Posted by T.Gracken on November 05, 2002 at 19:15:31:
In Reply to: one more question, Mr.G ... posted by Joel on November 05, 2002 at 19:04:18:
: : : At my univ. Calc III is being offered at a time that is no good for my sched. I wanted to know if I could take Diff EQ w/o the knowledge gained in multivariate.
: : : I am pretty good at teaching myself and I am finishing calc II with an A and a solid understanding.
: : : Also is there any topics in calc III I should study before Diff EQ or is it just out of the question
: : : Thanks in advance,
: : : Albert Ryanstein
: : check the prerequisites for D.E. at your university. If calc III is a prerequisite then I would suggest waiting to take D.E.
: : however, most colleges & universities I know of do not require Calc III for D.E.
: : There are many people (including myself) that take (or took) both courses during the same semester.
: : I don't think you'd have a problem considering your record.
: If you had your choice & weren't planning to take them simultaneously, which would you choose first (or doesn't it matter?) And where would you place linear algebra in the sequence?
After completing all three (hind-sight ya 'know)
I would recommend the following (if taking at different times)
Differential Equations (I really enjoyed this class)
Calculus III (I didn't appreciate this class until much later -- probably because it was actually related to real life stuff more than other calculus's)
Linear Algebra (last because I algebra and me do not get along well together) [but this is a personal preferrence... of what I consider the three main disciplines (algebra, analysis, & topology) I always found algebra the most difficult.]
anyway, as far as where I would place the three courses (calc III, D.E., and linear algebra), I would (personally) put them at equal levels. that is; same prerequisites, same difficulty level. As far as university level difficulty, I would place them all at either second year level or third year level.