The perpetual calendar [Math]

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From: Evan Kirshenbaum on 2 Mar 2010 16:38

Nick <3-nospam(a)temporary-address.org.uk> writes:

> "Peter T. Daniels" <grammatim(a)verizon.net> writes:
>> Right, writing "somewhere in England" you wouldn't know what
>> "English major" means. I don't know the British nominalization for
>> someone who "reads English" "in university."
>
> If I'd done that and completed the course, I'd be an English
> Graduate. Otherwise I don't think we have a noun term for what you
> are when an undergraduate on a particular course of study
> ("reading", btw, is in fairly limited use these days, most of us
> (and it's 25 years since I was an undergraduate) would have said
> that we were "studying English" (or whatever)).
>
> I always assumed that "major" meant that you were studying two
> courses, but one was the most important. Is that the case?

No. Your "major" is the subject that you're intending to get a degree
in. It's short, I believe, for "major concentration", referring to
the fact that a certain number of courses[1] (and certain specified
courses or choices of courses) need to be taken from a set that have
been pre-selected by the department to count toward the degree and
which will suffice to warrant granting it. (Not all of these courses
need be taught by that department.) Other courses might be taken to
satisfy general university requirements or as "electives".

When I was at Stanford, to get a bachelor's degree required 180
"units", where each quarter-long course (three quarters per year) was
worth, typically, 3-5 units[2]. Roughly four or five classes a
quarter for four years, so about 50 courses in all. My linguistics
major had a requirement of at least 45 units courses designated as
contributing to the the major, but I think that that was on the low
end. Looking at an old _Courses and Degrees_, it looks as though a
math major was about 80 units, English about 55 units, physics about
95, various engineering disciplines about 105. (Of course, when the
number was small, most people took courses in their departments over
and above the minimum. Those in more structured departments just had
less free choice; it was more "at least one from each of these groups
of two or three".)

If you actually have a second concentrationm, that will be a "double
major" if you actually satisfy the requirements for both majors (which
often involves counting some courses, e.g., beginning calculus or
physics, toward both). Otherwise if one department certifies that
you've done a fair amount in their field but not enough for a degree,
you're considered to have a "minor" in that subject. I don't know of
any universities that will give you a degree based on just minors.
You have to actually fulfil the requirements of some major.

[1] Where "course", in the American sense, might be "class"
elsewhere. It's (typically) a quarter's or semester's worth of
class sessions meeting a certain number of times per week on a
specific topic, taught by (usually) a faculty member. So the Math
department might offer courses in linear algebra or differential
equations.

[2] Typically less a measure of how much work it was than how many
courses that department thought you should be taking at one time.

--
Evan Kirshenbaum +------------------------------------
HP Laboratories |There's been so much ado already
1501 Page Mill Road, 1U, MS 1141 |that any further ado would be
Palo Alto, CA 94304 |excessive.
| Lori Karkosky
kirshenbaum(a)hpl.hp.com
(650)857-7572

http://www.kirshenbaum.net/

From: Skitt on 2 Mar 2010 16:48

Evan Kirshenbaum wrote:
> Nick writes:
>> "Peter T. Daniels" writes:

>>> Right, writing "somewhere in England" you wouldn't know what
>>> "English major" means. I don't know the British nominalization for
>>> someone who "reads English" "in university."
>>
>> If I'd done that and completed the course, I'd be an English
>> Graduate. Otherwise I don't think we have a noun term for what you
>> are when an undergraduate on a particular course of study
>> ("reading", btw, is in fairly limited use these days, most of us
>> (and it's 25 years since I was an undergraduate) would have said
>> that we were "studying English" (or whatever)).
>>
>> I always assumed that "major" meant that you were studying two
>> courses, but one was the most important. Is that the case?
>
> No. Your "major" is the subject that you're intending to get a degree
> in. It's short, I believe, for "major concentration", referring to
> the fact that a certain number of courses[1] (and certain specified
> courses or choices of courses) need to be taken from a set that have
> been pre-selected by the department to count toward the degree and
> which will suffice to warrant granting it. (Not all of these courses
> need be taught by that department.) Other courses might be taken to
> satisfy general university requirements or as "electives".
>
> When I was at Stanford, to get a bachelor's degree required 180
> "units", where each quarter-long course (three quarters per year) was
> worth, typically, 3-5 units[2]. Roughly four or five classes a
> quarter for four years, so about 50 courses in all. My linguistics
> major had a requirement of at least 45 units courses designated as
> contributing to the the major, but I think that that was on the low
> end. Looking at an old _Courses and Degrees_, it looks as though a
> math major was about 80 units, English about 55 units, physics about
> 95, various engineering disciplines about 105. (Of course, when the
> number was small, most people took courses in their departments over
> and above the minimum. Those in more structured departments just had
> less free choice; it was more "at least one from each of these groups
> of two or three".)
>
> If you actually have a second concentrationm, that will be a "double
> major" if you actually satisfy the requirements for both majors (which
> often involves counting some courses, e.g., beginning calculus or
> physics, toward both). Otherwise if one department certifies that
> you've done a fair amount in their field but not enough for a degree,
> you're considered to have a "minor" in that subject. I don't know of
> any universities that will give you a degree based on just minors.
> You have to actually fulfil the requirements of some major.
>
> [1] Where "course", in the American sense, might be "class"
> elsewhere. It's (typically) a quarter's or semester's worth of
> class sessions meeting a certain number of times per week on a
> specific topic, taught by (usually) a faculty member. So the Math
> department might offer courses in linear algebra or differential
> equations.
>
> [2] Typically less a measure of how much work it was than how many
> courses that department thought you should be taking at one time.

At the time when I was in college, the courses required for an engineering
degree almost met the requirements for a mathematics minor. All I would
have had to take were two additional math courses, one of which was History
of Mathematics. I don't remember the name of the other one, but it was
similar in subject matter.

I also don't remember what a "minor in math" was good for.
--
Skitt (AmE)

From: Mike Lyle on 2 Mar 2010 16:50

J. Clarke wrote:
> On 3/2/2010 2:23 PM, Nick wrote:
>> "J. Clarke"<jclarke.usenet(a)cox.net> writes:
>>
>>> On 3/2/2010 4:38 AM, Lewis wrote:
>>
>> [nothing I wasn't going to snip]
>>
>> Look everybody - it's Lewis and Clark(e)!
>>
>> (sorry guys)
>
> <groan>

You must admit he did react expeditiously, though.

--
Mike.

From: James Silverton on 2 Mar 2010 17:37

Skitt wrote on Tue, 2 Mar 2010 13:48:38 -0800:

> Evan Kirshenbaum wrote:
>> Nick writes:
>>> "Peter T. Daniels" writes:

>>>> Right, writing "somewhere in England" you wouldn't know
>>>> what "English major" means. I don't know the British
>>>> nominalization for someone who "reads English" "in
>>>> university."
>>>
>>> If I'd done that and completed the course, I'd be an English
>>> Graduate. Otherwise I don't think we have a noun term for
>>> what you are when an undergraduate on a particular course of
>>> study ("reading", btw, is in fairly limited use these days, most of
>>> us (and it's 25 years since I was an undergraduate) would have said
>>> that we were "studying English" (or
>>> whatever)).
>>>
>>> I always assumed that "major" meant that you were studying
>>> two courses, but one was the most important. Is that the
>>> case?
>>
>> No. Your "major" is the subject that you're intending to get
>> a degree in. It's short, I believe, for "major
>> concentration", referring to the fact that a certain number
>> of courses[1] (and certain specified courses or choices of
>> courses) need to be taken from a set that have been
>> pre-selected by the department to count toward the degree and
>> which will suffice to warrant granting it. (Not all of these
>> courses need be taught by that department.) Other courses
>> might be taken to satisfy general university requirements or as
>> "electives".
>>
>> When I was at Stanford, to get a bachelor's degree required
>> 180 "units", where each quarter-long course (three quarters
>> per year) was worth, typically, 3-5 units[2]. Roughly four
>> or five classes a quarter for four years, so about 50 courses
>> in all. My linguistics major had a requirement of at least
>> 45 units courses designated as contributing to the the major,
>> but I think that that was on the low end. Looking at an old _Courses
>> and Degrees_, it looks as though a math major was
>> about 80 units, English about 55 units, physics about 95,
>> various engineering disciplines about 105. (Of course, when the
>> number was small, most people took courses in their
>> departments over and above the minimum. Those in more
>> structured departments just had less free choice; it was more
>> "at least one from each of these groups of two or three".)
>>
>> If you actually have a second concentrationm, that will be a "double
>> major" if you actually satisfy the requirements for
>> both majors (which often involves counting some courses,
>> e.g., beginning calculus or physics, toward both). Otherwise
>> if one department certifies that you've done a fair amount in
>> their field but not enough for a degree, you're considered to
>> have a "minor" in that subject. I don't know of any
>> universities that will give you a degree based on just
>> minors. You have to actually fulfil the requirements of some major.
>>
>> [1] Where "course", in the American sense, might be "class"
>> elsewhere. It's (typically) a quarter's or semester's
>> worth of class sessions meeting a certain number of times
>> per week on a specific topic, taught by (usually) a faculty
>> member. So the Math department might offer courses in
>> linear algebra or differential equations.
>>
>> [2] Typically less a measure of how much work it was than how
>> many courses that department thought you should be taking
>> at one time.

> At the time when I was in college, the courses required for an
> engineering degree almost met the requirements for a
> mathematics minor. All I would have had to take were two
> additional math courses, one of which was History of
> Mathematics. I don't remember the name of the other one, but it was
> similar in subject matter.

> I also don't remember what a "minor in math" was good for.

You know, I attended a British university and I would never have said
that "I read chemistry".
I did receive an honors (specialist) degree and only took 4 full year
classes in subjects other than chemistry. I will omit the night school
class that I had to take in German.

--

James Silverton
Potomac, Maryland

Email, with obvious alterations: not.jim.silverton.at.verizon.not

From: PaulJK on 2 Mar 2010 22:31

sjdevnull(a)yahoo.com wrote:
> On Mar 2, 3:25 am, "PaulJK" <paul.kr...(a)paradise.net.nz> wrote:
>> Adam Funk wrote:
>>> On 2010-03-01, Hatunen wrote:
>>
>>>> On Mon, 1 Mar 2010 16:16:10 +1300, "PaulJK"
>>>> <paul.kr...(a)paradise.net.nz> wrote:
>>
>>>>> Hatunen wrote:
>>
>>>>>> When mentioning temperatures I always try to remember to use "C"
>>>>>> or "F".
>>
>>>>> Don't forget "R" and "K" !
>>
>>>> I, for one, make very few posts requiring either.
>>
>>> I don't think I've every seen an R or K thermometer (except in
>>> books).
>>
>> Still, that shouldn't stop you from mentioning temperatures in
>> Kelvins or R�aumurs. :-)
>>
>> BTW, when I was growing up in my old family's home we had
>> a room thermometer with a C scale on one side and R scale
>> on the other. When I asked my mum what was the R scale
>> for, she said: "Oh, they are some Reom�rs, don't worry
>> about them."
>
> Reaumurs, really? Did she make cheese?

Oh, yes, really. R�aumur it was. :-)
And actually she did make cottage cheese and such like,
as all the house proud housewifes used to do in her time
and part of the world. But that had nothing to do with
our thermometer. It was just an ordinary household kind
you hang on the wall. In our home it hang on the side
of the upright (piano that is).

> The Rankine scale is by far the most common R-scale I've ever seen in
> actual use.

Perhaps dual Celsius/R�aumur arrangements were not that
uncommon in central European countries like Germany and
Austria up to the mid 20th century.

pjk