Friday, April 24, 2009,
11:34 AM
Here we go. The preview to the Day of Reckoning.
Day 1: MA2216
I call it MA2216S. It's really THAT tought.
I: How're you feeling ahead of the first paper?
M: Anxious, really. It's been a great time. We got full marks for Assignment 1 and hopefully the same for Assignment 2 and the tutorial participation. The final will be worth 65%, and with the final paper worth 65 marks, it's 1 mark for 1%. So every mark counts. I think that we've done well so far, and we have to keep working hard to make sure we're ahead of the pack.
I: A Saturday morning paper, not a good way to kick off the season?
M: Well yes and no. Morning paper is always good, because it's when I'm freshest. Of course, I would sleep a little earlier than I usually do, purely and simply because rest is very much needed for morning papers. On the other hand, I really dislike the prospect of waking up early on Saturdays, what's more to sit for a final paper. I think it's ridiculous, and to think some others have to do it on Sundays is really unacceptable.
But, after all's said and done, it's been scheduled that way, and there's nothing much we can do about it. We'll just have to go and do it, and hope everything turns out alright.
I: No calculators nor tables needed. Many people are fearful of the thought that we will have 5 theoretical questions. What is your take on that?
M: Yeah well, theoretical questions for me is alright. In fact, to be honest I think I prefer it to computational questions since I always make careless mistakes there. But I don't think it'll be all theoretical. There should be some simple computational questions where we will need to apply some theory learned to compute the probability. It's just that there will be no complicated computations involved.
Day 2: CS3230
I: Moving on, Day 2 is Design and Analysis of Algorithms. A good start to the sem, but finishing not too well? Talk us through that.
M: Yeah the start was fantastic. I could not have asked for anything better. The first part of it, the analysis part was very mathematical, so it was really in my element. I scored well for the 1st 2 assignments as well as the midterms, so I was really feeling positive about that.
But unfortunately we haven't been doing well for the last few assignments after that. I think I lost about 60 marks in total for the assignment. The good thing is that it's only a proportion of the 40% that I'll be losing, so it's not so bad. The bad part is that a good many actually got those marks, so it's bad news for us because it puts us on the wrong end of the bell curve.
The final exam is 40%, which is not much, but we're hoping to get everything we can from it and see where it takes us.
I: What will you be expecting from the finals?
M: Nothing much really. We're just hoping that we can do every question correctly, score well, and hopefully, at the end of the course, get at least an A-. But it will not be easy for us, so we need to really work for it and hope everything turns in our favour.
Day 3: MA3111
I: MA3111, Complex Analysis I is what you have for Day 3. How's your preparations for it so far?
M: Good, really good. I don't think we can more prepared than we are now. We've done up the PYPs, seen the lecturer, got every help we can possibly get, and so we'll have a good idea about what might come out for the finals. It is worth about 65%, so it's quite a huge chunk of marks we can get if we do well.
I: Full marks for homework, perhaps above average for the midterm, you're set up well to get a good grade?
M: Yeah the homework has turned out well for us. We lost a bit in the first one, but since he only took the top 4, the first is discarded since the remaining 4 we got full marks for it. So that's good for us. We were a bit concerned for the midterm because we could not manage to complete the final 2 questions, but we were sort of handed a lifeline because we got some partial credit for it. So that's good, and we'll be hoping to get maximum grade for this.
Day 4: MA2202
I: Finally, Algebra I. You've been attending the S-version lectures. How much help has it been?
M: A lot, certainly. We've learned more than what the regular students are learning, and it's been a huge plus for us.
I: So then I suppose you will be feeling confident about the finals?
M: Not really actually. We haven't really started studying for it since it's so far away. I took a look see at the PYP and it sort of seemed managable, apart from the 1 or 2 tough questions. I heard that Prof. Zhang actually sets some tough questions for the exam, so I believe it's going to be a challenge for all of us. It will not be easy, so we will have to really put in some effort to squeeze a good grade out of this one.
I: You lost some marks in the HW assignment. Not too well?
M: Yeah I lost 10 marks in HW2. I actually had a typo which misled me into doing something else. But it doesn't really affect the overall marks too much. 10 marks is only about 3 or 4%, so it's fine. The important thing is that we have done really well with the midterm, and I'm really proud of the guys. It wasn't as good as expected but it was good nonetheless. So we will be looking forward to this final and hope we can continue our good run.
I: That's all. Thank you.
M: Thanks.
