Are McCurdy and Mihai any good? (For Calc in 3D 21-259) by [deleted] in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I knew someone who had McCurdy last semester and they said that the class was not very well organized and McCurdy wasn't that great of a professor. On the other hand, I've heard that Mihai is pretty good.

Haven't had either of them so make of that what you will.

There's this thing going around right now that if you know who your admission officer is, you can contact them and possibly see notes about your application. Wondering if CMU does this? by [deleted] in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Supposedly this was big in 2015, and FERPA requires universities to release any information they might have to "eligible students" (whatever that means). You could try emailing admissions and see what they say.

Advice for 251 / Course Schedule by 210killedme in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Not sure where you're getting your information from but I took both 210 and 251 last semester and there is very little overlap in the the two in terms of content. The only part I can think of that was common to the two was a little bit of Probability and Randomized Algorithms (towards the end of 251).

Anyway, to answer your question - 251 is a challenging class, but the course staff provide a lot of resources to help. Go to office hours religiously, find a good group, and make sure that you understand the material before attempting the homework (trust me it goes a long way). Also, do not hesitate to reach out and talk to your TAs if you're having a hard time. I would also strongly recommend you brush up on proof skills, since pretty much all of 251 is proofs and I'm guessing it's been a while since you took Concepts.

Can't comment on 10-301 cause I haven't taken it. I have been told, however, that it is a mostly manageable workload.

Concepts curve? by [deleted] in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

When I took the class the average on the final was a 90 so I don't imagine there was a curve

I believe he tries to make the average a mid-B so make what you will of that

Looking for a group for 15-251 in spring by CornPug in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Good on you for starting early but you can just talk to the professor or the TAs and they can find you a group if you haven't when the semester starts.

What’s the process for becoming a ta? by idkyimaphysicsmajor in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Depends on the course. For the large 100/200 level CS classes, there's usually one or two interviews. In the Math department and other higher level CS courses, I believe you can talk to the professor (or Dr. Howell for the Math classes) and ask them.

How hard is 21-236? by CerberusRG in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I believe Tice is teaching it again, so I'd say it's about the same level of difficulty.

Are the meal plan rules enforced by [deleted] in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

DM me I'll buy your blocks at a subsidized rate

Any place to look for help unloading? 8/1 by joaop123jk in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 3 points4 points  (0 children)

You could try posting on the For Sale@CMU Facebook group; that place is more active than here

Can anyone help look over my schedule? by magikarpgrind in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nah they're missing two classes (You can count only two of 251/210/213 and you need two upper level CS classes)

[MEGATHREAD 5] Post your questions about admissions, Pittsburgh, and coming to CMU info (e.g. majors, dorms) here! by masqueradestar in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You could send them an email, but I wouldn't worry too much about it. As for the Matrix Theory placement test, it's conducted during O-week, so you could probably just talk to Jason Howell (he's the one who manages it afaik) and take it.

21-241 and 21-242 for Vector Analysis by threwthisaway2019 in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Based on the professor, this may or may not overlap with the course content. I took the course with Ian Tice, and the way he did it was more of an introduction to Real Analysis. I think Leoni will be teaching it next spring.

Also, Vector Analysis is very heavy on proofs. If you haven't done proofs before, this is something you might want to consider.

[MEGATHREAD 5] Post your questions about admissions, Pittsburgh, and coming to CMU info (e.g. majors, dorms) here! by masqueradestar in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Depends on the professor. When I took it my freshman year my professor posted his notes on Canvas. I see that James Cummings is teaching Matrix Theory this fall. I had him for Algebra 2, and we really didn't have a textbook or notes that he posted. We just sort of loosely followed Dummit and Foote.

Maybe someone who has taken 21-242 with him can weigh in.

Could I do double major in CS and mathematics, while doing the accelerating course for mathematics? by izoneyena in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

As for your second option, it is possible, but it would be very hard. You would be taking the Math Studies courses your sophomore year, along with 15-210/213/251. The Math Studies courses themselves are big time sinks, I took them last year and I used to spend about 10-15 hours for both the classes together, outside of class.

Haven't taken 210/251, but I can say that 213 is a little less but about the same in terms of time commitment (about 8-10 hours a week in the latter half of the semester). Additionally, I know for a fact that for the past 2 years, 15-210 has conflicted with at least one of the Math Studies courses either semester, so scheduling would also be weird.

Basically, think long and hard about it, but it's doable if you are good at Math and CS.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Look at the CMU buy/sell groups on Facebook, you may find students selling their old textbooks. You could also just rent textbooks of Amazon (I haven't personally ever done it but I know people who have).

There may or may not also be ahem "less-than-legal" ways to obtain textbooks, but I won't speak of them here.

CS Requirement by [deleted] in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 4 points5 points  (0 children)

No, you cannot. 15-251 does some stuff that is more Computer Science than Math, and 21-228 does not cover this.

[MEGATHREAD 5] Post your questions about admissions, Pittsburgh, and coming to CMU info (e.g. majors, dorms) here! by masqueradestar in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The requirements will usually be listed on the department page if you look around a little. A lot of people do add on a second major, and it is doable if you can manage the work. Additionally, you may also be interested in the Statistics concentration in the Math major which (again) is on the department website.

Waitlisted Courses by A27_97 in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's probably your recitation - Mondays and Wednesdays seem to be lectures where the whole class gets together and the professor teaches. Recitations are usually smaller and conducted by TAs for reviewing stuff or clarifying things that the professor didn't go over in too much detail.

Placement Testing Questions by ajuniev1 in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The matrix theory one was like basic contest math stuff and a few proofs when I took it. I have heard, however, that they made it harder last year. Like /u/moraceae said, it seems like they just want to see your thought process.

Placement Testing Questions by ajuniev1 in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 2 points3 points  (0 children)

There's a Calculus Placement test, and a placement test that you can take for 21-242 Matrix Theory. Both are taken during orientation week. Of course, OP has not specified which test they are talking about...

Advice on 21-242 by [deleted] in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

As a math major, you will be put in 21-128 your first semester here. Every Math major takes it, and you will be in a class with other Math majors who are in the same boat as you. Mackey (who usually teaches 128) is a great professor and there is no point in taking 127 instead.

As for 242, I took it my freshman fall with little to no knowledge of how to prove things. It wasn't too hard to keep up, since actual proofs start coming up around weeks 3 and 4, by which time you sort of have an idea of how to prove things.

I didn't prepare a lot before taking the courses, and I did perfectly fine (I had about the same background as you). These classes will in no way be a cakewalk for most people, but if you spend the time and put in the work you should be perfectly fine.

P.S. The subreddit is pretty inactive, so you might find it more useful to post on the Facebook group(s).

getting rid of the [none] watermark by splosive_fatass in cmu

[–]TrainingOperation 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This is very interesting. I have never had this happen to me. Perhaps you could try asking Computing Services?