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  1. M

    UNSW Maths Comp Prize Cermony

    Yes, definitely a different competition. For a start, the UNSW one was marked out of 42 (or at least, the Junior was, this year!) And yes, I was there... for lunch, anyway...
  2. M

    CHanges to Mathematics @ UNSW

    I greatly doubt it, since four lectures a week is much harder to timetable than just two. Out of curiousity - are you supposed to make those documents publicly available before they've been ratified by the Faculty Board (I know you're on the Faculty Board, but don't know the status of those...
  3. M

    Rules for Customers

    Just noticed this thread (don't usually hang around this forum). Unfortunately, I haven't the time to read 400+ posts to see if this has already been posted, but: http://www.customerssuck.com (Even if it has, it's worth reposting)
  4. M

    something new on the "pi and e" debate...

    I suspect that no_arg's initial point was that some of the so-called proofs* that were presented depended on the fact that there was divergence in some decimal place. Such a proof relies on the assumption that the calculator is sufficiently accurate, which is not always a wise assumption to...
  5. M

    Update me on VSU

    Thanks for the compliment - much nicer to try discussing something with someone who doesn't start namecalling (this is a not-so-subtle hint to all and sundry in the later stages of this thread!) I agree that most of my points end up going towards an argument that operates along the lines of...
  6. M

    CHanges to Mathematics @ UNSW

    The changes Seraphim mentions (for the most part) simply reflect the knowledge that is actually necessary to do the subject, so makes things more accurate. (For example, Algebraic Topology doesn't really need any Real Analysis anymore - whilst it is probably helpful, I think getting by without...
  7. M

    Update me on VSU

    Having read this, I believe the anti-VSU arguement can be summed up as follows: Without compulsory membership of student associations, it is likely that many student associations will be unable to sustain their current wide range of activities, which help turn the student body into a...
  8. M

    uni maths help

    Hmm... long time since I've been here. Anyway: 3^{n+1} > 3n^3 (since 3^{n+1} = 3*3^n > 3*n^3 as 3^n > n^3) = n^3 + 2*n^3 > n^3 + 2*n^2*3 (since n>3 is given in this instance) = n^3 + 6n^2 = n^3 + 3n^2 + 3n^2 > n^3 + 3n^2 + 6n (since n>3 means n>2) > n^3 + 3n^2 + 3n + 1 (as 3n > 1) =...
  9. M

    math1011/1031/1131/1141/1151

    Hey, it's free for you guys. (Besides, if you think we suck, say so on the feedback forms - that's what they're there for.) Oh, and in regards to the basic questions comment - I resent that remark. The idea IS to provide those students who really are struggling with the most basic questions...
  10. M

    math1011/1031/1131/1141/1151

    Student Support Scheme What is it? The Student Support Scheme (SSS) provides a free mathematics drop-in centre service to struggling first year students at UNSW and is sponsored by the School of Mathematics. The SSS lives in room 209 of the Old Main Building (see the map below), which has...
  11. M

    "Actuarial PASS", To all the 1st Actuarial students

    I should point out that on Monday - Thursday (during either 10-12 or 1-3) the School of Mathematics Student Support Scheme is in operation. The SSS is basically designed for first-year maths questions (with the exception of discrete maths, which is at the discretion of the tutors - if there...
  12. M

    math1151 question-vectors

    Somewhat simpler is to note that given (x+10)/5 = y-7 = (z+3)/4, this can be written differently. Let the common ratio be equal to A. Then (x+10)/5 = A --> x = 10+5A, and similarly y = 7+A, z = 3+4A. Thus (x,y,z) = (10,7,3) + A(5,1,4) = (10,7,3)+ A'(10,2,8) (where A' = A/2) It is now...
  13. M

    New university student newspaper

    At least they called you Mr. Minai!
  14. M

    Freebooters of the world unite

    Quite frankly, given the current situation on campus I don't know that VSU (or partial VSU anyway) would be such a bad idea. I think the Union is doing a fairly good job - they provide services to students and the only political activism I can think of them undertaking is against VSU, which I...
  15. M

    First in Course List

    Indeed, J. Krycer topped those two subjects two years ago (2002). Look in that section. [EDIT]: Topped in the sense that he came first in James Ruse at the time. I gather from Keypad's post he didn't come first in the state.
  16. M

    FINS subjects

    As an actuarial student, you should be promoting its value :) Besides, a lot of the stuff we learn is useful in a number of industries, not limited to insurance (see the President's Address from the new President of the IAAust for examples)
  17. M

    FINS subjects

    Hmm... I was expecting more responses to a deliberately inflammatory remark. It's no fun if nobody's going to reply, so in the interests of not confusing Year 12 students who will show up to try and find out stuff, I'll clarify that it's not a formality, but it's not the hardest thing in the...
  18. M

    FINS subjects

    I'm going away for a few days, so I can stir up an argument on the way. Replace "test of potential" with "formality" and "performance" with "a challenge" to get a better sentence :)
  19. M

    FINS subjects

    It's true that you don't know how hard a subject is until you've tried it. I believe that actuarial subjects are overrated for difficulty though - I've gone through a lot more pain and suffering for my maths subjects than my actuarial ones this semester (and suspect I did worse in the...
  20. M

    2004 Session 2 - Results and WAM (4 UPDATES)

    I suspect they're all up, but only the first one is being displayed at the moment. Hence MATH2509 is displayed ahead of MATH2520 or MATH2589, or any similar sorts of patterns (this theory means second year math majors will only be able to see MATH2120/2130, assuming they're doing it)
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