Course Syllabus for History of Mathematics, Math 5536

Credit Hours: 3 credits

Term: Fall 2008
Time and Place: MW 5-6:15 PM, MP 3314
Prerequisites: MATH 2242 or permission of the instructor.
Instructor: Andrew Sills
Office Location: Math/Physics 3305
Office Hours: MF 1-1:50, MW 3:30-4:45
Office Phone: 478-5424
Departmental Fax: 478-0654
E-mail: ASills@GeorgiaSouthern.edu
Required Text: David Burton, The History of Mathematics: An Introduction, 6th ed., 2007.

Course Description: A survey of the historical development of mathematics. The emphasis will be on
mathematical concepts, problem solving, and pedagogy from a historical perspective.

Course Objectives: Students will demonstrate their knowledge of basic historical facts; they will demonstrate
understanding of the development of mathematics and mathematical thought. For General Education Objectives,
see http://academics.georgiasouthern.edu/provost/instruction/gened_outcomes.html

Assessment of Course Objectives:

Student achievement will be measured through performance on two in-class exams, a cumulative final exam,
collected homework and/or quizzes, class participation, and a project. Graduate students will be required to do
some additional work beyond what is expected of the undergraduate members of the class.

Grading Policy: Grades will be assigned based on the percentage of the total available points earned. A student
earning 90-100% of the total points will receive a course grade of an A, 80-89% a B, 70-79% a C, 60-69% a D
and below 60% an F.

General advice: If you are having difficulty, get help immediately! Mathematics is a cumulative subject, and so
it is very easy to get behind and very hard to catch up once you are behind. The only way to get the grade you
want is to earn the appropriate number of points along the way.

Make-up Policy: When a student misses an exam, but contacts the instructor as soon as physically possible, and
has a valid, documented excuse, a makeup exam may be arranged. However, please be aware that all the “easy”
questions will be used up on the regular exam, so the makeup is likely to be much more difficult.

Attendance Policy: Students are expected to attend each class meeting and pay attention but attendance will not
be taken. A student who misses class is responsible to find out what was discussed and learn the material that was
covered on the missed day. The instructor is not responsible for re-teaching material missed by a student who did
not attend class.

Academic Dishonesty Policy: Any student who exhibits academic dishonesty in any form will receive a
failing grade (F) for the entire course and will be reported to the University Judicial Officer. For a full
discussion of academic dishonesty, see the Student Guide at
http://students.georgiasouthern.edu/sta/guide/.

Civility Statement: See the Student Conduct Code at the URL above.
Disability Policy: See http://students.georgiasouthern.edu/disability/.

Additional Help: The Academic Success Center offers free peer tutoring during the week. Contact the
tutorial centers for exact hours at 681-0321 or http://academics.georgiasouthern.edu/success/.

Important Dates:
August 18 First day of classes
August 18-21 Drop/Add Period
September 1 Labor Day (no classes)
October 13 Last day to withdraw without academic penalty
Nov 24-28 Thanksgiving Holiday (no classes)
December 5 Last Day of Classes
December 8 Final Exam

Tentative Semester Schedule. Likely to change!

Week of Textbook Notes
August 18 1. Early Number Systems & Symbols
August 25 2. Mathematics in Early Civilizations
September 1 3. The Beginning of Greek Mathematics No class on 9/1 Labor Day
September 8 4. The Alexandrian School
September 15 5. Late Greek Mathematics: Diophantus
September 22 6. The First Awakening: Fibonacci Test 1
September 29 7. The Renaissance: Cardan & Tartaglia
October 6 8. The Mechanical World: Descartes & Newton
October 13 9. Probability: Pascal, Bernoulli & Laplace
October 20 10. Revival of Number Theory: Fermat, Euler, Gauss
October 27 11. 19th Century: Lobchevsky to Hilbert Test 2
November 3 12. Transition to 20th Century: Cantor & Kronecker
November 10 13. Extensions: Hardy, Hausdorff, Noether
November 17 Project presentations
November 24 No classes Thanksgiving week
December 1 Project presentations
December 8 Final Exam 12/8

Version of August 20, 2008. Please disregard earlier versions.