Math 124, Introduction to Topology, Fall 2010

• Lectures: TTh 2:00-3:45pm, Phys Sci 130

• Text: Basic Topology, M.A. Armstrong, Springer, 1983

• Instructor: Viktor Ginzburg; office: 353C Baskin Eng.
  email: ginzburg(at)math.ucsc.edu, phone: 459-2218

• Office Hours: Tu 11:50-1:50pm, Th 9:00-10:00am or by appointment

• TA: Wei Yuan, Email: wyuan2(at)ucsc.edu, Office hours: TTh 12:30-1:30pm, Th 4-5pm or by appointment

• Tentative Syllabus: We begin with basic topological concepts such as continuity, compactness and connectedness. Then we introduce the fundamental group, triangulations, the Euler characteristic and consider some applications of these notions focusing mainly, but not exclusively, on topology of surfaces. If time allows, we will examine some more advanced topics, e.g., simplicial homology and the degree of a map. Note: a detailed, perhaps far too detialed for our needs, source for Point Set Topology is Topology by Munkres.

• Coursework: There will be weekly homework sets, one midterm and a final. The mideterm is scheduled on Tuesday, November 2, and the final is scheduled on Monday, December 6, 7:30-10:30pm. The midterm covers Chapters 2-4 and some elements of Chapter 5.

• Permission codes: To obtain a permission code please contact David Del Mundo (#383 Thimann Labs, M-F, 1-3pm) or/and send your request with all pertinent information to mathadvising(at)ucsc.edu. The instructor does not give permission codes.

• Homework assignements :

  • HW 1 Chap 2: 2, 3, 4, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22*, 27, 30, 31; due 10/07
  • HW 2 Chap 3: 1, 2, 3, 5, 9, 15, 17, 18, 24, 30, 34, 37, 38, 40; due 10/14
  • HW 3 Chap 4: 1, 3, 7, 10, 11, 13, 16*, 22*, 26, 27, 28*; due 10/21
  • HW 4 Chap 5: 1, 2, 3*, 4*, 5, 10, 11, 14*, 24, 25, 30; due 10/28
  • HW 5 Chap 5: 18, 19, 20 (these three problems revisit what we did in class), 21, 23*, 32*; due 11/18
  • HW 6 Chap 5: 26, 32(revisiting the fundamental theorem of algebra), 33, 36, 40, 46, 48*; due 11/30 (Tuesday)