| Instructor | Nathan Reading (Please call me "Nathan") |
| Office | Harrelson 225 |
| Telephone | 515-3261 (This telephone does not have an answering machine or voicemail.) |
| nathan_reading AT ncsu DOT edu | |
| Office hours |
Wednesdays, 11:15-12:15 and 3-4. Thursdays, 3-4. Also, by appointment. |
| Course website | http://www4.ncsu.edu/~nreadin/796. You will be responsible for material on this site. You will be notified by email or in class when new information is posted on the site. |
| Class email list | A class email list will be established within the first few days of the class. You will be responsible for any information emailed to the list. In particular, you should check your "unity" email account at least every other day. |
| Class Sessions | Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 10:15-11:05 in Harrelson 366. |
| Course Description |
This course will present a broad outline of combinatorial enumeration
and a narrower look (focusing on partially ordered sets or "posets") at
combinatorial structures. Enumerative topics will include (among other
topics) basic counting, generating functions, sieve methods, Lagrange
inversion and Polya theory. Poset topics will include chain
decompositions, distributive lattices, geometric lattices, Mobius
functions and (algebraic) poset topology. The main prerequisite for the course is abstract algebra (groups, rings, fields). Previous experience with combinatorics will be helpful, but will not be assumed. In particular, graduate students with a solid mathematical background are probably prepared to take this class, even if they have no combinatorics background. Undergraduate students interested in this course should be aware that I will assume the kind of proficiency in reading, creating and writing mathematical arguments which is typical of graduate students. I would suggest that undergraduates contact me if they are interested in the course. |
| Text |
There will be two required texts for the course: Richard Stanley, Enumerative Combinatorics, Volume I, ("EC1") and Van Lint and Wilson, A Course in Combinatorics (2nd Edition). These are both excellent books to have on your shelf. The bookstore is going to order these, but I suspect that you can do much better buying online directly from the publisher. Go to The Cambridge Press site and search on the word "combinatorics." Both books are on the second page of the search results. The price for both, including shipping was (when I tried it) $102.74. That's probably less than the bookstore will be charging for Van Lint and Wilson. One caution: I don't know what the return policy is for Cambridge Press, but I suspect that if you change your mind about the course, you will be stuck with the books. On the other hand, the bookstore does, I think, let you take books back for a short time after purchasing. |
| Material Covered | Tentatively, we will cover all or part Chapters 1, 2 and 3 in EC1. In Van Lint and Wilson, we will cover all or part of Chapters 15, 13, 14, 24, 10, 37, 6 and 25. We will move through both books more or less simultaneously. |
| Homework |
Several (probably about 5-7) homework assignments will be assigned and collected over the course of the semester.
Late homework will not be accepted.
You are encouraged to collaborate on solving the assigned problems as long as everyone in the group gains a thorough understanding of the solution.
Furthermore, each student must write up the solution in their own words based on their own understanding. Click here for the assignments. |
| Comments | Over the course of the semester, I will post comments on homework assignments and other matters. I will inform you by email when I post something new. |
| Grading | Your course grade will be determined by your performance on the assignments. Students are also expected to attend all class sessions. |
| Final Exam | This class has a final exam scheduled for April 30, 8:00-11:00. The final exam will be a take-home exam. This take-home will look just like the other assignments, will be about as long as the other assignments and will contribute exactly as much to your final grade as each of the other assignments. However, it is a take-home final exam. |
| Statement for students with disabilities | Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with verifiable disabilities. In order to take advantage of available accommodations, students must register with Disability Services for Students at 1900 Student Health Center, Campus Box 7509, 515-7653. For more information on NC State's policy on working with students with disabilities, please see the Academic Accommodations for Students with Disabilities Regulation, available at http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/academic_affairs/courses_undergrad/REG02.20.1.php . |
| Academic Integrity | Students are expected to conform to standards of academic integrity as described in the Code of Student Conduct, which can be found at http://www.ncsu.edu/policies/student_services/student_discipline/POL11.35.1.php . The student, by signing or writing their name on a homework assignment, affirms that they have neither given nor received unauthorized aid. (See "Homework Assignments" above for guidelines on acceptable collaboration on homework.) |