THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT ASHEVILLE FACULTY SENATE Senate Document Number 0698S Date of Senate Approval 1/22/98 Statement of Faculty Senate Action: APC DOCUMENT 5: Adds an Introduction to the Mathematics Department's Catalog Listing; Moves Statistics Course Listings to the Mathematics Section; Changes Requirements for all tracks in the Major; Adds a Research Course; and Modifies some Prerequisites and Course Titles Effective Date: Fall 1998 a. Addition of an Introductory Description to the Major Add: on page 166 under the listing of departmental faculty, the following: The science of Mathematics is fundamental to many disciplines and an integral part of a liberal arts education. Quantitative skills such as data analysis, problem solving, pattern recognition, and mathematical modeling are increasingly vital to contemporary professions. Entry-level mathematics courses introduce students to basic concepts and tools that are essential to education. Upper-level courses provide students with the opportunity to explore mathematical topics in greater depth. There are four programs of study from which to select a mathematics major: Pure Mathematics, Teaching of Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, and Statistics. The requirements for each of these programs are listed below. Delete: on page 166 under the heading "Declaration of Major" the second paragraph which begins "The Mathematics major is designed ..." Impact: None. Rationale: The Mathematics faculty felt that an introductory paragraph advertising their program would be appropriate to the catalog. b. Add a Research in Mathematics course Add: on page 171 after the course description for Math 480 the following 483 Mathematics Research (1-3) Directed mathematical research on a specialized topic which results in a written report. Prerequisites MATH 280, 291, and permission of the instructor. See department chair. Add: on page 206 after the course description for STAT 426 the following 483 Statistics Research (1-3) Directed statistical research on a specialized topic which results in a written report. Prerequisites MATH 280, 291, and permission of the instructor. See department chair. Impact: none Rationale: These courses are presently given under special topics independent study. The new way of listing would clarify what students are doing in these courses. c. Move the Statistics course descriptions to the Mathematics section. Delete: on page 205 under the heading "STATISTICS (STAT)" the paragraph beginning "the following courses in ..." Replace: the deleted paragraph with the following phrase... "See Mathematics and Statistics" Move: the course titles and descriptions for the Statistics courses beginning with 185 and ending with(but including) 171-4, 271-4... from pages 205 and 206 to page 171. (The moved course titles and descriptions are to be listed after the course description for MATH 171-4, 271-4, ...) Delete: on page 166 The heading "MATHEMATICS (MATH)" that appears before the listing of Mathematics Department faculty. Replace: the deleted heading with the following MATHEMATICS (MATH) and STATISTICS (STAT) Add: on page 168 after the paragraph describing the Mathematics Assistance Center the following subheading Courses in Mathematics Add: on page 171 after the course description for MATH 171-4, 271-4, ... the following heading Courses in Statistics (This heading will appear before the listing of statistics courses which are to be moved to that page) Impact: None. Rationale: This would follow the Management Departments model, and would be would be more convenient for the students. All courses taught by the Mathematics department will now be in one section of the catalog. d. Revising Requirements for Majors in Each of the Four Tracks Delete: on page 166 in the listing of requirements for the Program in Pure (Theoretical) Mathematics sections "I." and "II." Replace: the deleted sections with the following I. Required courses in the major - 38-39 hours, including: MATH 191, 192, 280, 291, 361, 365, 381, 480, 491 and an additional 12-13 hours chosen from STAT 225 and Mathematics or Statistics courses numbered above 300. These latter hours must include either: one from MATH 362, 366, 492, or the sequence STAT 425-426. II. Required courses outside the major - 9-11 hours, consisting of CSCI 201 (3 hours), and one of the sequences: CHEM 111-132-144, ECON 101-102, PHYS 221-222 (6-8 hours). Delete: on page 167 in the listing of requirements for the Program in the Teaching of Mathematics sections "I." and "II." Replace: the deleted sections with the following I. Required courses in major - 39 hours, including: MATH 191, 192, 280, 291, 332, 361, 365, 381, 480, 491, STAT 225, and an additional 6 hours in Mathematics or Statistics courses numbered above 300. These latter hours must include either: one from MATH 362, 366, 492, or the sequence STAT 425-426. II. Required courses outside the major - 11 hours consisting of CSCI 201 and either CHEM 111, 132, and 144 or PHYS 221 and 222 Delete: on page 167 in the listing of requirements for the Program in Applied Mathematics sections "I." and "II." Replace: the deleted sections with the following I. Required courses in major - 38-39 hours, including: MATH 191, 192, 280, 291, 352, 365, 381, 480, 491, STAT 225 or 425 and an additional 9 hours in Mathematics or Statistics course numbered above 300. These latter hours must include either MATH 366 or 492, or one of the sequences MATH 361-362 and STAT 425-426. II. Required courses outside the major - 18-20 hours: CSCI 201 and 15-17 hours in an area of concentration in a discipline in which mathematical applications are important. This area of concentration must be approved by the department, and of the 15-17 hours, at least 9 must be at the 300 level. Delete: on page 167 in the listing of requirements for the Program in Statistics section "I." Replace: the deleted section with the following I. Required courses in major - 39 hours, including: MATH 191, 192, 280, 291, 365, 381, 480, STAT 185 or 225, 325, 326, 425, 426 and any Mathematics or Statistics course numbered above 300. Students intending to pursue graduate study are strongly advised to take MATH 491. Delete: on page 168 in Part II of the listing of the Requirements for the Program in Statistics the phrase "CSCI 201 and 202 (6 hours)". Replace: the deleted phrase with the following CSCI 201 (3 hours) Impact: The computer science department should expect a 20% decrease enrollment in their CSCI 202 courses. Present annual enrollment for CSCI 202 is about 80 students, of which about 15 were Mathematics majors. Mathematics students will have a more flexible set of requirements. Rationale: The proposed rewriting reflects three changes. 1. In the new wording Statistics courses will be considered courses within the department. This means required Statistics classes will be listed as "courses in the major", and Mathematics majors taking 300 level statistics classes can have those classes count toward the major. This change would reflect a broader definition of Mathematics that includes statistics, and is more in line with the view of the department. 2. Students will no longer be required to take CSCI 202. CSCI 202, Data Structures, has only marginal relevance toward a Mathematics degree. Dropping this course will offer students more flexibility in their choice of courses. Students in the pure math track will be asked to choose a Mathematics/Statistics class in lieu of CSCI 202. These students will no longer have fewer mathematics requirements than the students in the other tracks. Students in the other three tracks will have one more elective. 3. STAT 185 or STAT 225 was added to the list of required courses for the Statistics program because either of these classes is a prerequisite to higher level statistics classes. In the past Introductory Statistics was unlisted requirement. e. Changes to MATH 280 prerequisites Delete: on page 169, in the course description for MATH 280 the phrase "Corequisite: MATH 192" Replace: the deleted phrase with the following phrase Pre- or corequisite: MATH 192. Impact: None. Rationale: This would make our wording consistent with that of other departments. "Corequisite" is apparently interpreted as meaning "must be taken concurrently". f. Change Algebra course names Delete: on page 170 the course title for MATH 361 ("Modern Algebra I (3)") Replace: the deleted title with the following Abstract Algebra I (3) Delete: on page 170 the course title for MATH 362 ("Modern Algebra II (3)") Replace: the deleted title with the following Abstract Algebra II (3) Impact: None. Rationale: The title "Modern Algebra" is infrequently used for a course like MATH 361, the more common title is "Abstract Algebra". The newer faculty in the department find the use of the word "Modern" in the title of this class misleading. The Mathematical subfield, "Abstract Algebra", came into being during the turn of the nineteenth century, and might not be considered modern any more.