MAT 350 – Applied Linear Algebra

Spring 2024 Syllabus

Course Description: This is a first course in linear algebra and matrices. Topics include systems of linear equations, linear independence, matrices of linear transformations, matrix algebra, determinants, vector spaces, eigenvalues and eigenvectors. After mastering the basic concepts and skills, students will use their knowledge of linear algebra to model a selection of applied mathematics problems in business, economics, science, computer science, and engineering.

Course Timeline and Notebooks

Below will eventually be a tentative timeline for our course. It includes a detailed set of notes corresponding to each class meeting and assignments following each class meeting. Note that assignments are all available on MyOpenMath.

Class Meeting	During Class	After Class
1	Introduction and What to Expect $\S$ 1.1 - What Can We Expect?	Week 1 Assignment
2	Vector Arithmetic and Operations
3	Matrix Arithmetic and Operations
4	$\S$ 1.2 - Finding Solutions to Linear Systems
5	$\S$ 1.3 - Computation with Python
6	$\S$ 1.4 - Pivots and their Influence on Solution Spaces
7	Row-Reduction Workshop Initial Row-Reduction Gateway Exam
8	$\S$ 2.1 - Vectors and Linear Combinations
9	$\S$ 2.2 - Matrix Multiplication and Linear Combinations
10	$\S$ 2.3 - The Span of a Set of Vectors
11	$\S$ 2.4 - Linear Independence
12	$\S$ 2.5 - Matrix Transformations
13	$\S$ 2.6 - The Geometry of Matrix Transformations
14	Group Exam I
15	Individual Exam I
16	$\S$ 3.1 - Invertibility
17	$\S$ 3.2 - Bases and Coordinate Systems
18	$\S$ 3.3 - Image Compression
19	$\S$ 3.4 - Determinants
20	$\S$ 3.5 - Subspaces
21	$\S$ 4.1 - An Introduction to Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors
22	$\S$ 4.2 - Finding Eigenvalues and Eigenvectors
23	$\S$ 4.3 - Diagonalization, Similarity, and Powers of a Matrix
24	Group Exam II
25	Individual Exam II
26	$\S$ 4.4 - Dynamical Systems
27	$\S$ 4.5 - Markov Chains and Google’s PageRank Algorithm
28	Review
29	Final, Part I (Required)
30	Final, Part II (Optional)

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