Instructor: Darryl McCullough, Professor of Mathematics

Office:	804 Physical Sciences Center
Phone:	325-2743
Email:	dmccullough@math.ou.edu
Office hours:	Mondays 11:00-12:00 and 1:30-2:30, Wednesdays 11:00-12:00, and by appointment.

The office hours listed above are primarily for the students in my undergraduate class. You should feel free to meet with me at any time if you wish to discuss the course material. Just contact me (email is the best method) or talk with me after class, and we will arrange a time to meet. Or just drop by my office-- if I have time available, I am happy to meet with you without a prior appointment.

There is no text for this course. Material will be drawn from various sources in the mathematical literature.

Your course grade will be A, B, or C, and will be based on your written work, your class particiption, and your grades on the exams:

1.	Class participation means being at the lectures, well-prepared and in learning mode.
2.	The written work involves problem assignments which will be posted on the course website. Many of the problems will be routine exercises. Some problems may be difficult, and you should not feel that you must do every single problem that is assigned. Just spend a reasonable amount of time on the course, not too much and not too little.
3.	I currently anticipate having one midterm exam and the final exam.

When necessary, you may consult with other students about the homework problems. However, you will need to write up the solutions in your own words. The mathematics that we originate ourselves is the mathematics that stays with us.

The topics that we will see include some very beautiful ideas that are important in current research in low-dimensional topology. Our goal is to get a basic introduction to them, rather than going into great depth. I hope that you will enjoy the course.