|
At Seaver College of Pepperdine University, we wanted all
students to experience mathematics at the college level.
Mathematics is a part of our daily experience, playing a
major role in the facts and graphs we use to make decisions,
guiding science and the social sciences, and helping us
understand numbers and shapes. But as every college
graduate should know, mathematics is much more than this.
It is a logical structure that seeks to justify new
facts based on explicit conditions, using logical arguments.
It is a language that is precise and concise. It is a
body of problem solving techniques. And finally, it is
a fascinating subject in its own right, with many startling
discoveries and puzzling questions.
For this reason, we expect students to learn a little about
the mathematical notion of proof using the precision of
mathematical language, a little about some important problem
solving strategies, some scope of how mathematics is applied,
and some idea of the scope of mathematical topics that have developed
over the past several thousand years, including some that are being
explored even today.
The main course designed for this purpose is
in which we discuss a wide range of topics to give you an idea what
mathematics is all about.
For those students majoring in a natural science (except Biology
B.A. and nutrition), or a business major, a math course required by
your major,
satisfies this requirement, introducing you to one of the biggest
developments in mathematics in modern times. In some sense, the
development of calculus was responsible for our modern times, in
our way of thinking and our way of living.
For psychology, sociology, or the other natural sciences, a math
course required by your major,
- Math 316: Statistics
- or SOC 250: Statistics
- or PSYC 250: Statistics
covers the fascinating and subtle world of dealing with numbers and how
they are used and misused. Particularly important is how we use data
to support or deny a claim, such as "DDT causes cancer" or "the
gap between the rich and poor is increasing".
For Liberal Arts/Teacher Ed. majors, the state of California requires
material in
- Math 270: Foundations of
Elementary Mathematics
which is more geared toward future teachers. This class may only be used
to satisfy the general education requirement for Liberal Arts majors.
See What Math do I need? for more information
about math requirements for each major.
|
