be based on all material covered during lectures and the material of the reading and homework assignments.

For both exams, you should bring your own paper and writing material. No calculator will be allowed. Both exams will be a combination of questions and problems focusing on the numerical techniques studied during the lectures and their application to a practical problem. Some problems on either exam might require from you to write short Matlab routines on your answer sheet.

Grading policy
  • The final grade will be obtained as follows: Quizzes (5%), Homeworks (20%), Midterm exam (30%) and Final exam (45%).
  • Homework must be turned in by the end of the lecture on the due date to receive full credit. Homeworks received after this deadline but before the next day at 10a at the instructor's office will be awarded half-credit. Homeworks received after this second deadline will not be graded.
  • For all homework assignments and exams, you must clearly justify your answers to obtain full credit. Unless indicated otherwise, a correct result with only partial or no proof will only be given partial credit. This does not apply to quizzes.
  • A make-up exam will only be provided for medical reasons with proper documentation from a physician.
  • Any request for regrading of a homework assignment must be submitted in writing to the instructor within one week of getting the homework back. To be considered, it must include a clear justification for the regrade as well as your name and email address.

Academic honesty

I would like to remind you of UCSD's policy on Academic Dishonesty: http://www-senate.ucsd.edu/manual/Appendices/app2.htm
Students caught cheating will have to face the consequences and I therefore strongly encourage you not to put yourself in such a situation.

You are allowed to discuss homework assignments among yourselves, but the work you turn in should be your own. Any violation will result in a 0 grade to all students involved if it is the first violation. The second violation will result in a F grade for the class and a report to the student's college.

During exams and quizzes, no collaboration or discussion of any kind is allowed. Any cheating or intentional help will result in a F grade and report to college for all involved students.


Students with Disabilities

Please make any request for special accommodation to the instructor during the first week of class. Students must first contact and register with the Office of Students with Disabilities (http://osd.ucsd.edu) prior to requesting any special accommodation.



Some advice that you might find useful...
  • Summer Session is very short and we only have five weeks to cover the material normally covered in a regular quarter. Therefore, we’ll have to move on rather quickly from one topic to the next; try not to fall behind in your studying and reading assignments.
  • If you have questions or do not understand something covered in class or in your reading, seek help at the end of a class, or at the instructor’s or TA’s office hours, and do not wait until the days before the final.
  • This class involves to learn how to use MATLAB. MATLAB will be installed on the machines in the ACS labs in EBU2 that you can access with your student account. If you have a personal computer, you can also purchase the student version from the bookstore. You need to get familiar with MATLAB as soon as possible as it will be used for all the sub jects covered in the course.
  • Do not forget to indicate your name clearly on top of the page of all your assignments! (to guarantee that your work will be properly accounted for in your final grade.)

  • Clearly indicate your final answer to each question (e.g. box it in).
  • When the assignment requires you to turn in some MATLAB code, make a generous use of comments (preceded by the % sign in MATLAB): it will significantly help the person who will grade your work.
  • Staple all the pages of your assignment to ensure that it can be fully graded.
  • Please turn off your cellphones and restrain the use of your laptops to subjects that are related to the class....


















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