Courses

Mathematics Curriculum

The Department offers majors in computer science and in mathematics. In addition, the mathematics major can be designed to include a concentration in statistics; elementary and advanced statistics courses are regular offerings of the Department. The Department also offers the Computer Science 3-2 Option major for those students planning to pursue a combined-degree pre-engineering program.

The Department provides courses for students anticipating graduate work in computer science, mathematics, and statistics, and for those wishing to use the mathematical sciences as a tool, those wishing to teach, and those who simply would like to know something about computer sciences, mathematics, or statistics.

Majors often take advanced courses in other departments directly complementing their studies in mathematics or computer science. Double majors with mathematics or computer science and a related area, such as economics or physics, are often undertaken. Upon graduation, recent majors have entered business, management science, statistical research, computer, actuarial work, environmental research, teaching, and graduate school in computer science, mathematics, philosophy, physics, economics, business, law, and medicine. Programs are tailored to the interests of the student with a minimum of courses specified. Potential majors and others interested should consult with any member of the Department in planning their course work.

Students wishing to concentrate in computer science should contact Professors Nunemacher, McCulloch or Zaring. Those wishing to concentrate in statistics should see Professor Linder. Those wishing to concentrate in secondary education should contact Professor Radloff, and those wishing to prepare for graduate study in mathematics should contact Professors Nunemacher, Radloff, or Linder.

Students may also take advantage of special learning opportunities, such as the mathematics seminar, independent study and the departmental honors program. These are described in more detail below.

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Majors and Minors

Mathematics Major:

111, 210, 250, 270, 340 or 370, and a minimum of four additional Mathematics courses numbered 250 or above. Also, CS 110 or equivalent knowledge of programming.

It is possible to do a concentration in statistics within the Mathematics major.

Mathematics Minor:

110, 111, 210, 250, 270, and any two courses numbered above 250. The student who plans to minor in mathematics is advised to plan a coherent program with a departmental faculty member.

Computer Science Major:

MATH 110, 111, 250; CS 110, 250, 255, 270, 360, 380; and any three CS courses numbered 250 or above. (CS 110, 250, and MATH 250 must be completed by the end of the sophomore year).

Computer Science Minor:

MATH 110, 111, 250; CS 110, 250, 255 and any course numbered 250 or above.

Combined Computer Science/Mathematics Major:

Students double majoring in mathematics and computer science are limited to 17 courses within the Department among those counted toward the 34 units required for graduation.

See below for the Computer Science 3-2 Option Major.

Department majors or minors may not take mathematics or computer science courses credit/no entry except with permission of the Department.

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Computer Science Curriculum

The course offerings in computer science prepare students for professional employment or continued study in graduate school. Students normally begin with the introductory course in computer science and programming, in which the basic ideas in the field are presented. For computer science majors, this is followed by three required intermediate courses in data structures, computer organization and paradigms of computation. These cover the basic issues of hardware and software. Students learn a variety of high-level programming languages (including C/C++ and Scheme), assembly language, the UNIX operating system, object-oriented programming and gain familiarity with the university and departmental computer hardware.

Majors are also required to take calculus (two courses) and discrete mathematics to acquire the necessary mathematics background for advanced study of computer science. Many areas of theoretical and applied computer science are covered in the advanced courses. Majors must take courses in the theory of computation and analysis of algorithms.

The department offers applied courses in database theory, operating systems and artificial intelligence. For students interested in computer languages, course offerings include compiler design and the theory of programming languages. Several advanced mathematics courses which complement the computer science curriculum are available. These include numerical analysis, mathematical logic, probability and abstract algebra.

Finally, students may also take advantage of special learning opportunities, including advanced special topics courses, directed reading, independent study and the departmental honors program. These are described in more detail below.

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Courses for Non-Majors

The Department offers a number of courses specifically as a service to non-majors who seek training in mathematics and computer Science. These include MATH 105, a course in elementary probability and statistics that includes computer experience, and which prepares students to read increasingly quantitative journals of the social and life sciences. Problem Solving with Computers (CS 102) offers a broad, applications-oriented introduction to computer for students having no prior computer experience. Topics in Finite Mathematics (MATH 103) provides a gentle introduction to mathematics and applications for students with little previous mathematical training. Precalculus (MATH 108) is for students who have a moderate mathematical background but not one sufficient to begin calculus immediately. The calculus courses (MATH 110, 111, and 210) are recommended for students who wish to continue the study of mathematics in college after a strong high school background. They are particularly important for any of the sciences and economics. Introduction to Computer Science and Programming (CS 110) provides a careful entry into the discipline of computer science and teaches programming in a high level language.

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Special Learning Opportunities

Each year a special topic in mathematics and computer science is offered through a seminar course (MATH 499 or CS 499). The topic is not among those in the regular curriculum and typically, the students, other faculty members and the instructor learn together. The exact topic, instructor and prerequisites change each year, and are described in the schedule of courses. Interested students may get additional information from the department chair and the instructor. Titles of recent seminars include Curves and Singularities, Applied Combinatorics, The Mathematics of Chaotic Phenomena, Computer Networks, Scheme and Functional Programming, Stochastic Processes, Experimental Design and Number Theory.

The department encourages creativity, initiative and discipline by offering credit to students who wish to do independent work with a faculty member (MATH 490 or CS 490). This is an excellent way to investigate a subject of personal choosing, and to pursue a topic in greater depth than would be possible in the classroom setting. Interested students should consult with the department chair or the supervising faculty member to get approval for an independent study. Almost any topic outside the regular curriculum would be considered. Recent topics of independent studies include operations research, computer graphics, neural networks, quality control, design of experiments, multivariate statistical analysis, object-oriented programming languages, calculus of variations, partial differential equations and advanced linear algebra.

Especially strong students are invited to participate in the departmental honors program. Students work for a year on an independent study, write and present a paper and take a comprehensive examination. This experience is appropriate for students preparing to enter graduate school. Recent honors graduates are attending Cornell University, University of Wisconsin and Rice University. Further details about the program are available from the department chair, the Honors Committee and the course catalogue.

Recent honors projects include:

  • Eknath Belbase '92 - Stochastic Processes, Card-Shuffling and Ergodic Theory
  • Shriram Krishnamurthi '93 - Partial Evaluation and the Isomorphism Problem
  • Joni Baker '94 - Gambler's Ruin: A Problem in Enumerative Combinatorics
  • Rajesh Raman '95 - An Algebra for Protocol Verification

The department is pleased to reward students who wish to do extra work in their courses. A student may earn course honors by completing a project under the supervision of the course instructor. This may involve additional reading, consulting library materials, writing computer programs or writing a report in the area of interest. Students wishing to earn course honors should seek permission from the instructor of the course. Additional information about the program is available in the course catalog.

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Statistics Concentration

The department offers a concentration in statistics within the regular mathematics program. This prepares students for careers in any one of several professional disciplines. The statistics concentration is also beneficial to students who intend to pursue advanced degrees in fields complementary to Mathematics and Computer Science, such as business, economics and statistics itself. In addition to regular departmental courses in applied statistics, probability and mathematical statistics, students complete the concentration by taking seminars, special topics courses and independent studies. Recent special offerings include design of experiments, measuring quality, multivariate statistical analysis and stochastic processes.

Mathematics Major (Statistics Concentration):

One must complete a mathematics major and have taken 260, 340, 350, and either 360 or 365.

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Computer Science Pre-Engineering Option

Computer science students interested in pursuing an undergraduate degree in engineering may choose to participate in Ohio Wesleyan's 3-2 engineering program. Under this option, a student completes a specially-designed computer science major in three years and then transfers to one of several participating engineering schools for two additional years of study. Upon successfully completing this five-year course of study, the student receives a computer science degree from Ohio Wesleyan and an engineering degree from the chosen engineering school. Participating engineering schools currently include (among others) Case Western Reserve University, Rensselaer Polytechnic University, and Washington University (St. Louis). Interested students are urged to check the course catalog for complete information on this program.

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Mathematics Education

Students interested in secondary mathematics education (grades 7 - 12) may receive teaching certification. In addition to a regular Ohio Wesleyan major, students must complete seven required mathematics courses, one elective mathematics course, selected courses in the Education department and student teaching during the spring semester of the senior year. Owing to the number of mathematics courses required for teaching certification, students generally major in mathematics though this isn't specifically required. For additional information, students should contact the faculty advisor of the mathematics education program or the department chair.

The minimum recommended courses for secondary education are 260, 320, and 370.

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Allied Disciplines

The department encourages mathematics and computer science majors to take courses in allied disciplines which use or complement the mathematical sciences. In fact, many students complete minors or second majors in such areas as physics, chemistry, economics, business management, pre-med, the biological sciences and psychology. Conversely, many students with majors in allied disciplines complete concentrated study (minor or second major) in mathematics and/or computer science. This is particularly true of students intending to do graduate work in physics, chemistry or economics.

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