General Information

Course Description
This course will provide an introduction to fundamental algebraic structures, and may include significant applications. The majority of the course will consist of an introduction to the basic algebraic structures of groups and rings. Additional work will consist of the development of further algebraic structures and applications of algebraic theory to areas such as coding theory or crystallography. This course may not serve as an adequate prerequisite for MATH 81. Students who contemplate taking MATH 81 should consider taking MATH 71 instead of this course.

MATH 22/24 is a prerequisite for this course. If you're unsure about your preparation, please contact the instructor. In addition, proof writing will be a major component of this course. Some prior experience with proofs will be helpful, but we will spend considerable time developing the necessary skills along the way.

Textbook
A Book of Abstract Algebra by Charles C. Pinter (Second Edition, ISBN: 978-0-486-47417-5)

Scheduled Lectures
MWF 12:50 - 1:55 (x) Tu 1:20 - 2:10	Kemeny 006

Instructor	Office	Office Hours	Email
Chris Coscia	243 Kemeny Hall	M: 2:15-3:30 pm Tu: 2:30-3:30 pm (if x-hour is used) F: 10:45 am-12:00 pm	christopher.s.coscia.gr@dartmouth.edu

Exams
Midterm Exam 1	Thursday, July 11, 6-8 pm	Kemeny 004
Midterm Exam 2	Thursday, August 1, 6-8 pm	Kemeny 004
Final Exam	Saturday, August 24, 3-6 pm	Room TBA

Homework Policy

• Written homework will be posted to the assignments page, and collected weekly, due at the beginning of Wednesday's class.
  Homework assigned one week is due the following Wednesday.
• Late homework will not be accepted. Starting assignments early will ensure you have at least some work to submit for grading. Please write neatly (or, better yet, TeX) your homework; use complete sentences for your proofs (read them aloud to ensure they make sense).
• Please staple all your papers together with the problems is the order assigned. The math office has a stapler you can use.
• Consult the honor principle (below) as it applies to this course.

Participation and Daily Problems

• At the end of most classes, I will pose a problem related to the lecture that will not appear in your written homework assignment. Instead, we will begin the next class period by revisiting this problem; everyone should attempt the problem between lectures, and a student will be asked to present his or her solution to the class, usually at the board.
• The objective is to become more comfortable talking about math, using the appropriate vocabulary, and presenting logically coherent proofs. The best way to learn to write proofs is to practice! While I don't expect these solutions to be flawless (especially at the beginning), I am looking for improvement over time.
• These daily problems, in addition to participation in course discussions and groupwork, will account for the Participation/Daily Problems portion of your course grade.

Grades
The course grade will be based upon the scores on the midterm exam, homework, and the final exam as follows:
Participation/Daily Problems	10%
Homework	20%
Midterm Exams	20% each
Final Exam	30%

The Honor Principle

On Homework:

Collaboration is permitted and encouraged, but no copying , and to be clear, this means no copying even from a board or scrap of paper on which a solution was hashed out collaboratively. What a student turns in as a homework solution is to be his or her own understanding of how to do the problems. Students must state what sources they have consulted, with whom they have collaborated, and from whom they have received help. The solutions you submit must be written by you alone. Any copying (electronic or otherwise) of another person's solutions, in whole or in part, is a violation of the Academic Honor Code.

On Exams:

Students may not receive assistance of any kind from any source (living, published, electronic, etc), except the instructor, and may not give assistance to anyone. Matters of clarification are to be left to the instructor. If you have any questions as to whether some action would be acceptable under the Academic Honor Code, please speak to me, and I will be glad to help clarify things. It is always easier to ask beforehand.

Disabilities, Religious Observances, etc.
Students with disabilities who may need disability-related academic adjustments and services for this course are encouraged to see me privately as early in the term as possible. Students requiring disability-related academic adjustments and services must consult the Student Accessibility Services office (205 Collis Student Center, 646-9900, Student.Accessibility.Services@Dartmouth.edu). Once SAS has authorized services, students must show the originally signed SAS Services and Consent Form and/or a letter on SAS letterhead to me. As a first step, if you have questions about whether you qualify to receive academic adjustments and services, you should contact the SAS office. All inquiries and discussions will remain confidential.

Some students may wish to take part in religious observances that occur during this academic term. If you have a religious observance that conflicts with your participation in the course, please meet with your instructor before the end of the second week of the term to discuss appropriate accommodations.