Spring 1998
Wednesday 7:30-10:00, S&T 2, Room 7

Professor

Stephen G. Nash
Science and Technology II, Room 121
phone: (703) 993-1678
office hours: Monday 1:30-2:30, Wednesday 4:30-5:30, or by appointment
electronic mail: snash@gmu.edu
fax: (703) 993-1521 (on cover sheet put: S. Nash, ORE Dept.)

Text

Michael T. Heath,
Scientific Computing: An Introductory Survey,
McGraw-Hill (1997)

(Optional) The Student Edition of Matlab (version 5),
Prentice-Hall

Course Summary

The objectives of this course are to:

• Understand the fundamentals of algorithm design.
• Learn how numerical methods are constructed and used for solving computational problems common in engineering and statistics.
• Become experienced and sophisticated users of numerical software.

Since this course is designed to develop computational skills, use of the computer will play an important role. There will be a number of choices of computers that you can use, and these will be discussed in the first class. Although the computer will be used extensively, heroic computer programming will not be required.

There will be no exams. Students will be expected to complete three group projects, plus two individual projects. I will discuss the projects in class. The results of the projects will be presented in written reports, and the quality of the reports will be a factor in grading.

Grading

• 5% Individual Project 1
• 60% Group Projects 2, 3, and 5
• 35% Individual Project 4

Course Schedule (tentative)

• 9/2: Basics: algorithm design and arithmetic (Chapter 1)
• 9/9: Linear equations (Chapter 2)
• 9/16: Linear equations
• 9/23: Least squares data fitting (Chapter 3)
• 9/30: Least squares data fitting
• 10/7: Nonlinear equations (Chapter 5)
• 10/14: [no class, fall break]*
• 10/21: Nonlinear equations
• 10/28: Interpolation (Chapter 7)
• 11/4: Interpolation
• 11/11: Ordinary differential equations (Chapter 9)
• 11/18: Ordinary differential equations
• 11/25: Partial differential equations (Chapter 11)*
• 12/2: Partial differential equations
• 12/9: Partial differential equations
• 12/16: [finish up projects]
• 12/18: All course work due by 9:30am

* The official schedule calls for no class on 10/14, but includes a regularly scheduled class on 11/25 (the night before the Thanksgiving break). I would like to move the class on 11/25 to Tuesday 10/13, and adjust the schedule of lectures accordingly.

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