MATH 18 - Linear Algebra - Briones [FA25]
Welcome to Math 18, Lecture C!
Course: Math 18 (Course Catalog)
Title: Linear Algebra
Credit Hours: 4 (No credit given if taken after Math 31AH.)
Prerequisite: Math Placement Exam qualifying score, or AP Calculus AB score of 3 (or equivalent AB subscore on BC exam), or SAT II Math Level 2 score of 650 or higher, or MATH 4C, or MATH 10A, or MATH 20A. Students who have not completed listed prerequisites may enroll with consent of instructor.
Catalog Description: Matrix algebra, Gaussian elimination, determinants. Linear and affine subspaces, bases of Euclidean spaces. Eigenvalues and eigenvectors, quadratic forms, orthogonal matrices, diagonalization of symmetric matrices. Applications. Computing symbolic and graphical solutions using MATLAB.
Textbook: Linear Algebra and its Applications
A list of the topics scheduled to be covered can be found on the Lecture Schedule.
Course Code: briones47096
The textbook AND the homework platform SHOULD be accessible WITHOUT paying for a new textbook, thanks to Inclusive Access. Click the "Access Pearson" "My Course Materials" tab on the left.
Update: If "My Course Materials" does not work, check your email for an email from follett. If no such email exists, please email textbooks@ucsd.edu for further help.
Course Readings: Reading the sections in the textbook that correspond to what we are discussing in class is a very important part of learning the subject. Lecture time is very limited and not every subject can be fully covered in the time allotted for lecture. Consequently, it is in your own interest to read the related chapters in the textbook. You should read the section of the book prior to the lecture in which that section is discussed.
Resources:
Lectures:
- The lectures will be taught in person. It will not be simulcasted on Zoom.
- The lectures will also be recorded and be available on Canvas, under the Media Gallery tab and under the My Media tab, and more accessibly, on podcast.ucsd.edu.
- Technical difficulties do often arise with the podcast. Should something like that happen, you are STILL responsible for the lecture content.
- The lecture slides will be posted on the Modules tab, ideally before class, but may be revised. A second version of the same slides will be posted after class, with annotations and with slides that were not yet covered removed.
- You are encouraged to raise your hand and interrupt lecture to ask questions, make comments or express doubts during lecture! I'm happy to answer questions as best we can.
Discussion Sections:
- The discussion sections will be taught in person. It will not be simulcasted on Zoom.
- The discussion sections will also (hopefully) be recorded and be available on Canvas, under the Media Gallery tab and under the My Media tab, and more accessibly, on podcast.ucsd.edu.
- Discussion sections are where homework quizzes take place.
- You are required to attend 6 of 10 discussion sections to get full points on discussion/participation. Attendance for discussions will be taken via attendance sheet, where you must mark your presence and sign. Failing to do either of these will count as an absence.
- Missing a homework quiz will count as 2 absences. Homework Quiz Days will not have an attendance sheet.
- You ARE allowed to attend different discussion sections in a week, but may only get discussion or homework/quiz credit for one of the discussions. Moreover, if you are NOT enrolled in a certain discussion section, you will NOT be allowed to attend a different discussion if the room is already at capacity.
- The lectures will also be recorded and be available on Canvas, under the Media Gallery tab and under the My Media tab, and more accessibly, on podcast.ucsd.edu.
Piazza Piazza is an online discussion forum that allows you to ask questions using mathematical symbols and expressions. Piazza was designed to enable you to get help quickly and efficiently from classmates, TAs, and instructors. Rather than emailing questions to the teaching staff, you are encouraged to post your questions on Piazza. Find the link to our class Piazza page in your Math 10A Canvas site.
Note: If you have any problems or feedback for the developers, email team@piazza.com.
Course Discord (Not an Official Resource): https://discord.gg/aFJU5DxVHn
This discord is shared with other classes I am lecturing this quarter. Discord is an informal resource to ask questions and talk about course material amongst other students.
Electronic Computing Devices: Graphing calculators and computer programs (or online computing websites such as Wolfram|AlphaLinks to an external site.) can be very helpful when working through your homework. However, a calculator/computer should be used as an aid in the learning concepts, not just as a means of computation. You should not hesitate use these devices when working on math problems at home, but always keep in mind that you will not be allowed access to any electronic computing devices during quizzes and exams. Of course, this also means that you will not be asked to solve problems on exams that require the aid of an electronic computing device.
If you get a problem correct on the homework, and that problem does NOT require the use of a calculator, you are required to know how to do that problem on a homework quiz, without a calculator or electronic device. We will in fact assume that you know how to do any problems you got full points on on the homework.
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The use of electronic devices will NOT be permitted during exams.
Assessments/Parts of Final Course Grade:
Participation/Discussion
You can earn 1 participation point per discussion section per week by signing off on and marking your attendance each week during a discussion section (on the attendance sheet), or by taking the homework quiz for that discussion section (if the discussion section has a homework quiz). Any discussion sections with a homework quiz will not have a sign in sheet. If you miss the homework quiz in a discussion section, you will lose a point for that week (thus earning -1 points instead of 0 or 1). Each week, the maximum number of participation points you can earn is 1, and the minimum number of points you can earn is -1.
Points Scheme:
1: Attend a discussion section and sign off and mark the attendance sheet, OR complete that week's homework quiz, if there is one.
0: Miss a discussion section that DOES NOT have a homework quiz
-1: Miss a homework quiz
In order to get all 4% of the participation grade, you must accrue 4 discussion/participation points. For every 1 point below 4, the participation grade will drop by 2%. This can result in a negative discussion/participation grade.
In other words:
| Participation Total | Participation Points |
| 4% | 4 or more |
| 2% | 3 |
| 0% | 2 |
| -2% | 1 |
| -4% | 0 |
| -6% | -1 |
| -8% | -2 |
| -10% | -3 |
| -12% | -4 |
| -14% | -5 |
| -16% | -6 |
Attending Different Discussions
In the event that you miss a discussion section, or you miss the homework quiz for your discussion section, you may attend a different discussion section than the one you are officially enrolled in. In doing so, you would effectively avoid any attendance penalties. This comes with the following caveats:
1) There MUST be an open seat in the room for you to sit in. The room is not allowed to be over capacity, and you must not be a fire hazard.
2) If you already took that week's review quiz, you are NOT allowed to take it again. Taking a week's review quiz more than once would automatically result in a 5% penalty.
3) If there is a homework quiz, you may ONLY take the homework quiz from that week, not from previous weeks.
4) If you has missed the discussion section or the homework quiz for your discussion section, you need to sign the attendance sheet of the discussion section you are attending instead, or complete that discussion section's review quiz, in order to get attendance credit. If the discussion section is using an attendance sheet, you must ALSO print your name so that we know who you are.
Sickness for Multiple Discussions
If you are sick for a lot of discussions, please seek medical help. It is possible to be excused if some illness prevents you from missing multiple discussion sections. In such cases, you need to provide a letter from a doctor with written confirmation of the medical illness and its projected duration, as well as their contact information.
If the letter is forged, or the doctor does not exist, or I cannot find the doctor on a list of providers (would likely be in San Diego), or I cannot contact the doctor, or they do not confirm the illness, or any other such things, you will instead receive a 10% deduction per missed discussion (even if the discussion did NOT have a quiz), and you will be reported to Academic Integrity.
Professionalism
This will usually be a free 1% of your grade. You will automatically receive this professionalism grade in full, UNLESS you are egregiously unprofessional in this course. Some examples of this include:
- Bullying and/or harassment of other students or instructional staff
- Having a loud, unrelated meeting during office hours, in the office hours rooms
- Declining to leave the room when asked to do so by a member of the instructional staff
- Declining to change seats during an exam when asked to do so by a member of the instructional staff
- Violating Academic Integrity
- "Gray Zone" Academic Integrity Violations, that have some sort of negative moral weight attached.
- Leaving an exam room and re-entering without having turned in the exam or without permission from a member of the instructional staff
Displaying such poor professionalism will cost this 1%. More egregious offenses, like violating academic integrity, will be met with other consequences as well.
Homework
Homework is a very important part of the course and in order to fully master the topics it is essential that you work carefully on every assignment and try your best to complete every problem. We will have two different kinds of homework assignments in this class: online WebAssign homework (which will be graded) and, occasionally, "pen and paper" homework (which will not be graded). The online homework can give some insight on what the easier exam problems could be like, while the pen-and-paper problems could give some idea of what the harder exam problems could be like. *The pen and paper problems can be very VERY different from exam problems.
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No homework assignment scores will be dropped at the end of the quarter.
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Homework Assignments are worth 0% of your grade, HOWEVER, we have the following caveat: Your final letter grade in the course will be bounded above by your homework percentage based on an un-curved standard grading scale.
- For example, if you earn a 90% on the homework, your highest possible letter grade in the course is an A-, EVEN IF a 90% weighted average is curved up to an A for those in the course who earn at least a 93% on the homework.
- This does not harm you if your final (curved) letter grade is below the homework bound. If, for example, you earn an 89% on the homework (B+), but your curved letter grade would be a B, the homework bound will not lower that grade.
- By extension, this means earning less than 70% on the homework will result in a failing grade in the course.
- This does not work in the opposite direction; if you earn a 100% on the homework, you are not guaranteed an A+ in the course.
- Earning less than 97% on the homework will disqualify you from an A+.
- You are required to get a certain amount of "quiz bank problems" (explained below, as problems that could be asked about on homework quizzes) correct in order to pass the course.
- You can get help with the textbook homework in TA office hours, or in the course Piazza site, or in the Teaching & Learning Commons Drop-In Math Tutoring Service.
- Should you need any extensions on online homework assignments, please request them through the online homework platform by emailing jbriones@ucsd.edu , and include the name of this class (Math 18) and "extension request" in the subject line. Because of the strictness of the homework policy, we do offer extensions freely, independent of your excuse or whether or not you are lying about your excuse (though if we find that you are lying, we will regard that as a violation of academic integrity and report you anyway).
- Extensions, though granted fairly freely, will NOT be granted after the assignment's corresponding quiz has been given.
Homework Quizzes
Because homework is a very important part of the course, we will quiz you on homework problems during select discussion sections, that will affect your grade. We place a great deal of significance not JUST on completing the homework, but ALSO understanding the homework that you completed, and remembering how to do it after completing it. And, due to academic integrity concerns, we are implementing the following policy.
- Each quiz will be 5 minutes, and will mainly occur during discussion sections.
- Each homework will have a list of problems that you could be asked about on a homework quiz. These will be called "quiz bank problems". These quiz bank problems will be listed in advance of any of the quizzes.
- Each homework quiz will occur a minimum of 1 week after the corresponding homework assignment is due.
- Each quiz will consist of one of the homework problems, or one part of a homework problem, among the "quiz bank problems". There is no partial credit for the homework quiz, and is entirely on a pass/fail basis.
- Note that the homework will frequently change numbers around for each student, and so quizzes may do this as well. Problem solving techniques will remain unchanged for the problems.
- Some "quiz bank problems" will be True/False or Multiple Choice on the homework. Either of those question types can reappear on homework quizzes, HOWEVER, they will be more complex in the following ways: T/F questions will require some kind of explanation, and Multiple Choice questions will NOT be given the answer choices and will INSTEAD require you to write the explanation/answer as a short answer. You are required to get these reappearing T/F and Multiple choice questions COMPLETELY CORRECTLY in order to pass the quiz.
- Some "quiz bank problems" will be computational on the homework. It won't ALWAYS be the case that you have to get these problems completely correct, and in many cases, you won't be required to complete them to pass the quiz (we ask you to attempt to complete every problem anyway). For computational problems, we will mostly be concerned about whether or not you apply the correct techniques, and how well you set up the problem.
- Quiz versions will NOT be the same for every student, and a wide variety of homework questions can be asked about, even within the same discussion section.
- You are only responsible for homework questions that you got correct. If you receive a quiz for a problem you did NOT get correct on the homework, you may check the "I did not get this problem correct on the homework" box on the quiz. Note that if you check that box, you are STILL REQUIRED to take a quiz, but must schedule a separate quiz for the same homework from me, by emailing jbriones@ucsd.edu.
- If you receive a quiz for a problem you did NOT get correct on the homework, and you do NOT check the "I did not get this problem correct on the homework" box on the quiz, you will be responsible for your answer on that quiz. That means you will be graded as if you did complete the corresponding homework problem correctly.
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Missing a homework quiz will count as 2 absences instead of 1, even if you attend the rest of that discussion.
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If you fail a homework quiz, or you don't do that homework quiz at all, you will receive a 5% deduction to your final weighted course grade, for each failed quiz.
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If you miss a homework quiz for any reason, please email me at jbriones@ucsd.edu to schedule a make-up quiz. You may still get the attendance penalty, but you can potentially avoid the 5% penalty.
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If you mark the "I did not get this problem correct on the homework" box on the quiz, and you DID get that problem correct on the homework assignment, you will also automatically receive the 5% penalty for the corresponding quiz(zes).
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UPDATE (10/16/25, but effective for 1st quiz): If you mark the "I did not get this problem correct on the homework" box on the quiz, and you DID attempt that problem on that quiz, you will be responsible for your answer on that quiz. You will not be allowed to take the quiz a second time.
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If you did not get enough of the "quiz bank problems" correct on the homework, you will automatically receive this 5% penalty for the corresponding quiz(zes). I will not tell you how many/what percentage of quiz bank problems you need to get correct in order to avoid an automatic penalty.
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You are required to pass a certain percentage of the homework quizzes to pass the course. I will not tell you how many homework quizzes there will be, or how many you are required to pass.
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If you take the same quiz multiple times by attending multiple discussion sections, you will receive a 10% deduction instead, and will be regarded as violating academic integrity.
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Because we do not have discussion sections past week 10, we will not have homework quizzes for assignments due on or after week 10. Because of this, these assignments will not have "quiz bank questions", and will instead have UNPUBLISHED "important questions". Should you not do enough of those questions, you will receive a 5% penalty for each assignment where you miss the "important questions". I will not tell you what those questions are or how many you need to get correct.
Exams
There will be two midterm exams and one final exam. See the course calendar for the specific dates and times.
- It is your responsibility to ensure that you do not have a schedule conflict involving the final examination. You should not enroll in this class if you cannot sit for the final examination at its scheduled time.
- There are no make-up exams for any reason. Nor do we allow alternate times for taking exams, UNLESS you have a documented disability or must miss the exam for a university sponsored activity or have some comparable circumstances. In which case, arrangements can be made using the standard procedures. Please email me at jbriones@ucsd.edu for more details if this applies to you.
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No NOTES of any kind will be allowed during the examinations, and this includes cheat sheets and note cards. We may, at our discretion provide you with a formula sheet.
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No calculators or electronic devices of any kind will be allowed during the examinations.
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IF YOU FAIL THE FINAL EXAM, REGARDLESS OF YOUR GRADE IN THE REST OF THE COURSE, YOU FAIL THE COURSE.**
- ** Note that what is considered a "passing" final exam grade will vary, and will be explained. It usually ISN'T as simple as a 70% on the exam, and the outcome is usually that you CAN earn less than 70% on the exam and still pass the exam.
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Exams will have the following types of points:
- Calculation Points: These are the points that involve just raw algebraic computation. This can include your attempts at taking limits, derivatives, and anti-derivatives, as well as simpler prerequisite material, like multiplication, addition, subtraction, and division (this is NOT an exhaustive list). This will also include points from all-or-nothing problems that are easier to solve.
- Understanding Points: These are points that involve performing the correct steps toward reaching the solution to the problem. Notably, you can potentially get many of these points despite having a wildly incorrect answer. This can include things like using the correct limit or derivative rule for a problem, or identifying which functions serve which purpose in a problem.
- Mastery Points: These are points that involve your conceptual understanding of the course material. They will only be awarded on parts of the exam that are designed specifically to be different and more difficult than the homework.
A good portion (usually >50%) of each exam will be “reskin” problems of the homework or past exams of the current quarter. For those who aren’t familiar, a “reskin” of something (e.g. skins on the video game Fortnite) is something that appears different, but only superficially, and the thing beneath that skin is fundamentally the same.
In the context of math questions, a reskin is essentially just the same questions with numbers or functions changed around (superficially different, but the same at their core).
In order to get an A in the course, you need a sufficient number of BOTH understanding points AND mastery points. If you do not reach that threshold, your highest possible grade in the course is an A-.
In order to pass the final exam (and consequently, in order to pass the course), you need a sufficient number of understanding or mastery points (i.e. some combination of both, with more weight on the understanding points). Should you be slightly below the threshold to pass, we can possibly consider your understanding and mastery points on previous exams, but that is left to the discretion of the instructor.
You will NOT be allowed to bring a cheat sheet, and you will NOT be allowed to use calculators or electronic devices on the final exam. There will be no make-up Final Exam. Even under the most extenuating circumstances, if you take the final exam, you will not permitted to take the final exam a second time.
Standards for evaluation:
Your assignments in this class will be evaluated not only on the correctness of your answers, but ALSO on your ability to present your ideas clearly and logically. You should always explain how you arrived at your conclusions, using mathematically sound reasoning/work. Your answers should always be well-supported. Your goal should be to convince the reader that your results and methods are sound. This means that unless it says: "no justification necessary" then we expect at least some amount of work as justification. I will often expound on some things that will count as "work" during lecture.
Administrative Policies:
Regrade Policy: Your exams will be graded using GradescopeLinks to an external site.. You will be able to request a regrade via GradescopeLinks to an external site. for a specified window of time. Be sure to make your request within the specified window of time; no regrade requests will be accepted after the deadline.
Administrative Deadline: It is your responsibility to check that your exam scores on Canvas are the same as your exam scores published on GradescopeLinks to an external site. and contact your TA before the end of the 10th week of the quarter to resolve recording errors.
- Questions regarding missing or incorrectly recorded exam scores may be considered after the last day of the quarter.
- ONLY administrative errors can be considered after the last day of the quarter. Appeals to emotion, circumstance, or the fairness of the rubrics will be ignored, as we are NOT allowed to change the grades on those bases after the end of the quarter.
- Note: Your online homework record will be fully uploaded to Canvas after the deadline for the last assignment.
- Technical problems with your WebAssign account should be resolved as early as possible. Questions regarding WebAssign will not be considered after the last day of the quarter.
Grading: Your course grade will be determined by your cumulative average and your exam grades at the end of the term and will be based on the following scale***:
| A+/A/A- | B+/B/B- | C+/C/C- | F |
| [90 , ...) | [80 , 90) | [70 , 80) | < 70 |
Your instructor reserves the right adjust the scale. Your cumulative average will be the best of the following two weighted averages.
- 0%* Homework, 0%* Homework Quizzes, 4%* Discussion/Participation (6 of 10), 5% Matlab Assignments/Quiz, 20% Midterm Exam 1, 20% Midterm Exam 2, 50% Final Exam, 1% Professionalism
- 0%* Homework, 0%* Homework Quizzes, 4%* Discussion/Participation (6 of 10),
- 5% Matlab Assignments/Quiz, 25% Best Midterm Exam, 5% Worst Midterm Exam, 60% Final Exam, 1% Professionalism
***Notes on grading:
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Homework, Homework Quizzes, and Discussion/Participation grades have their own rules, and you need to refer to those specific sections for more details. In particular, Homework and Homework Quizzes are on a strictly penalty-based system. Participation/Discussion can also have penalties.
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Your total/overall grade on Canvas is FREQUENTLY inaccurate, because of how assignment weights work on Canvas. They don't have dynamic grading schemes and have no way of applying Understanding/Mastery points effectively
- Since there are no makeup midterm exams, if you miss a midterm exam for any reason then your course grade will be computed with second grading average by default. This is considered to be the accommodation for missing a midterm exam.
- Whether you earn an A, whether you earn a + or - grade, and whether or not you pass, WILL be affected by the number of understanding and mastery points you get on exams, especially the final exam.
- In order to get an A in the course, you need a sufficient number of BOTH understanding points AND mastery points. If you do not reach that threshold, your highest possible grade in the course is an A-
- In order to pass the final exam (and consequently, in order to pass the course), you need a sufficient number of understanding or mastery points (i.e. some combination of both, with more weight on the understanding points). Should you be slightly below the threshold to pass, we can possibly consider your understanding and mastery points on previous exams, but that is left to the discretion of the instructor.
- In addition to the pass threshold for the final exam, there is still going to be a pass threshold for the course, based on your cumulative average. Should you NOT reach that passing threshold, you will not pass the course, regardless of your grade on exams. Unlike the final exam, the cumulative average passing threshold will be a singular percentage cutoff. Based on historical averages, this number is usually slightly less than 70%, and never lower than 50%.
- I do NOT give Ds due to administrative issues involved in advancing in the math department. Since math courses will often require the prerequisites to be passed with a C- or higher, and a D is considered a passing grade, it becomes more difficult to take courses in the department that require this course as a prerequisite if you do end up with a D.
- Unlike in other courses, achieving a 97% or higher does NOT guarantee an A+ in the course. The thresholds or requirements for an A+ will likely be different and more strict, and reflective of consistent, exemplary work in the course.
- The following will disqualify you from receiving an A+ in the course, as they all disrupt the process of getting grades out:
- Asking what the cutoff for an A+ is
- Asking for an A+ directly
- Pointing out that your grade, or any part of it, is "high enough" for an A+
- Asking why or pointing out that you did not receive an A+
- Exams themselves are generally not curved. This may change in extreme cases–in particular, a curve is more likely (but not guaranteed) if the mean falls well below 70%. These extreme cases are separate for the extreme cases of the passing threshold for the final exam.
- No one, including the instructor, will know if the course itself is curved at all until after all grades are in. Even if it is determined there would be a curve, it is not guaranteed (rather, it is unlikely) that such information or the nature of any curve would be given to students. I usually do not tell students how grades are decided, as that tends to cause more chaos the more transparent we are about how grade curves/cutoffs are decided.
- Even if the course is curved, we won't know if your grade is hurt by or helped by said curve until grades are set. The benefit will not be uniform, due to the way the scoring system works.
OSD Accommodations
Students requesting accommodations for this course due to a disability must provide a current Authorization for Accommodation (AFA) letter issued by the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD). We will make every effort to arrange provide any accommodations stipulated by your AFA letter. For more information, visit the OSD website.
For those of you who have OSD accommodations that require use of the Triton Testing Center (eg for extended time or separate rooms), please set up a registerblast account if you have not already. Instructions here: https://tritontesting.ucsd.edu/accommodated-and-makeup-testing/students/index.html
The OSD Liaison (Holly Proudfoot) will contact you regarding scheduling the corresponding exams.
Assessment Versioning
Following UCSD (and common) practice recommended by the Academic Integrity Office, assessments (including homework, quizzes, AND exams) will be comparable, but may not be identical. This practice is meant to maintain course integrity, avoiding non-allowed collaboration (either intentional or accidental).
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is highly valued at UCSD and academic dishonesty is considered a serious offense. Students involved in an academic integrity violation will face an administrative sanction which may include suspension or, in very serious cases, expulsion from the university. If you are caught committing an academic integrity violation, and you do not admit responsibility, and you are found responsible for committing an academic integrity violation, you will receive a failing grade, no matter how small the violation of academic integrity. Your integrity has great value: Cultivate and protect your academic integrity. For more about academic integrity and its value, visit the UCSD Academic Integrity Website.
According to the policy, you are not allowed to:
- Complete, in part or in total, any assignment for another person.
- Have any of your course work be completed, in part or in total, by someone else.
- Plagiarize or copy even part of the work of another person or source and submit it as your own work.
- Employ aids excluded by the instructor in completing any assignment.
- Alter graded class assignments, then resubmit them for re-grading;
- Submit substantially the same material in more than one course without prior authorization; and misrepresent, to your instructor, any aspect of your academic work.
- (This is not an exhaustive list; refer to the above link for more details)
Some examples of specific ways that your are considered to violate academic integrity in this course specifically include:
- Sharing written solutions with other students
- Collaborating on or copying parts of or the whole of exams or quizzes.
- Using online answer resources such as Chegg, ChatGPT, or CourseHero for any assignments
- Using any allowed out of class resources WITHOUT citing them on your assignments
- Using an AI such as ChatGPT for any assignments
Follow the golden rule for AI: Always give credit for any outside help on any assignment, except for those whose job it is to help you (Instructors, TAs, tutors, the textbook sections that we cover, and class handouts), with certain exceptions.
You should not attempt to search for homework solutions or exam solutions online or in sources outside of the course content. (Example: you should not consult content from past quarters.) If you use any sources outside of lectures, discussion sections, the textbook sections that we cover, and documents posted on the Modules Tab on Canvas, you MUST cite them. This INCLUDES office hours, past or current courses you are also taking, and Wolfram Alpha. If you cite office hours as a source for any assignment, you must ALSO cite the day and the name of the tutor or IA who ran the office hours. Failure to cite outside sources will be regarded as academic dishonesty.
Name and Gender Pronouns
UC San Diego is committed to supporting its students' name and gender preferences. Class rosters provided to your instructor and TAs have students' legal names, but we will strive to honor your request to be addressed using a preferred name or gender pronoun. Please let your instructor and TA know your preferences so that we can make changes to our records. (Certain university records may be beyond our ability to change, however.)
- Equity, Inclusion, and Respect. We are committed to the UC San Diego Principles of Community . "To foster the best possible working and learning environment, UC San Diego strives to maintain a climate of fairness, cooperation, and professionalism. These principles of community are vital to the success of the University and the well being of its constituents." The principles of community include (but are not limited to): "We affirm each individual's right to dignity and strive to maintain a climate of justice marked by mutual respect for each other." "We reject acts of discrimination based on race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion, and political beliefs, and, we will confront and appropriately respond to such acts." "We promote open expression of our individuality and our diversity within the bounds of courtesy, sensitivity, confidentiality, and respect." "We are committed to promoting and supporting a community where all people can work and learn together in an atmosphere free of abusive or demeaning treatment." Visit the Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion for more information.
Lecture Schedule: [Can be updated throughout the quarter]
You are responsible for the content of any lecture, both course content and administrative announcements
| Lecture | Date (MM/DD/YYYY) | Topics | Textbook Sections |
| 1 | 9/26/25 (Week 0) | Syllabus Lecture | n/a |
| 2 | 9/29/25 (Week 1) | Syllabus Lecture Part 2 | n/a |
| 3 | 10/1/25 |
Syllabus Lecture Part 3, Systems of Linear Equations |
1.1 |
| 4 | 10/3/25 |
Row Reduction |
1.2 |
| 5 | 10/6/25 (Week 2) |
Echelon Forms |
1.2 |
| 6 | 10/8/25 |
Vector Equations, The Matrix Equation Ax = b |
1.3, 1.4 |
| 7 | 10/10/25 |
Solution Sets of Linear Systems |
1.5 |
| 8 | 10/13/25 (Week 3) |
Linear Independence |
1.7 |
| 9 | 10/15/25 |
Introduction to Linear Transformations |
1.8 |
| 10 | 10/17/25 |
The Matrix of a Linear Transformation |
1.9 |
| n/a | 10/20/25 (Week 4) | Midterm 1 | --- TBD --- |
| 11 | 10/22/25 |
Matrix Operations |
2.1 |
| 12 | 10/24/25 |
The Inverse of a Matrix |
2.2 |
| 13 | 10/27/25 (Week 5) |
Characterizations of Invertible Matrices |
2.3 |
| 14 | 10/29/25 |
Vector Spaces and Subspaces |
4.1 |
| 15 | 10/31/25 |
Null Spaces, Column Spaces, and Linear Transformations |
4.2 |
| 16 | 11/3/25 (Week 6) |
Linearly Independent Sets; Bases |
4.3 |
| 17 | 11/5/25 |
The Dimension of a Vector Space |
4.5 |
| 18 | 11/7/25 |
Coordinate Systems |
4.4 |
| 19 |
11/10/25 (Week 7) No quiz this week (Veterans Day Week) |
Change of Basis |
4.6 |
| 20 | 11/12/25 |
Introduction to Determinants |
3.1 |
| 21 | 11/14/25 |
Properties of Determinants |
3.2 |
| n/a | 11/17/25 (Week 8) | Midterm 2 | --- TBD --- |
| 22 | 11/19/25 |
Eigenvectors and Eigenvalues |
5.1 |
| 23 | 11/21/25 |
The Characteristic Equation |
5.2 |
| 24 |
11/24/25 (Week 9) No quiz this week (Thanksgiving Week) |
Diagonalization |
5.3 |
| 25 | 11/26/25 |
Inner Product, Length, and Orthogonality, Inner Product Spaces |
6.1 |
| n/a | 11/28/25 |
Thanksgiving Holiday (No Lecture) |
n/a |
| 26 | 12/1/25 (Week 10) |
Orthogonal Sets |
6.2 |
| 27 | 12/3/25 |
Orthogonal Projections and Inner Product Spaces |
6.3, 6.7 |
| 28 | 12/5/25 |
The Gram-Schmidt Process |
6.4 |
| n/a | 12/9/25 (Tuesday) |
Final Exam 11:30AM-2:30PM Warren Lecture Hall (WLH) 2001 |
All |
Instructional Staff:
|
Name |
Role | Sections: | Office/Tutor/One-on-one hours | |
| Jor-el Briones | Instructor | n/a | jbriones@ucsd.edu |
Office Hours: AP&M 6303 Mon/Wed/Fri 1:30pm-3:30pm (Office Hours may vary by week) (Note: Actual Office for Private Meetings is AP&M 1131, but those are by appointment) |
| Jordan Benson |
Instructional Assistant (C01-C04) |
AP&M B412 (for all) C01: Tue 8am-9:20am C02: Thu 8am-9:20am C03: Tue 9:30am-10:50am C04: Thu 9:30am-10:50am |
jobenson@ucsd.edu | Office Hours: Tuesday and Thursday 11-12:30 in HSS 5012 except October 28th, 30th and November 18th |
| Matthew Cho |
Instructional Assistant (C05-C06, C09-C10) |
AP&M B412 (for all) C05: Tue 11am-12:20pm C06: Thu 11am-12:20pm C09: Tue 2pm-3:20pm C10: Thu 2pm-3:20pm |
macho@ucsd.edu | Office Hours: Wednesday 2-4 PM in HSS 5009, and Friday 1-3 PM on Zoom (https://mit.zoom.us/my/teamlyle) |
| Julie Shields |
Instructional Assistant (C07-C08) |
Center Hall (CENTR) 217A (for all) C07: Tue 3:30pm-4:50pm C08: Thu 3:30pm-4:50pm |
zshields@ucsd.edu | Office Hours: Wednesdays 10-11 and 1-2 in HSS 4044 |
| Jiajia Wang |
MATLAB Tutor |
|
jiw133@ucsd.edu | Office Hours: |
|
SI Tutor? |
|
Office Hours: |
||
"Quiz Bank Problems" Per Homework Assignment
Homework 1
MyLaB: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 20
Corresponds to Textbook Questions:
1.1: 7, 8, 10, 13, 23, 26, 35
1.2: 3, 6, 7, 8, 11, 13, 22, 23, 35
Homework 2
MyLaB: 3, 4, 5, 6, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18
Corresponds to Textbook Questions:
1.3: 11, 13, 17, 21
1.4: 13, 15, 18, 19, 21, 42
1.5: 5, 9, 11
Homework 3
MyLaB: 1, 2, 3, 4, 10, 12, 14, 16
Corresponds to Textbook Questions:
1.7: 6, 7, 11, 13, 37
1.8: 4, 9, 19
Homework 4
MyLaB: 1, 3, 4, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 18, 21
Corresponds to Textbook Questions:
1.9: 2, 17, 19, 33, 34, 35
2.1: 9, 12, 25
Homework 5
MyLaB: 1, 2, 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14
Corresponds to Textbook Questions:
2.2: 1, 4, 27, 45
2.3: 2, 4, 5, 8, 23, 25, 26, 29
For explanation problems, you MAY NOT just cite Invertible Matrix Theorem. You need to make some argument that connects the given information to your answer.
Homework 6
MyLaB: 1, 2, 3, 8, 9, 10, 12, 13, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20
Corresponds to Textbook Questions:
4.1: 1, 2, 7
4.2: 4, 6, 15, 21, 24
4.3: 1, 3, 9, 13, 16
Homework 7
MyLaB: 1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 22, 25, 26, 31, 32, 33
Corresponds to Textbook Questions:
4.4: 3, 4, 5, 7, 11, 32, 34
4.5: 3, 6, 8
4.6: 1, 6, 8, 15, 16, 21
"Pen and Paper" Homework Assignments (Not collected, not graded)
Homework 1
Homework 2
Homework 3
Homework 4
Homework 5
Homework 6
Homework 7
Homework 8
Homework 9
Addendum (12/4/25): Making Quiz Points Back (For Failed Quizzes, NOT Missed Quizzes)
Note: The following are ways to gain a quiz point back. You may not attempt these things if you already have all quiz points. You may only attempt this once, until further notice.
Here is a list of topics within the textbook, but outside the scope of the course:
18:
- 2.6: The Leontief Input-Output Model
- 4.7: Digital Signal Processing
- 4.8: Linear Difference Equations
- 6.4: Least Squares Approximations and Least Squares Problems
- 6.5: Least Squares Fitting to Curves
- 6.5: Multiple Regression
- 6.8: Fourier Series
- 7.3: Constrained Optimization
- 7.4: The Singular Value Decomposition
- 9.3: Linear Programming, the Geometric method
- 9.4: Linear Programming, the Simplex Method
If you want to make a quiz point back, you can do the following:
- Select one of the above topics, and create a powerpoint presentation about the topic. In that powerpoint presentation, you must:
- Explain the topic. What is it? How would you compute it/things related to it?
- Present one real world application of the topic
- Do a basic problem of my choice regarding the topic. You must have a correct enough solution.
You must follow the following rules/restrictions:
- You must send me a pdf of your presentation to jbriones@ucsd.edu for me to check.
- I may reject your presentation for any reason, and if you are rejected, you may be barred from attempting to make quiz point back further, and you will receive no quiz points back.
- All sources must be cited. At any point/slide that you use a source, you must have that source displayed on the slide, preferably in MLA or a formal citation format
- If your source does not exist, that will be regarded as a violation of academic integrity, you will be reported, and your grade will be reduced by another 5%
- If I cannot easily access any of your sources, eg if any sources are behind a paywall, your presentation will be rejected. You will not be allowed to attempt it further.
- If it isn’t immediately clear where in your source your claim comes from, then your presentation will be rejected. You will not be allowed to attempt it further.
- If your presentation is accepted, we can schedule a meeting (jbriones@ucsd.edu) so that you can present that powerpoint to me live.
- If I do not believe you actually understand your topic sufficiently, I will reject your submission, and you will not be allowed to attempt it further.
- I may ask follow up questions. If I do not believe you have answered those questions sufficiently, then I will reject your submission, and you will not be allowed to attempt it further.
- If your presentation exceeds 5 minutes, your submission will be rejected. You will not be allowed to attempt it further.
- Much like the powerpoint presentation pdf, I may reject your presentation for any reason. You will not be allowed to attempt it further.
- I will not be able to meet after 3:30pm on finals week
- If we cannot meet, for whatever reason, your presentation will automatically be dropped, and you will not be given a point. You will not be allowed to attempt it further.
- If the number of presentations people attempt exceeds the amount I can meet for, I will accept them on a first come, first served basis. The first ones to be scheduled will be the only ones who could potentially gain quiz points back.
- If your live presentation is accepted, I will give you one problem directly related to your topic, that you must complete, also in front of me.
- You will not be allowed to have notes for that problem.
- You will not be allowed to have any electronic devices, including calculators, for the problem.
- Your solution must be correct enough to get the quiz point back. If I do not find it to be correct enough, your submission will be rejected, and you will not be permitted to attempt to make up failed quizzes again.
Should all three phases of this process be completed and passed by me, you would gain 1 quiz point back.
Course Summary:
| Date | Details | Due |
|---|---|---|