Math 124: Calculus and Analytic Geometry 1
Autumn 2008
Meeting Information: MTWRF 9:00-9:50 - Room: OM 587.
Instructor: Adam Nyman
Office: BH 232, x3464
Email: [email protected]
Office hours: MTRF 10:00-10:30 a.m., 1:00-1:30pm and by appointment.
Textbook Information: The first four chapters of Calculus – Single Variable, Fourth Edition
by McCallum, Hughes-Hallett, Gleason, et al.
Calculator: A graphing calculator is required (for use in some homework problems), but no
calculator use is allowed during quizzes or exams.
Prerequisites: Math 115 or 118, or appropriate placement score.
Enrollment: Last day to withdraw without W: Fri. Oct. 3.
Withdrawals: Last day of late course withdrawal: Fri. Nov. 7.
Course Overview: Differential Calculus is the study of the notion of rate of change or
derivative of a function. The discovery of the derivative revolutionized the sciences and tech-
nology. In this class you will learn what a derivative is, how to compute it, and how to apply
the idea of derivative to solve a variety of problems from the “real” world. More specifically
Course Objectives: The successful student will demonstrate:
1. Understanding of the concepts of limits and continuity, including the ability to recognize
when a limit does not exist or when a function fails to be continuous.
2. Understanding of: the limit definition of the derivative, the derivatives interpretations
as a rate of change and as a slope, and the relationship of the derivative to average rates
of change.
3. Ability to use the derivative and its interpretation as a rate of change to solve practical
problems, such as those involving velocity and acceleration and related rates problems.
4. Mastery of the computation of derivatives of elementary functions using the linearity of
the derivative and the power, product, quotient and chain rules.
5. Ability to find the equation of the tangent line to a curve, and to use linear approxima-
tion.
6. Understanding the relationship between the graph of a function and its derivatives. This
includes the ability to sketch graphs with given properties and the ability to interpret
given graphs.
7. Understanding of the concept of implicitly defined functions and the ability to compute
their derivatives.
8. Understanding of the concept of inverse functions and ability to compute their deriva-
tives.
9. Ability to find and classify the critical points of a function using the derivative tests.
10. Ability to set up and solve optimization problems using calculus.
