CS 357 - Numerical Methods I

This course is the primary course in numerical methods, or the study of calculation on computers. The class is comprised of pre-lectures, group activity, homework assignments, machine problems, and biweekly CBTF quizzes. This course is largely served through PrairieLearn and autograded assignments with both conceptual, computational, and coding questions.

There is a lot of overlap between MATH 257and CS 357; there is more emphasis on the practical process of computation over the theory.

Topics Covered

• Absolute/Relative Error and Cancellation, Taylor Series
• Monte Carlo Methods
• Matrix Algorithms
  • Linear Systems and Conditioning
  • LU Factorization
  • Eigenvalue/Eigenvectors
  • Finite Difference Methods
  • Norms
• Markov Chains
• Nonlinear Equations
• Optimization
  • Newton’s Method
  • Steepest Descent
  • Golden Section search
• Least Squares Fitting
• Singular Value Decomposition

Resources

Office hours are hosted as specified in the syllabus. The course has an online textbook that is quite well written.

Related Classes

• CS 450 - Numerical Analysis: If you enjoyed the material of this class and want to learn more theory, methods, and algorithms, take this class. However, credit is not given for both CS 357 and CS 450. Taking CS 450fulfills the requirement for CS 357.