MA1112 Linear Algebra 1

Agis Athanassoulis
Office: CH 204
Email: aa816@le.ac.uk
www: http://agis.athanassoulis.net/

General information
There are four types of taught sessions in this module: lectures, surgeries, feedback sessions and computer classes.
Lectures: 3 lectures per week on:
Monday 12noon-1pm
Monday 2pm-3pm
Tuesday 9am-10am

ATT LT1
ATT LT1
RAT LT329

In the lectures, we are going to introduce new material and discuss it.
Surgeries: 1 surgery every week, on Tuesday. Surgeries are organised according to House;
check your individual timetable for the exact coordinates.
In the surgeries, you can solve simple problems given in advance and ask the instructors questions on them if you dont understand something. The surgeries aim to ensure you can solve
simple problems, comprehend the definitions and concepts introduced in lectures, and to prepare you for the Basic Skills Test.
Feedback Sessions (FS): 1 FS every week, on Fridays. FS are organised in small groups and
you have been assigned your group and times by now. Check your individual timetable for the
exact coordinates. If unsure ask in the office at CH.
In general, before the FS you will have been given some problems to go through. During the
FS, students will
Get feedback about previously marked homework
Discuss any mistakes, raise questions if something is not clear etc
Work on selected problems of normal and challenging difficulty. This will help prepare
you for the next homework and for the final exam.
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Computer Classes: These are organised for all 3 core modules together. You must have
received information about this already.

Course materials
All course material, news and announcements can be found at
www://blackboard.le.ac.uk.
You have already been enrolled to the module on Blackboard. Please make sure that you can
access the site, and let me know about any issues.

Assessment
Attendance of students will be monitored, in particular in lectures and FS. Experience has
shown that students who fail to attend classes do significantly worse than those who do attend.
The Department has the right to send warnings to those students who neglect to attend classes.
More information about attendance and neglect of academic studies can be found in your
student handbook.
MA1112 Linear Algebra I is a 20-credit module. The module will be assessed in three ways:
Coursework
homework assignments due in weeks 3,4,5,6,7,9,10,11 (15% of the final mark in
total),
solution of computer practicals for Computer Classes (5% of the final mark in
total).
A computer based Basic Skills Test (20% of the final mark). This will take place in
week 8 (17 November 2015).
A written examination in January 2015 (60% of the final mark).

Regular Coursework
Homework assignments will be given out on Tuesdays, and will be due a week later (Tuesdays
10:30am, at the lockers next to the Maths Office, in College House). It is important that all
homework is stapled and is clearly labelled with both your full name and group id
(e.g. Newton 1).
The submission deadline for each assignment will also be on the respective problem sheet. Late
submissions will not be accepted and will be marked zero. It is important you meet deadlines;
they ensure time is available for you to obtain feedback on your assessments. The Department
follows the University guidelines for feedback, and aims to respond to all such requests within
21 days of submission.
Should you miss a class or assignment hand in deadline for genuine ill-health reasons you should
notify the Department within seven days of the missed deadline/class.
Mitigating circumstances form
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Basic Skills Test

The Basic Skills Test (BST) will be taken on November 17 (week 8). It will assess your basic
knowledge of the material up to week 6. The BST is meant to examine your understanding of
basic notions in the module, and its difficulty level is somewhat lower than what you should
expect the final exam to be.
If you fail the Basic Skills Test in November, you will still be allowed to take the January
examination.

January Examination
The final exam in January will be 2 hours-long. The examination questions are designed to
assess your overall understanding of the material, and your ability to implement the techniques
and skills you learn in this module. For example, can you prove simple statements? Can you
prove the main theorems of the module? Can you demonstrate an understanding of subtle
points? Can you solve exercises at the level of difficulty of the lectures, FS and homework
problems?
The final exam is a qualifying element, meaning you need to have to have at least
40% in the final exam to progress.

Progression
To pass the module, you need to have a 40% overall mark. For details see also Mathematics
Undergraduates >> Exams & Progression in Blackboard.

Description of the Module

This is the first of 3 modules in Linear Algebra.
Linear Algebra consists of the study of linear problems: linear equations, linear functions,
their representation using matrices and their properties. A good understanding of Linear Algebra is absolutely essential to most advanced mathematics. Moreover, Linear Algebra is used
extensively in a number of areas in science and technology.
In MA1112Linear Algebra 1, we will be concerned with:
Systems of Linear Equations
Matrices
Determinants
Vector Spaces
Complex Numbers & Complex Vector spaces
You may have already encountered some basic facts and notions during A-levels or in high
school in general. Here, we will reinforce this understanding and take it to the next level.

Reading list
The main text for this module is
Elementary Linear Algebra, by Larson, 7th Edition,
or its very similar previous edition,
Elementary Linear Algebra, by Larson, Edwards, Falvo, 6th Edition.
The main text and other books on Linear Algebra can be found in the library, including study
copies which always remain at the library (Blue Zone, Shelf Mark: 512).

House Points
Problems sheets, lecture slides etc may contain misprints. If you find one or more, please let
me know! Depending on the nature of the mistake/misprint, I will be awarding House points
to the House of the finder!
Also, for most chapters there will be Challenge problems. You can try and answer it in your
spare time, by splitting in groups or by yourselves and give me your answers. These challenges
do not count for your final mark, but you can get awarded House points for working on them.