Preparing for the midterm

The midterm exam will be Thursday, October 22, 2009, in our usual room. Please do not be late. The time you have for the exam will be 2:20 pm ntil 3:35 pm, sharp.

Remember that I have my usual office hours on Tuesday (Oct 20) from 3:35-5 pm and Wednesday (Oct 21) from 2-4 pm. The best use of office hours is if you bring specific questions.

You are responsible for all the material we have covered so far. That means any topic we covered in lecture, homeworks, and the readings. Anything we talked about in class is fair game, as is anything from the readings -- except things I never mentioned in class.

How to study for the midterm? Read back through all the notes. Read through all the solution sets. Try to see where connections across topics may exist. The emphasis on the midterm will be on concepts and synthesis of material.

Bring a calculator. No sharing calculators during the exam.

You are allowed to bring (and use) one (1) 8.5 x 11 sheet of paper with whatever written on it you like. Yes, both sides, if you like.

No books, notebooks, homeworks, computers, etc. will be allowed for the exam.

I will give you with the exam a sheet with all relevant formulas and constants (if you need any).

The emphasis of the midterm will be on concepts, not calculations, although the exam may not be calculation-free.

I will design the exam to take 75 minutes. The exam will be worth a total of 75 points, and I will label each question with its point value.

Advice for taking the exam: (1) Read the entire exam through carefully first. The extra minute required to do this will more than pay off if you can budget your time well. (2) Budget your time carefully! You should probably spend the most time on the questions which are worth the most. Remember, the exam will be 75 minutes and 75 points -- this should suggest how to allot your time.

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Last modified: 15 October 2009