2009 Fall MATH 121-01
Bulletin Course Description Groups, rings, and fields. Students intending to take a year of abstract algebra should take Mathematics 200 and 201. Not open to students who have had Mathematics 200. Instructor: Staff
(Instructor named in bulletin description above may not be current. For current instructor, see listing below.)
Title INTRO ABSTRACT ALGEBRA Department MATH Course Number 2009 Fall 121 Section Number 01 Primary Instructor Charbonneau,Benoit Prerequisites Prerequisite: Mathematics 104.
Synopsis of course content
The integers and modular arithmetic; polynomials, their roots, and field extensions; rings; groups and symmetry. Applications may include the symmetries of plane tessellations, the impossibility of trisecting an angle with compass and straightedge, the symmetries of platonic solids, modern cryptography, Rubik's Cube, and/or a brief introduction to Galois theory.
Textbooks
"Abstract Algebra: A Geometric Approach" by Theodore Shifrin. ISBN 0-13-319831-6
Assignments
There will be weekly problem sets.
Exams
There will be short weekly quizzes (based on a homework problem from the assignment just handed in), two midterm exams and a final exam.
Grade to be based on
in-class quizzes, in-class exams, and the final exam.
