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MATH347

MATH347 (Fundamental Mathematics) is a three credit hour course about techniques of proofs and fundamental mathematical structures.

Content Covered

  • Set theory
  • Induction
  • Equivalence relations
  • Number theory
  • Cardinality
  • Convergence

This class goes more into number theory and convergence than CS173, though it does not include graph theory.

Prerequisites

There are two possible paths to take MATH347:

When to Take It

If one is planning on pursuing a minor in math, this class should be taken as soon as possible. Once taken, it opens up many possibilities and a variety of higher level math courses. This course is offered every semester, and unfortunately there are not many classes that are a good preparation for it. The class takes a very different approach to math compared to other courses.

It is similar to CS173 but without the CS topics and it satisfies the discrete math requirement for CS225. Unlike CS173, you can take MATH347 without taking CS124. However, it is not listed as a prerequisite for CS374. You could also test out of CS173 after taking this course since the majority of topics overlap.

Course Structure

Typically, there are three midterms, one final and weekly homeworks. Homeworks are mostly proof-based, so they can be a decent time commmitment. Expect to spend at least a few hours doing homework each week. Homework and exams are done on paper.

Classes are typically 50-minutes three times a week with exams during class time.

Instructors

The course is not standardized, so exams and homeworks are different for each professor. The professors can vary each semester.

Course Tips

The course does not heavily rely on calculus, but integrals, derivatives, and limits are used in the later part of the course. MATH347 will be quite different from previous mathematics courses such as differential equations and calculus. It is proof-based so there is not a lot of formula plug-and-chugging. The problems are mostly puzzles that need to be approached using creative methods.

It will take more time commitment and studying to get used to a proof-based class.

As always, office hours are a good resource.

Life After

The topics in MATH347 are the base for all future proof-based math courses. Proof techniques such as induction are useful for CS374. It is a prerequisite for many 400 level math classes including but not limited to MATH424, MATH444, and MATH447 (Real Analysis).

Infamous Topics

  • Proof writing can be difficult when you are first learning as it is easy to skip steps. Proof by induction can be especially challenging at first.

Resources

  • The textbook, Introduction to Abstract Mathematics by Donaldson and Pantano, is very useful.