Texts:     Infinity and the Mind by Rudy Rucker.
              To Infinity and Beyond by Eli Maor.
              Collected Fictions by Jorge Luis Borges.

Grading: The grade will be calculated based on 5  components:
 

Late Assignments will not ordinarily be accepted.   Assignments that are not turned in due to illness or other unexpected absences will be dropped if the absence is excused. If you have advance notice that you will be absent (whether or not the absence is excused) I expect you to make arrangements to turn in the assignment early or to have someone turn it in for you. (For example, sporting events, your sister's wedding, religious holidays, etc.) If there are other extenuating circumstances that make it necessary for your to turn in an assignment late, you must make arrangements in advance with me. I reserve the right to deny the request or exact a grade penalty at my own discrection.

Class Participation: Most classes will be structured as a set of discussions and conversations about the ideas in the readings. There will also be "workshop" days in which the class will engage in exploratory exercises/activities. I will rarely lecture for very long. Thus your active participation is necessary to move the class forward. Therefore, regular class attendance is expected. If you don’t attend, you will miss many of the nuances in the ideas, and furthermore you will not contribute to the understanding of others in the class. Thus unexcused absenses will count against you in the class participation portion of the grade. The rest of the grade will be subjective, based on my impressions of the frequency and thoughtfulness with which you participate in class.

Reading Responses: As we progress in the text you will be given regular reading assignments to help you prepare for the next class period. About once a week, I will ask you to turn in a response paper in which you discuss your thoughts about the readings and/or discussions. These are not meant to be reading notes; you are asked to give your own thoughts about the ideas. These are not formal papers; you should feel free to discuss connections, bring up questions or confusions, talk about your general reactions to the ideas, talk about what excites you or makes you uneasy, etc. Think of it as a journal of your musings on the subject. I expect each paper to be about 1-2 pages typed .

These should not be difficult assignments or take very long, but these are interesting (and sometimes mind-boggling!) ideas, so I expect you to do some pondering before and as you write. Your score each response paper will be a 0, 1, or 2.

0     didn't turn it in or what what you turned in did not address the assigned topic.
1     turned something that showed some understanding of the reading and discussions, but that in my opinion was not sufficiently thoughtful. (E.g. amounted to reading notes or someting jotted down for the sake of getting the assignment off your desk.)
2     addressed the topic and added some thoughts/musings of your own.

I will sometimes comment on what you write and sometimes not. Occasionally, I write a response paper to your response paper. Do not take this as a sign of approval or disapproval of your work. It is just that some musings need more of a response than others.

Papers: Being able to express yourself in writing is important in mathematics, as it is in any other field of endeavor. During the semester you will be asked to write three papers on topics relevant to the class.

Midterm and Final Exams : You will have two major tests during the semester. They will emphasize the big ideas and will mostly consist of short answer and essay type questions. The final examination will be a cumulative three hour final held at the time specified by the registrar for period 4

Examination Dates

Academic honesty: You are responsible for understanding Kenyon's expectations regarding academic honesty. If you have not already, you should read and understand those pages of the Course of Study that define plagiarism and discuss academic honesty. If in doubt, you should always choose to cite rather than not to cite a source. Feel free to ask me if you have any questions or concerns.
 

Resources for help: Prof. Schumacher is the primary source for help with the course. Do not hesitate to ask questions in or out of class.

And please don't consider office hours to be a resource of last resort. If you are confused about the ideas being discussed in class or if you just want to discuss them further, please come to discuss them with me during my office hours. There is much that I can do for you in a one-to-one situation that I cannot do in a group setting. You should take advantage of the fact that I am easily available to help you outside of class.

Working and talking regularly with other students in your class can also be helpful.
 

Disabilities: If you have a physical, psychological, medical or learning disability that may impact your ability to carry out assigned course work, feel free to discuss your concerns in private with me, but you should also consult the Office of Disability Services at 5453. The Coordinator of Disability Services, Erin Salva (salvae@kenyon.edu), will review your concerns and determine, with you, what accommodations are appropriate. (All information and documentation of disability is confidential.) It is Ms. Salva that has the authority and the expertise to decide on the accommodations that are proper for your disability. Though I am happy to help you in any way I can, I cannot make any special accommodations without proper authorization from Ms. Salva.

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