The Teaching Company:
Mathematics Describing the Real World: Precalculus and Trigonometry - 2011
Professor Bruce H. Edwards, Ph.D.
11.5 GB in 38 files
The principal topics in precalculus are algebra and trigonometry. In fact, at many universities and high schools, the title of the course is Algebra and Trigonometry. However, precalculus covers much more: logarithms and exponents, systems of linear equations, matrices, conic sections, counting methods and probability, sequences and series, parametric equations, and polar coordinates. We will look at all these topics and their applications to real-world problems.
Our study of precalculus will be presented in the same order as a university-level precalculus course. The material is based on the 5th edition of the bestselling textbook Precalculus: A Graphing Approach by Ron Larson and Bruce H. Edwards (Houghton Mifflin, 2008). However, any standard precalculus textbook can be used for reference and support throughout the course. Please see the bibliography for an annotated list of appropriate supplementary textbooks.
We will begin our study of precalculus with a course overview and a brief look at functions. The concept of functions is fundamental in all of mathematics and will be a constant theme throughout the course. We will study all kinds of important and interesting functions: polynomial, rational, exponential, logarithmic, trigonometric, and parametric, to name a few. As we progress through the course, most concepts will be introduced using illustrative examples. All the important theoretical ideas and theorems will be presented, but we will not dwell on their technical proofs.
https://people.clas.ufl.edu/bruceedwards/mtg-3212-geometry/AboutEdwards/
Professor Edwards:
"Hello! My name is Bruce Edwards and I have been a mathematics professor at the University of Florida since 1976. I was a mathematics major at Stanford University and graduated in 1968. I then joined the Peace Corps and spent four years teaching math in Colombia, South America. I returned to Dartmouth in 1972 and completed my doctorate in mathematics in 1976.
My research interests include the broad area of numerical analysis. I am particularly interested in the so-called CORDIC algorithms used by computers and graphing calculators to compute function values."
