MATH-GA2120 Linear Algebra II Spring 2024

Special Accommodations

If you are student with a disability who needs special accommodations, please contact New York University’s Moses Center for Students with Disabilities (CSD) at 212-998-4980 or mosescsd@nyu.edu. You must be registered with CSD to receive accommodations. Information about the Moses Center can be found at www.nyu.edu/csd. The Moses Center is located at 726 Broadway on the 2nd floor.

If you think it's possible that you might have a learning disability, please get tested. See Diagnosing A Learning Disability In College for more information.

Calendar (subject to change)

Textbook

Sergei Treil, Linear Algebra Done Wrong, September 2017 edition

You can of course consult other textbooks or web sites that you find helpful.

Questions about how to do the homework?

• Work together with classmates. But be careful! If you simply copy someone else's answers without struggling through the problem yourself, you will not be ready for the exams. Get help from other students but, when preparing final version of your solutions, do it alone.
• Post questions, no matter how small, to Ed Discussion. You are allowed to do this anonymously. Please do not email math questions to me. All questions should be posted to Ed Discussion, so everyone can see the questions.
212 843 3569.
• Ask me during office hours. If you cannot make it during the scheduled times, please email me to make an appointment.

Other questions

Mandatory tools you will use in this course

• Gradescope:
  • Please email me if you need a Gradescope account.
  • Homework: There will be a biweekly homework assignment that will be posted on Brightspace as a link to the Overleaf project (see below). Your solutions must be written using LaTeX and saved as a PDF. You then follow the instructions on Gradescope to upload the PDF.
• LaTeX
  • Homework solutions must be prepared using LaTeX either Overleaf or LaTeX software installed on your computer.
  • Using Overleaf:
    • Go to Overleaf and set up an account.
    • Whenever there is a new assignment, a link to an Overleaf project will be provided. Click on it to open the project. Under Menu in the upper left corner, click on Copy Project.
    • You enter your solutions using LaTeX in the left window, and the formatted document will appear on the right.
  • If you have never used LaTeX before, please look at the Overleaf Documentation.
  • There will often be error messages that you'll need to fix. If you cannot figure out how to fix the errors, share the project with me and I'll help you.
  • If you prefer to install and use LaTeX on your own computer, check out Getting LaTeX or Getting Started with LaTeX.
• Ed Discsussion:
  • All questions about course material and logistics should be asked here.
  • You are also encouraged to try to answer questions posted.
  • You may post anonymously.
  • Use LaTeX for mathematical formulas and equations. You must always enclose the LaTeX with $$...$$. Using $...$ does not work.
• Brightspace:
  • Will not be used much

Optional tools

SageMath is free software for doing symbolic, rational, and numerical calculations. You might find this useful for working with matrices, especially when calculating the determinant or inverse of a matrix.

You can either use it online at CoCalc or download and install it on your computer.

Course Grade Factors (subject to change)

• Homework (30%)
• Final Exam (70%)
• Tweaks