92.419 Introduction to Mathematica

A blended course in Mathematica
offered through UMass Online
Next scheduled class: May 2009

Requirements for the course

1. Registration through UMass Lowell/UMass Online
2. UMass Lowell/UMass Online listing for this course
3. Mathematica - Version 7.0 will be needed for the course. Mathematica runs on Windows, Mac or UNIX and the course is independent of platform. UMass campuses have site licenses for Mathematica and it is installed in various labs, but it is strongly advised that you get a license for your own computer. Student versions are available for about $150, which is deep discount compared with the "list price" of over $1,000. The UML bookstore recommends JourneyEd.com, where it costs $130. The student version has only minor differences from the "non-student" version, the most significant being that it is virtually impossible to install it on more than one machine. You must be a "full-time" student to purchase this version, but continuing education students are normally full-time if they are taking one course per semester. Contact me if you have problems with this.
4. A computer that will run your version of Mathematica, naturally! Note: No matter what platform you run Mathematica on, there no problem sharing Mathematica files, which are called Notebooks, because they are plain text files and can be easily emailed without any conversion between platforms.
5. An Internet connection & experience with internet tools, including browsers, email, etc. A demo of BlackBoard, the UMass Online learning environment is available at http://www.umassonline.net/CourseDemo.cfm.

Academic Prerequisites

Two semesters of calculus and a bit of programming experience should be sufficient. An interest in mathematics is really the most important requirement.

Course Objectives

1. Become aware of the scope of Mathematica's capabilities.
2. Learn the basics of programming Mathematica, including the use and design of packages.
3. Learn how to use Mathematica graphics.
4. Learn how to experiment with mathematical ideas using Mathematica.
5. Produce a final project in the form of a Mathematica Notebook. The topic of the project will be selected by the student in consultation with the instructor. Sample projects will be provided.

Course Timetable & Syllabus ----------2009 dates and schedule