Robert G. Marcucci

Bob M. is a for-real math teacher and treats the subject as such. Which means picky about details. The two comments above are accurate so I'll add some hints.

to get an A or B: 1) Know definitions and theorems (they are short). 1a) Practice the examples and medium hard home work. They show up on quizs and exams. 1b)memorize some equations:i.e. distance b/w lines 2) don't make dumb arithmitic mistakes . 3) keep calculator handy for fractions and multiplication 3a) convert final answers to fractions for first Mid Term material. 4) know how to multiply matrices & restrictions on order of multiplication of two terms and other algebraic laws. 5) Expect some straight forward row reduction problems. And at least one tricky problem or two. Always start with some definitions that you know. He will keep the trick just close to something from the HW or lecture.He will choose harder examples of verification type problems.

Took this guy for both Linear Algebra and Discrete Mathematics. I give them the same difficulty rating for both. Class is very structured; two midterms, one final(non-comprehensive). Also has scheduled quizes. Although the book sucks, I say pay more attention to his lectures because they are more relevant on the test and quizes. He assigns but doesn't grade homework, do it if you have time.

Laziest grader ever witnessed. This translates into lots of 0's for the class. If he sees a mistake in your page long proof, he is likely to stop reading and give you 0 points.

Desperately needs a TA. He doesn't grade any homework. Not near enough feed back is given to warrant the harsh grading of quizzes and tests. Very easy to start failing this class despite doing all the homework and studying 8 hours a week. Not interested in seeing what you have learned in the class.

That aside, the lectures are pretty darn good. However, there isn't enough time to go over the homeworks in class and/or he won't take the time. Will make mistakes in proofs on the chalk board that would result in 0 points on our tests. That really pissed me off! Expects perfection but can't deliver it after 10 years of teaching this class. However, I gave him a C- instead of an F, b/c I recogize the good parts of his class. Wish he would take a hint and reward students for what they learned in class, instead of failing them.

I felt like I learned a lot, but the grading was so harsh that I dropped out. Will retake ASAP.

The material is very interesting and is certainly very important for future computer science work.

Math 330 is definitely a "weed out" course for Computer Science. Treat it like a 6 hour course when registering.

Also, take this class before taking Linear Alebra (Math 325).

Dr. Marcucci is a good, solid teacher who presents the lectures in a clear and concise fashion.

His policy on homework is unusual. He assigns problems that have the answers in the back of the book. It's good in that you know right away what you answered correctly, but the onus is on you to ask him to clarify areas in which you may be fuzzy.

The tests and quizzes are harsh, and he's very particular in grading them.

He's been excellent about including applications of Discrete Math outside of the mathematical realm into his lectures.

The material really isn't that hard, but he seems to like to make it hard on exams. I do the homework perfectly and think I understand the material, then he throws something on the exam that he's never even talked about nor was it ever remotely in any homework problem.

His lectures tended to be rather boring. He does really super easy problems in class and then on the homework it's something that seems completely different. Plus he assigns problems that he hasn't even covered the topic in class.

I don't think it's fair that he doesn't give any credit for the homework, but still collects it. Would it really be that hard to give us like 5 points per assignment for completing it? It really makes you wonder why you're doing the assignments at all since he really doesn't do anything with it. I've never had a class before where homework was collected, but wasn't graded or awarded any points for it.

I was wondering what was the point of linear algebra and then found out some applications in my physics class. I wish Marcucci would bring the problems to life and explain their applications to the real world. Instead he just leaves it sitting on flat 2D views.

If math wasn't required for my majors, I certainly wouldn't take any more math courses. Marcucci has definitely not inspired or motivated me at all to take more math courses.

If the class was more interesting, I really would be getting an A instead of a B. But with how dull the professor is, I don't feel the need to really put any effort into the class beyond the bare minimum to pass it. When you have a great professor, you really want to work hard in his/her class as a way of giving back to the instructor. This is not the case though with Marcucci. I don't feel any desire to put the work into the class.

This professor loves to teach. And, he is very good at it. His explainations of the material are crystal clear and he takes the time to develop each new concept from the background theory up to the new application with examples of how to tweak the concept each way and how it is applied in the real world.

I went to his office hours several times and he was very helpful. He really knows the material well and can explain the concepts in layman's terms and really break it down for you.

Homework is collect and graded basically only on the grounds if you made a serious effort or not and two or three homeworks are dropped.

There are weekly quizzes in the discussion section which make sure that you are keeping up and are based directly on the homework problems. Two are three are dropped. The quiz problems are good preparation for the midterms.

Two midterms and one final which was comprehensive but allowed one cheat sheet (only on the final in my class). The exams are not tricky, but they will test whether or not you fully understand the fundemental concepts.

I would highly recommend this professor. I am not a math major and I didn't even have to take this class, but I got an A because this is a good teacher.

As for teaching, Marcucci is a great professor! His exams are a bit harder than the usual and require a rigorous understanding of the material to receive an A, but his clear presentation of the subject matter really makes that possible, sorta.

As I see it there are two ways of teaching math. In my tenth grade of high school, my math teacher drilled us on various mathematical formulae and sundry algorithms, which we used to solve the armies of problems she sent after us. But no real understanding was necessary. On the other hand, Marcucci starts from the beginning, proving everything needed to get to the next lesson, making sure that all the students understand what exactly is going on--at least those students not too pompous to not speak up. One thing though: Marcucci's lectures use a LOT of Linear Algebra terminology and plenty of references to the many theorems from the book, so make sure you stay refreshed during the semester!

The exams are hard! Marcucci may teach you how to understand the material, but that means that you'll get harder problems (makes sense, right?) Not so much plugging in as trying to figure out how to solve something for the first time. Make sure you know your stuff.

The grading, however, is a bit strict. I get the impression that Marcucci doesn't like giving away too many high grades. Don't assume anything is implied, and be as explicit as possible.

As for homework, it's taken up but not graded, and only serves to decide border-line grades. Also, the homework covers the odd problems (the ones with the answers in the back of the book), so it really helps as a teaching aid unlike in those other classes when you're expected to do homework and get graded on it, while you're not really sure if you're doing it right because you never had the answers in the first place!

To wrap things up: great if you want to learn the subject (math majors?), not so great if you're just here for the MATH325 credit.. but since when is a little work a bad thing?

He teaches well. He has a good attitude. Like the other reviewer states, his grading is harsh, too harsh. I think there are an equal amount of F's to A's in math 325 that I took in a six week summer class with this proffessor.