Math 4150 AG & AU

Introduction to Number Theory

 

 

Instructor: Dr. Thang Lê.                                                                  Office: Skiles 102B.                          

Website: http://www.math.gatech.edu/~letu.                                      

E-mail: letu@math.gatech.edu.                            The best way to contact me is by e-mail.

 

Meeting: MWF 10:05-10:55, Skiles 257.

Office Hours: Monday and Wednesday  9-10am   & by appointments.

 

Text: Kenneth H. RosenElementary Number Theory and Its Applications, 6th edition.Topics: Primes and unique factorization, congruences, Chinese remainder theorem, Diophantine equations, Diophantine approximations, quadratic reciprocity. Applications such as fast multiplication, factorization and encryption.
 

Examinations: There will be 3 full period in-class exams and a final comprehensive exam. The exact dates will be announced 1-2 weeks in advance in class.  The final exam will cover all course materials and will be administered on the date assigned by the official school calendar. All examinations will be closed-book and closed-notes unless otherwise indicated. Calculators and electronic devices will not be permitted on any of the exams.

Academic Honesty: See the  Georgia Tech Honor Code .

 

Homework: Homeworks will be collected about once every two weeks. You can check the updates of the homework assignments at my website. No late homework papers will be accepted.  Homework is extremely important as it helps you to attain a deep understanding of the materials. Write up your work clearly so that you can understand it yourself upon review. You may collaborate on homework problems, but you have to write up your own solutions.

How to do well in this course: Unless you have studied this subject before you will probably need to spend 2 hours on the average to review each day’s lecture and complete the assignments. Learning mathematics requires steady effort. Cramming is very risky. Get help as soon as you begin to fall behind. It is important to keep a good set of lecture notes. If you miss a lecture, borrow notes from a classmate.

We will do a lot of “proofs”. You might want to consult Dr. C. Heil’s note on proofs at http://www.math.gatech.edu/~heil/handouts/proofs.pdf.

Grading: Grades are computed so all the in-class tests count 45%, final 40%, and homework 15%. 

Letter grade cut-offs: A 90, B 80, C 70, D 60.

 

Absence from examination Make-up exams will be given only for (1) official representation of the Institute, and (2) documented medical emergencies.

Attendance: Attendance is required for all meetings. The student who misses a class meeting is responsible for any assignments and/or announcements made.

Learning Disabilities: It is the right of any student with a certified learning disability to request necessary accommodation. Such requests must be made well in advance of the time that the accommodation is required, ideally in the first or second week of class, and a letter of documentation from the ADAPTS office must be presented at the time of any request.

Class audit: See the instructor if you want to audit this class.