Course Webpage: http://abacus.bates.edu/~pjayawan/365fall07/365df07.html

Please check the webpage and your Bates email regularly for announcements pertaining to our course. The topics that will be covered and the exam dates, homework dates and other submission dates are in the weekly calendar on the course webpage.

Goals: Graph theory is a branch of modern mathematics that is closely tied to applications in a variety of fields such as transportation, electrical engineering, chemistry, ecology, and genetics. The solutions to some of the application problems are in the form of algorithms that can be programmed to run on a computer. There are two main goals of the course. One goal is to learn the basics of graph theory that will help us to study the algorithms that provide solutions to some of the application problems. The other goal is to learn the basics of programming so that we can implement some of the algorithms that we study. Monday and Wednesday classes will be devoted to graph theory and Friday classes will cover programming. We will use Maple as the language of our programs. No prior knowledge of Maple is assumed.

Resources: The book Graphs: An Introductory Approach by Robin Wilson and John Watkins is on reserve in the library. The course webpage has links to material available on the web that is relevant to the course.

Class participation: We will engage in class discussions as we learn new concepts. We will solve problems and write proofs together on the board or in groups. Not simply attendance, but your active participation is essential for these activities and will count toward the class participation grade.

Computing Project: You will work individually or in pairs to implement one of the algorithms we learn in the course.

Labs: Each Friday is a lab class. The first six labs are devoted to learning the basics of programming in Maple. Eric Towne, the department's Assistant in Instruction, will conduct these labs. After initial instruction, you will work on assigned problems individually. At the end of the lab or at the start of the next lab, the solutions to the assigned problems will be graded. These six labs constitute the lab portion of your grade. During the next four labs you will work on the computing project. In the last two labs you will work on a tree algorithm and this work will be part of your final exam. Eric and I will be available for assistance during all the labs.

Homework: Three homework assignments are to be handed in during the semester. You will be given the assignments in class at least one week prior to the due date. I encourage you to discuss the homework problems with others but you must write the solutions on your own. Grading will be on both correctness and completeness. Correct answers must be accompanied by coherent and logical explanations to receive full credit. Late homeworks will not be accepted unless there is a genuine emergency.

Written project: You will work individually or in pairs on a paper typeset in LaTeX about a topic of your choice that is related to graph theory. Depending on your interest, you could choose to write about an application or the historical background of a topic or a theorem or an algorithm. Your paper must include at least one theorem and its proof. In case you choose to work on an algorithm, a theorem and proof can be substituted by an implementation of the algorithm. More details about the project will follow in a separate assignment sheet.

Exams: The midterm exam and the final exam are take-home exams. Late exams will not be accepted unless there is a genuine emergency.

Grades: The weights of each category in your final grade are as follows:

Class participation: 15%	Labs: 12% (2% each)	Homework: 6% each
Computing Project: 10%	Written project: 10%
Midterm exam: 15%	Final exam: 20%

Academic Integrity: The College Code of Student Conduct will be enforced in all the areas of the course and students found to be in violation will be subject to the appropriate disciplinary processes.

Accomodations Based on Learning Differences: Students planning to use accomodations for this course should contact me as soon as possible.