MAT 127
Calculus C - Fall 2005


Homework

This semester, we are trying out a new system of doing homework in MAT127 by mixing weekly assigned "classical" problem sets with web-based homework (to be completed online).

You are encouraged to discuss homework problem together. However, each student must write up the homework or complete the corresponding web-based homework individually!

Homework will be assigned weekly; check here for the specific weekly assignments. Note that the odd-numbered (paper) problems have answers in the back of the textbook. You should nonetheless try and solve these problems without recourse to the answer key, and should write the problem up carefully in your own words even if you have consulted the book for the final answer: always show your work.

You will also complete part of the homework problems via a web interface provided by the publisher of the textbook. One of the benefits of the web-based system is that it will provide immediate feedback about whether your answers are right and wrong.

Web-based homework problems are much like the usual ones: you need to give answers to a series of short questions, some of them multiple-choice, others not. The only difference is that instead of doing it on paper, you are doing it over the Internet. You can access the web interface from any computer which has an Internet connection, whether from home, from one of the University SINC sites, or say from an Internet cafe in Paris. No special software is required: all you need is a relatively recent Web browser. Also, you can do the web-based homework whenever you want (of course, before the deadline). You can look at the problems, or even print some of them, then go home, think them over, and come back later with your answer. In fact, this is perhaps the recommended way of doing the web-based homework.

Please note that each problem has many variants, and different students are given different variants. So do not try to compare your answers to that of your classmates.

The web-based assignments are set up so you can do "unlimited logins", which means you can work on the assignment for a while, then leave and come back later. For this you will NEED to click on the Save Progress button; do NOT click on the End Assignment button before you are finished with the homework and are ready to submit it for grading. There is NO way to edit your answers after clicking on End Assignment.

Warning: If you do not click Save Progress before logging out or closing your browser window, the program may end the assignment for you due to (long) inactivity (say more than 10-15 minutes). Thus it is very important to click Save Progress if you wish to come back to the assignment at a later time.

If you submit an answer and get it wrong, you get another try, although you lose part of a point for each wrong answer you give. You have 3 tries; after the third incorrect answer, the problem will be permanently marked "incorrect".

For any questions regarding web-based assignments please contact Michael Chance (office: Math 4-122, e-mail mchance at math.sunysb.edu). Please include your Name and SB id and put MAT127 in your subject line, or you will NOT get an answer to your email!

Registration and logging in

Before you can use the web-based homework web site, you will need to register for the system and choose your user name and password (this is separate from registering for the course!). To do so, please follow the instructions below.

If you don't have a computer, you can use the ones in the University SINC sites, or most public computers such as those in libraries. This system doesn't work well with customized versions of Internet Explorer, such as the browser for AOL. Many people have had good success using the free Mozilla browser. We use the Mozilla Firefox browser to set up the assignments, and haven't had any problems.

The first thing you have to do is to get set up with the system if you haven't done so already. Here's how:

  1. Go to the iLRN site and click on First Time Users.
  2. Put "Stony Brook" in the search box, click Search, then select SUNY - STONY BROOK from the list on the right.
  3. On the next page, enter the key
    E-2SG5NR3P9Y9T7
    where it wants the Course Access Code, and enter your email address.
  4. On the next page, specify a password.
  5. On the last page, fill out the rest of the information. It is important you give your name and student ID number correctly so that you can get credit for your work. Please enter your last/first name and Stony Brook ID exactly as they appear in your registrar record.
  6. Finally, when you log in, the system will check that you have an appropriate Java plug-in installed, and have popup windows enabled.

For problems/questions regarding setting up an account for the web-base homework please contact Michael Chance (office: Math 4-122, e-mail mchance at math.sunysb.edu). Please include your Name and SB id and put MAT127 in your subject line, or you will NOT get an answer to your email!

Printing homework assignments

It may seem that you have to do your homework at the computer. This is not the case (although you certainly can if you wish). You can log in, print out your homework assignment, do the work, and enter the answers later. Here's how to do this (it isn't obvious):

Homework Policies

Web based homeworks are due at noon on Thursdays in the week following the week in which they appear; for example, the web based homework, assigned in week 1, is due Thursday Sept 8. It is better to work on the problems well before the due date, both because you'll learn better and because you'll save yourself headaches when the inevitable computer glitch happens.

All other (paper) homework assignments are due in the first class-meeting following the week in which they appear: for example the problems for the week 8/29-9/4 are due Tue, Sep. 6 for sections 2 and 3 and Wed, Sep. 7 for sections 1 and 4.

Late homeworks will not be accepted.

Basic guidelines for submitting homework: