ENGR 495/695
Advanced Topics in Engineering Mathematics

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Revised Review Sheet for Exam #1 (9/30/2026)

A few errors in the review sheet for Exam #1 were identified in class today. A revised review sheet with the errors corrected is now available on the Exams page via the link at left. The number of help sheets that you will be allowed to use and their composition have also been clarified.

HW #3 Solutions (9/30/2026)

The solutions to the graded and ungraded problems in HW #3 are now available at the course Moodle site.

Review Sheet for Exam #1 (9/29/2026)

The review sheet for Exam #1 is now available on the Exams page via the link at left. The major exam policies that will be in effect are also listed at the beginning of the review sheet. Please review them carefully.

HW #3 Revised (9/29/2026)

The original problem statement for Graded Prob. 5 in HW #3 incorrectly specified the matrix product AA^T. It should have been BB^T.

In Ungraded Probs. 1 and 2, each problem statement should have referred to an orthogonal matrix, not an orthonormal matrix.

A revised version of the HW #3 assignment with the errors corrected has been posted to the Homework Assignments page.

HW #1 Solutions Revised (9/28/2026)

The original solutions to Graded Probs. 2 and 3 in HW #1 were incorrect. The system of equations that were the starting point had some incorrect coefficients.

The error has been corrected, and a revised version of the HW #1 solutions has been posted to the course Moodle site.

Review Session for Exam #1 (9/28/2026)

To help you prepare for Exam #1, an optional review session will be offered at 8:30 pm on Thursday, October 1 in Academic West 204 (the exam location). The room has been confirmed.

During the review session I plan to answer your questions and/or work through example problems by request. The format of the session is therefore up to you. I strongly suggest that you come prepared with questions to ask.

If you cannot attend the review session but would like to meet with me at another time before the exam, please contact me.

Help Sessions for Sept. 27–Oct. 2 - UPDATE (9/28/2026)

I will be available at least at the following times this week:

• Sunday 10:30–11:15 pm (Zoom)
• Monday 2:00–2:30 pm - later if necessary (BRKI 368)
• Monday 10:30–11:15 pm (Zoom)
• Tuesday 3:00–4:00 pm (BRKI 368)
• Tuesday 8:00–8:45 pm (Zoom)
• Wednesday 5:00–6:00 pm (BRKI 368)
• Wednesday 9:00–9:45 pm (Zoom) - just added
• Friday 2:00–2:45 pm (BRKI 368)

I am usually also available right after class.

Guidelines and additional information:

• Please contact me if you have a conflict with these times and would like to arrange a meeting at a different time.
• The Zoom link is available at the course Moodle site.
• If I am helping another student when you drop by, you may usually join in the conversation.
• If I have been helping you for a relatively long time, I might pause our conversation to help other students who are waiting for assistance.
• For in-person sessions, if I have finished helping you, please move out to the hall or somewhere else so that the chairs in my office are clear for newly arriving students.
• As a courtesy during Zoom sessions, please use your camera.

HW #2 Solutions (9/26/2026)

The solutions to the graded and ungraded problems in HW #2 are now available at the course Moodle site.

HW #1 Solutions (9/26/2026)

The solutions to the graded and ungraded problems in HW #1 are now available at the course Moodle site in the "Homework Solutions" section.

Reading Assignment for Sept. 28–Oct. 2 (9/26/2026)

To prepare for this week's activities, you should complete the readings covering SVD that were assigned last week, skim Chapter 1 and Sections 2.1–2.5, and read Sections 3.1–3.6, 3.8, and 3.9 in the 6th edition of the textbook by D. G. Zill. We will cover parts of Chapter 3 in detail and others more lightly. You should also read Section 7.6, which is a good review of vector spaces; it might clarify your understanding of some of the concepts in linear algebra that we have covered and prepare you for upcoming analogous topics.

Previous ENGR 495/695 Midterm Exams (9/26/2026)

To help you prepare for Exam #1, copies of midterm exams with solutions from previous years are now available at the course Moodle site in the section labeled "Exams from Past Offerings of ENGR 495/695."

Note that the topic coverage on exams from previous years could differ from that of this year's exams, especially because we will have two in-semester exams instead of a single midterm exam. If you encounter an exam problem that seems to involve material that we have not covered yet this semester, that is the likely reason.

Lab Assignment #2 (9/24/2026)

The assignment for Lab #2 is now available on the Laboratory page.

HW #3 (9/24/2026)

The assignment for HW #3 is now available on the Homework Assignments page. It is due via the course Moodle site at 11:59 pm on Tuesday, September 29.

Help Sessions for Sept. 20–25 - UPDATE (9/22/2026)

I will be available at least at the following times this week:

• Sunday 10:00–10:45 pm (Zoom)
• Monday 5:00–6:00 pm (BRKI 368)
• Monday 10:00–10:45 pm (Zoom)
• Tuesday 3:00–4:00 pm (BRKI 368)
• Tuesday 10:00–10:45 pm (Zoom)
• Wednesday 2:00–3:00 pm (BRKI 368)
• Wednesday 10:00–10:45 pm (Zoom)
• Thursday 10:00–10:45 pm (Zoom)
• Friday 2:00–2:45 pm (BRKI 368)
• Friday 4:00–4:30 pm (BRKI 368) - canceled

I am usually also available right after class.

Guidelines and additional information:

• Please contact me if you have a conflict with these times and would like to arrange a meeting at a different time.
• The Zoom link is available at the course Moodle site.
• If I am helping another student when you drop by, you may usually join in the conversation.
• If I have been helping you for a relatively long time, I might pause our conversation to help other students who are waiting for assistance.
• For in-person sessions, if I have finished helping you, please move out to the hall or somewhere else so that the chairs in my office are clear for newly arriving students.
• As a courtesy during Zoom sessions, please use your camera.

Reading Assignment for Sept. 21–25 (9/19/2026)

To prepare for this week's activities, read Sections 8.10 through 8.13 (skim Sec. 8.11) in the 6th edition of the textbook by D. G. Zill and the supplemental readings on SVD from Numerical Recipes in C, 2nd ed. and "The Fundamental Theorem of Linear Algebra" by G. Strang. The latter reading is optional. Also read the Mathworks Help Center documentation on factorizations; a link is available on the Homework Assignments page. (Mathworks is the producer of Matlab.)

HW #2 (9/19/2026)

The assignment for HW #2 is now available on the Homework Assignments page. It is due via the course Moodle site at 11:59 pm on Wednesday, September 23. Please note the special instructions and hints at the beginning of the assignment.

Help Sessions for Sept. 14–18 (9/18/2026)

I was away at a conference most of this week; however, I will be available at least at the following times:

• Friday 2:00–2:45 pm (BRKI 368)
• Friday 4:00–4:45 pm (BRKI 368)

I am usually also available right after class.

My weekend availability will be posted soon.

Guidelines and additional information:

• Please contact me if you have a conflict with these times and would like to arrange a meeting at a different time.
• The Zoom link is available at the course Moodle site.
• If I am helping another student when you drop by, you may usually join in the conversation.
• If I have been helping you for a relatively long time, I might pause our conversation to help other students who are waiting for assistance.
• For in-person sessions, if I have finished helping you, please move out to the hall or somewhere else so that the chairs in my office are clear for newly arriving students.
• As a courtesy during Zoom sessions, please use your camera.