OAKLAND UNIVERSITY

DEPARTMENT OF MATHEMATICS AND STATISTICS

ADVISING NEWSLETTER

FALL, 2001 -- Volume 7, Number 1

Winter registration

HereÕs a rundown on the advanced undergraduate courses being offered Winter 2002, as you continue thinking about your course selections (early registration starts November 12, and you can register on the Web). DonÕt overlook the 1-credit computer laboratory, MTH 266, as an optional supplement to the 3-credit Linear Algebra course (MTH 256). You can take the lab along with the main course, or you can take it in a later se-mester. In MTH 266 the MATLAB soft-ware is used to solve interesting linear algebra problems. For more details, contact Professor Cahlon.

MTH 414: History of Mathematics (Wright, TuTh 7:30 PM)

You should have completed MTH 351 in order to have the level of mathematical sophistication needed to understand the history of the subject as it will be taught here. Professor Wright usually stresses the history of calculus, using original sources. The course is required for majors who are in the Secondary Teacher Education Program (and an elective for other math majors), and it is offered every Winter.

MTH 453: Advanced Calculus II (Spagnuolo, MWF 1:20 PM)

This is a continuation of MTH 351 and is required for the Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics (and is an elective for the Bachelor of Arts). It is offered every Winter, if enrollment warrants.

MTH 475: Abstract Algebra (C. Cheng, MW 3:30 PM)

This course provides an introduction to groups, rings, and fields. It is hard to describe these topics before you study them, but if you liked the more abstract parts of linear algebra, you'll feel right at home in this course. MTH 475 is required of all mathematics majors, and it's offered every Winter.

STA 323: Design of Experiments (Khattree, MW 7:30 PM)

If you liked STA 226, and especially the time spent studying analysis of variance, you should look into this course. All statistics majors will take this course, and it is an elective for math majors. It is recommended that you have taken STA 322 first. This course is offered every Winter.

STA 324: Analysis of Categorical Data (Pan, TuTh 5:30 PM)

This is another course that builds on the foundations of STA 226. It is recommended that you have taken STA 322 or 323 first. This course is offered in alternate years.

STA 428: Mathematical Statistics (Ogunyemi, MW 5:30 PM)

This is the continuation of STA 427. If you're taking STA 427 now, you're probably already planning to take this course. The STA 427-428 sequence is offered every year.

In all cases, you can obtain further information by talking to the instructor.

If you have a request for future years, make your desires known to us! Also, don't forget that you can do an independent study of topics not regularly offered as courses. And if you meet the prerequisites, consider taking graduate courses (APM, MTH, MOR, or STA) or advanced computer science courses. (Students who find scheduling difficulties can also substitute STA 501 for STA 226.)

What's new?

Assistant Professors Eddie Cheng and Alan Park were granted tenure and promoted to Associate Professor this summer. Professor Park is on leave this year. Professors Grossman and Tsui will be on leave in Winter 2002.

S.A.M.: the math club

All it takes to reactivate Students for the Advancement of Mathematics (S.A.M.) as an official campus organization is for a few energetic undergraduates to step forward and assume the roles of president and treasurer and plan activities for this year. Please contact Professor Grossman and get involved to keep it alive. The university provides funding for speakers and other activities. It's a great way to pursue your interests and socialize at the same time.

Keep the advisers busy

Majors in mathematics or statistics should consult with their advisers at least once a year. Professor Grossman is currently the departmental chief adviser, and he can be found in Room 346 SEB most of every day (370-3443, grossman@oakland.edu). Sit down with him to review your progress, check the myriad graduation requirements, explore your options after you graduate, or just talk about mathematics. He has some nice give-aways, too, such as a booklet prepared by the Mathematical Association of America spotlighting careers in the mathematical sciences, and copies of recent issues of Math Horizons, a magazine for majors. Professor Chipman will take over these duties in Winter 2002.

Become a tutor

The Academic Skills Center (103 NFH, 370-4215) always needs more mathematics tutors. If you've had several mathematical sciences courses at OU and want to help your fellow students (while at the same time gaining valuable experience and earning a little spending money, with very flexible hours, and gaining valuable experience, especially if you are interested in a career in education), check it out.

Contact information

The Newsletter editor Professor Grossman, with help from other faculty and staff within the Department. We welcome your comments and suggestions; in fact, we'd welcome your contributions of material, if there's something you'd like to share with your fellow majors (comments, ideas, problems, etc.).

The department's very useful Web Page has the following URL: http://www.math.oakland.edu). Come have a look and follow some of the fascinating links! Netscape browsers are available on the computers in the computer laboratories on campus.

All faculty have e-mail addresses that are the same as their last names (followed by @oakland.edu), with certain exceptions: bjiang, echeng, pshi, schochet, spagnuol, and w2zhang. Phone numbers and office locations can be obtained from the Department office (368 SEB, 370-3430) or the Web.

Math majors honored

The Department has selected David Houston to receive the fifth annual Louis R. Bragg Graduating Senior Award, given each year to the most outstanding major in mathematics or statistics.

Calling all problem solvers

The annual Putnam Examination will be given on Saturday, December 1. Match your skills against undergraduates from all over North America in the most challenging mathematics test you'll ever take, consisting of two 3-hour blocks, with six problems to solve in each. (See the Web site http://math.scu.edu/putnam/ for more information.) To sign up, contact Professor Darrell Schmidt, this year's head coach. He is running prep sessions this fall, at which you can hone your problem-solving skills by looking at old versions of the exam. Three of you will form OaklandÕs team to compete with hundreds of other schools throughout North America. In 1999, the OU team placed an amazing 36th!

A mathematical modeling competition is also held each winter. If there is enough interest, Oakland can field a team. For information, visit http://www.comap.com/mcm, and let us know if you want to participate.

A personal look

Each issue of the Newsletter will include a feature on one member of the Department faculty, telling you a little about his/her life and interests, both professional and personal. We are proceeding by seniority, and for this issue we focus on Professor Barry Turett, who has been at Oakland since 1978. He did his undergraduate work at Carnegie Mellon University, and he received his PhD in mathematics from the University of Illinois.

Dr. Turett's research interests revolve around shapes of balls in infinite dimensional spaces and fixed points of mappings. He has spent sabbatical leaves pursuing this work with colleagues in Austria, Germany, and Ireland, and has publications in leading research journals.

He has taught a wide range of undergraduate and graduate courses in mathematics and statistics. This semester he is teaching number theory, which he first studied as a high school student; and next semester he is offering graduate complex analysis. Another favorite is MOR 342 (Operations Research), which deals with methods for finding optimal solutions of large systems of linear inequalities. This course is offered about once every two years.

Dr. Turett is active in the faculty union (AAUP) and served as its grievance officer for several years. He is currently the coordinator of undergraduate programs in the Department.

Barry Turett lives with his wife Barbara in Rochester Hills, and has a son in high school and a daughter in middle school. He enjoys camping in the summers.

Quickie problem

Show that there exists a right triangle with sides a, b, and c with the same perimeter as a triangle with sides sqrt(a), sqrt(b), and sqrt(c).