Mar 28, 2024  
2021 - 2022 Academic Catalog 
    
2021 - 2022 Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

MAT 218-02 - Discrete Bridges to Advanced Mathematics

4 credits (Spring)
Graphs. A graph consists of a set of vertices and a set of edges - you can draw a graph simply by placing some dots on a page to represent vertices, and then connecting certain pairs of dots with lines to represent the edges. Graphs are useful for understanding any kind of networks - the internet itself could be viewed as a graph, with links between pages representing edges; in fact Google’s PageRank algorithm makes heavy use of ideas from graph theory. In this course, we will use graphs as a means to develop problem solving skills and to improve our ability to construct logical mathematical arguments. After beginning with basic topics including the chromatic number, planarity, trees, Euler circuits, and Hamiltonian paths, we will move on to more advanced topics in which we apply techniques from Linear Algebra, such as eigenvalues and inner products, to obtain deeper and less intuitive results about graphs. 

Prerequisite: MAT 215 
Instructor: C. French