http://www.usf.edu

| Prospective Students | Our Students | Visitors | Faculty & Staff | Alumni & Parents | Business & Community | Campuses |

USF Home > College of Arts and Sciences > Department of Mathematics & Statistics

Mathematics and Statistics Website College of Arts and Sciences Home

MAC 1105 — College Algebra — Syllabus

Prerequisites: C (2.0) or better in MAT 1033, or SAT Math score of 490 or better, or ACT Math score of 21 or better, or Elementary Algebra CPT score of 90 or better, or College-Level Math CPT score of 40 or better.

Course Description: This course meets twice a week for 75-minute lecture sessions and twice a week for 50-minute help sessions. Successful completion of the course merits 3 semester hours of credit and provides sufficient background for either Precalculus or Calculus that does not use trigonometry. There are typically four midterm exams plus a final. The final exam is cumulative and all multiple choice.

textbook

Text: College Algebra by Ratti and McWaters

Course Content

Chapter P: Basic Concepts of Algebra (omit)

P.1 The Real Numbers and Their Properties
P.2 Integer Exponents and Scientific Notation
P.3 Polynomials
P.4 Factoring Polynomials
P.5 Rational Expressions
P.6 Rational Exponents and Radicals
P.7 Topics in Geometry

Chapter 1: Equations and Inequalities (omit)

1.1 Linear Equations in One Variable
1.2 Applications of Linear Equations
1.3 Complex Numbers
1.4 Quadratic Equations
1.5 Solving Other Types of Equations
1.6 Linear Inequalities
1.7 Polynomial and Rational Inequalities
1.8 Equations and Inequalities Involving Absolute Value

Chapter 2: Graphs and Functions (4 weeks)

2.1 The Coordinate Plane
2.2 Graphs of Equations
2.3 Lines
2.4 Relations and Functions
2.5 A Library of Functions
2.6 Transformations of Functions
2.7 Combining Functions; Composite Functions
2.8 Inverse Functions

Chapter 3: Polynomial and Rational Functions (4 weeks)

3.1 Quadratic Functions
3.2 Polynomial Functions
3.3 Dividing Polynomials and Rational Zeros Test
3.4 Zeros of a Polynomial Function
3.5 Rational Functions
3.6 Variation

Chapter 4: Exponential and Logarithmic Functions (4 weeks)

4.1 Exponential Functions
4.2 The Natural Exponential Function
4.3 Logarithmic Functions
4.4 Rules of Logarithms
4.5 Exponential and Logarithmic Equations

Chapter 5: Systems of Equations and Inequalities (2 weeks)

5.1 Systems of Linear Equations in Two Variables
5.2 Systems of Linear Equations in Three Variables
5.3 Partial-Fraction Decomposition
5.4 Systems of Linear Inequalities; Linear Programming (omit)
5.5 Nonlinear Systems of Equations and Inequalities

Chapter 6: Matrices and Determinants (omit)

6.1 Matrices and Systems of Equations
6.2 Matrix Algebra
6.3 The Matrix Inverse
6.4 Determinants and Cramer's Rule

Chapter 7: The Conic Sections (omit)

7.1 Conic Sections: Overview
7.2 The Parabola
7.3 The Ellipse
7.4 The Hyperbola

Chapter 8: Further Topics in Algebra (omit)

8.1 Sequences and Series
8.2 Arithmetic Sequences; Partial Sums
8.3 Geometric Sequences and Series
8.4 Mathematical Induction
8.5 The Binomial Theorem
8.6 Counting Principles
8.7 Probability

[ Return to Course Descriptions ]