Premeds or Med students that took Math in College

[soonereng]

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Calc III
Diff eq.
.
.
.
Game Theory

Was the game theory course interesting at least?

 

[mongrel]

Yah Game Theory sounds pretty sweet. Maybe it's just romanticized because of A Beautiful Mind...

I'm also an engineer. Just Calcs I through III and Ord Diff Eq. Had a B at midterm in all of them but somehow always managed to squeak that A by the end.

 

[Vvandenn]

Okay, most MD programs require you to take calc. You can't take calc unless you know what you're doing. Personally I did it in high school. Other people have a lot more trouble with math. If they need to take college algebra, which is basically algebra II and trig, before they're ready to take calc, so be it. They should get credit for it.

OP wants proof, AMCAS specifically says for courses classified as MATH (BCPM) there are Applied Mathematics, Mathematics, and Statistics. They don't say, Calc I-IV, Diff EQ, Linear Algebra, etc. They say math. Math is math, no matter what way you look at it. So long as it isn't remedial (099), it counts towards BCPM.

Onto the English argument, there's a school in the area here that doesn't count Eng 101-103 for the English major, those credits are outside of the major, but the classes are prereqs; however, they still count as english courses on amcas and the medical schools accept them as such. So Math 110 doesn't count towards the math major, but it's math to amcas and it counts as such.

No.

 

[novawildcat]

Was the game theory course interesting at least?

Game theory was interesting. It was offered through the econ department, but counted as a math class too. People come up with all kinds of crazy stuff to apply game theory to besides economics like nuclear arms races, evolution, insurance, political elections, and the list goes on and on.


Most interesting math course I ever took though was definitely logic.

 

[63768]

silly. no one takes math in college.


jk. i took vector, diffeq, linear alg, stats.

 

[variablistic]

Okay, most MD programs require you to take calc.

No.

You're right, I apologize. Some do, like Dartmouth, Johns Hopkins, and Harvard. Georgetown, Medical College of Ohio, and Howard have just a math requirement. Most have no requirement at all.

 

[geneticclone]

Hmm thats sweet. I have always been weak in math so i have to take college algebra. Glad to hear that itll boost my science gpa.

 

[spartanwarrior]

What do you guys think was the best math class you took and why?

For me, it was Differential Equations because it helped me to understand phyiscs more with mathematics. 👍

 

[trevagandalf]

Lol, tested out of Calc 1 and 2 from AP's, tested out of Physics I and II and their respective labs through proficiency tests.

RESULT: Never touched a calculator in college!

 

[jochi1543]

Lol, tested out of Calc 1 and 2 from AP's, tested out of Physics I and II and their respective labs through proficiency tests.

RESULT: Never touched a calculator in college!

Yeah, but what about Chem?

 

[trevagandalf]

Yeah, but what about Chem?

lol.. I also tested out of Inorgo Chem I and II through AP. But the very little math I had to use in college for labs, etc.. I used excel! (I never had a calculator in my backpack!)

 

[variablistic]

lol.. I also tested out of Inorgo Chem I and II through AP. But the very little math I had to use in college for labs, etc.. I used excel! (I never had a calculator in my backpack!)

While I'm sure you've looked at this, I'm just being precautionary. Looking through my MSAR, there are several schools that don't accept AP credit for prereqs.

 

[jochi1543]

While I'm sure you've looked at this, I'm just being precautionary. Looking through my MSAR, there are several schools that don't accept AP credit for prereqs.

Looking at his sig, it looks like s/he's in already.

 

[variablistic]

Looking at his sig, it looks like s/he's in already.

Good call.

 

[trevagandalf]

A lot of schools don't accept APs, but most do as long as it is accredited and recognized by your undergrad university and appears in your transcript. Some Med schools may look unfavorably at AP credits and prefer those gained through an university. But i guess I'm just lucky because I'm a Texas girl and the UT system seem rather loose on this.

 

[Captain Fantastic]

Another engineering student: Calc 1, 2, 3, Dif Eq, Discrete, Math Stat -- enough for a minor, enough for the rest of my life!

 

[fractalgal]

What do you guys think was the best math class you took and why?

For me, it was Differential Equations because it helped me to understand phyiscs more with mathematics. 👍

Mine would be Diff Eq as well plus Complex Analysis. For the same reasons in that you can visualize the math with physics and other applications.

I love math. 😍 But that's just me.

 

[spartanwarrior]

Could somebody answer the question... What was their favorite math class and why? preferably those who took math classes in college.Thank you.🙂

 

[spartanwarrior]

Mine would be Diff Eq as well plus Complex Analysis. For the same reasons in that you can visualize the math with physics and other applications.

I love math. 😍 But that's just me.

Thank you for answering the question. Interesting to hear your reasons as to why that class was good for you. 👍

 

[med11]

Calc III
Diff eq.
Linear Algebra
Advanced Linear algebra
Abstract Algebra
Foundations of math
Advanced Calc
Complex analysis
Geometry
Number Theory
Topology
Ring and Field Theory
Hilbert Space theory
Lie Algebra
Seminar
Mathematical Logic/Computability theory
Combinatorics
Game Theory



Um yeah, math was pretty much what bolstered my BCPM by +.5 points.

wish now that I would have taken some stat instead of all pure mathematics.

game theory is considered math? what if it's listed as economics at my school?

 

[vincikai]

cal I to III

 

[spartanwarrior]

Tell me about game theory!! I would like to hear more about this class.👍

 

[Meatwad]

Tell me about game theory!! I would like to hear more about this class.👍

Look it up on wikipedia.org if you want a quick overview of what things like Nash equilibrium, strategic games, coalitional games, optimal and stable matching, etc. is. That's what game theory (cross-listed Eco/Math depts) covers at my school, in addition to a few other topics.

 

[novawildcat]

Tell me about game theory!! I would like to hear more about this class.👍

Game theory is overrated in terms of how interesting it is. Basically it is just the study of rational behavior and trying to apply mathematical models to such behaviors, problems that arise, and finding the most reasonable solution.

To me a lot of it seems like a lot of black magic, because in essence you really have to designate a certain level of payoff for following a particular strategy for a player in a game that you are analyzing. The second thing I find kind of fuzzy about game theory is the fact that humans may not act rationally. That is what after all makes us human. If someone doesn't act rationally, all the math flies out the window and your analysis of the game is complete garbage (most of the time humans WILL act rationally though). You have to make logical assumptions about human behavior to do game theory.

Game theory used a lot of set theory and probability and some calculus. Nothing too bad.




The course I found most interesting was mathematical logic. Nothing is more rigorous in terms of testing your ability to think abstractly than math logic. Logic really borders on philosophy. Coming up with mathematical definitions and theorems for things like "truth" and "provability" are really hard to digest. If you ever study logic be sure to study Godel's incompleteness theorems. Essentially there WILL ALWAYS EXIST some mathematical statement that is absolutely truthful, but is impossible to prove that it is true. You have to just take it for granted that it is true. What does this say about the human mind? Is the amount of knowlege that is ever attainable for humans limited or does this say something else? What does it mean that humans are able to prove that there are truths that are unprovable?

 

[spartanwarrior]

Game theory is overrated in terms of how interesting it is. Basically it is just the study of rational behavior and trying to apply mathematical models to such behaviors, problems that arise, and finding the most reasonable solution.

To me a lot of it seems like a lot of black magic, because in essence you really have to designate a certain level of payoff for following a particular strategy for a player in a game that you are analyzing. The second thing I find kind of fuzzy about game theory is the fact that humans may not act rationally. That is what after all makes us human. If someone doesn't act rationally, all the math flies out the window and your analysis of the game is complete garbage (most of the time humans WILL act rationally though). You have to make logical assumptions about human behavior to do game theory.

Game theory used a lot of set theory and probability and some calculus. Nothing too bad.




The course I found most interesting was mathematical logic. Nothing is more rigorous in terms of testing your ability to think abstractly than math logic. Logic really borders on philosophy. Coming up with mathematical definitions and theorems for things like "truth" and "provability" are really hard to digest. If you ever study logic be sure to study Godel's incompleteness theorems. Essentially there WILL ALWAYS EXIST some mathematical statement that is absolutely truthful, but is impossible to prove that it is true. You have to just take it for granted that it is true. What does this say about the human mind? Is the amount of knowlege that is ever attainable for humans limited or does this say something else? What does it mean that humans are able to prove that there are truths that are unprovable?

Wow, thanks for the analysis and insightful remarks on game theory and especially mathematical logic. 👍

 

[fractalgal]

The course I found most interesting was mathematical logic. Nothing is more rigorous in terms of testing your ability to think abstractly than math logic. Logic really borders on philosophy. Coming up with mathematical definitions and theorems for things like "truth" and "provability" are really hard to digest. If you ever study logic be sure to study Godel's incompleteness theorems. Essentially there WILL ALWAYS EXIST some mathematical statement that is absolutely truthful, but is impossible to prove that it is true. You have to just take it for granted that it is true. What does this say about the human mind? Is the amount of knowlege that is ever attainable for humans limited or does this say something else? What does it mean that humans are able to prove that there are truths that are unprovable?

Real Analysis (including Measure Theory) is quite rigorous in terms of testing your ability to think abstractly. It's usually taught at the graduate level.

 

[seadizzle]

The course I found most interesting was mathematical logic. Nothing is more rigorous in terms of testing your ability to think abstractly than math logic. Logic really borders on philosophy. Coming up with mathematical definitions and theorems for things like "truth" and "provability" are really hard to digest. If you ever study logic be sure to study Godel's incompleteness theorems. Essentially there WILL ALWAYS EXIST some mathematical statement that is absolutely truthful, but is impossible to prove that it is true. You have to just take it for granted that it is true. What does this say about the human mind? Is the amount of knowlege that is ever attainable for humans limited or does this say something else? What does it mean that humans are able to prove that there are truths that are unprovable?

I always chuckle when people try to take math and get really deep with the philosophy, but to each his own.

calc III
ode
linear
abstract algebra
projective geometry
probability
stat
real analysis
graduate real analysis
stochastic processes
numerical analysis
math of deriv securities (math finance)

and while in the econ departments
game theory
phd level microeconomics

I'm going to take issue with what you said about game theory. As you know, there are very fundamental assumptions on which game theory is developed. There are necessary for analytic tractability, even though you may take issue with them (rationality). And, while game theory is descriptive rather than perscriptive, the analysis of the games between rational parties can shine light on the "best" strategy given some goal. The downside is you have to assume the other player is putting the same effort into the analysis of his best strategy which is pretty unlikely in most cases. For example, the qualitative result that in some cases there might not be a best single move, but that the optimal strategy could be a random selection between moves with a certain weight to each is definitely an interesting thing to think about when making decisions. Whether the weights given by game theory in reality give the optimal solution is something, I agree, you could seriously doubt.

Also, aggregating over irrational groups can sometimes result in a rational one 😀 Corporations act much more rationally in pricing than individuals do, which makes the results of game theory stronger. I find the application of game theory to the financial markets is more interesting anyway.

 

[novawildcat]

Real Analysis (including Measure Theory) is quite rigorous in terms of testing your ability to think abstractly. It's usually taught at the graduate level.

i agree it is rigorous. i studied hibert space theory before which is just real analysis+linear algbera on steroids to the 10th degree. i would still say that logic beats it by a mile in terms of the level of abstraction required.

I always chuckle when people try to take math and get really deep with the philosophy, but to each his own.

take a logic course my friend and you will see. actually at many universities philsophy departments offer courses on traditional symbolic logic. all of math can be pretty much encompassed by logic which essentially borders on philosophy.

 

[seadizzle]

take a logic course my friend and you will see. actually at many universities philsophy departments offer courses on traditional symbolic logic. all of math can be pretty much encompassed by logic which essentially borders on philosophy.

I've taken courses in the computer science department in the AI field that dealt with symbollic logic and predicate calculus. I haven't taken the logic courses in the math or philosophy departments, would you recommend any books?

 

[fractalgal]

i agree it is rigorous. i studied hibert space theory before which is just real analysis+linear algbera on steroids to the 10th degree. i would still say that logic beats it by a mile in terms of the level of abstraction required.

Did you take Real Analysis and/or Mathematical Logic at the graduate level? I know there are elementary levels for both courses as well. There is usually a drastic difference.
You have, of course, sparked my interest in it. Any books recommended?

 

[Meatwad]

Did you take Real Analysis and/or Mathematical Logic at the graduate level? I know there are elementary levels for both courses as well. There is usually a drastic difference.
You have, of course, sparked my interest in it. Any books recommended?

Analysis

Real & Complex Analysis by W. Rudin, affectionately known as "Big Rudin" (if your math skills are up to the level of "Baby Rudin" [Mathematical Analysis by W. Rudin] already)
http://www.amazon.com/Real-Complex-...ics/dp/0070542341/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_b/103-66

If Big Rudin is too heavy (I definitely wouldn't attempt it without a really strong foundation), this one's good for a curious student who wants to self-teach. Aptly named Real Analysis
http://www.amazon.com/Real-Analysis...1472656?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182455007&sr=1-1

Logic

There's a lot of good books for symbolic logic, here's one book at the introductory level:
http://www.amazon.com/Deduction-Int...1472656?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182455275&sr=1-6

 

[novawildcat]

I've taken courses in the computer science department in the AI field that dealt with symbollic logic and predicate calculus. I haven't taken the logic courses in the math or philosophy departments, would you recommend any books?

Mathematical logic by Kleene is a good intro book to logic

Computability and Logic by Boolos (one of the most brilliant logicians of all time) is a good but INTENSE. The book has some mistakes in it, hopefully they corrected them by now. Contains tons and tons of recursion theory, 1st order, 2nd order logic, modal logic, computability theory, church-turning thesis etc.

Did you take Real Analysis and/or Mathematical Logic at the graduate level? I know there are elementary levels for both courses as well. There is usually a drastic difference.
You have, of course, sparked my interest in it. Any books recommended?

I would say the graduate level. I did them as independent studies after I exhausted out the undergrad math curriculum. My profs who were my advisors used the books that they used in their grad classes for it. Real analysis i took at the undergrad level though (aka advanced calc). Instead of grad level real analysis I took grad level functional analysis aka Hilbert spaces.

For hilbert spaces we used

An Intro to Hilbert Spaces by Young

and also


Theory of Linear Operators in Hilbert Space by N. I. Akhiezer and I. M. Glazman written by two fine Russian mathematicians.


The material we covered in logic was definitely grad. level stuff. You definitely will never ever see or prove Godel's incompleteness theorems in an undergrad math logic course or the proof of the independence of the continuum hypothesis in ZFC.

 

[Vvandenn]

You people take WAY too much math. 😱

 

[fractalgal]

You people take WAY too much math. 😱

People jog, do aerobics, etc. to work out the body. Math is like mental gymnastics; it keeps your mind agile.

It's good to take care of both your body AND your mind. 😉

 

[Meatwad]

People jog, do aerobics, etc. to work out the body. Math is like mental gymnastics; it keeps your mind agile.

It's good to take care of both your body AND your mind. 😉

I see Newton in your signature, and had to interject this. I saw in the newspaper yesterday that they found some of his writings that have been hidden in Israel by some society that predicts when the world will end (caluclations done by using info from the Bible, apparently), and when the Jews will return to the Promised Land.

I knew he was somewhat religious, but I didn't know he was a total looney...

I'm starting to take Leibniz' side now.

 

[fractalgal]

I knew he was somewhat religious, but I didn't know he was a total looney...

I'm starting to take Leibniz' side now.

Thats's funny.

I also saw that article about the world ending. Although I don't agree with his religious views, I think it's hard for us to apply our current understanding of the world today to what it was like in his day. Extreme religious philosophy played a much larger role then. There was no media influence. Times were very different.

I wouldn't dismiss him as a total looney.... 🙂

If I did not find some truth in his statement that I quoted above, I wouldn't have used it.