Evaluation:
Course mark will be based on the homework (20%), one midterm and the final exam. The midterm and final scores will be weighted at 10%-70% or 40%-40%, whichever gives you a better mark. The lowest homework score will be dropped.
A word on collaboration: You are allowed and even encouraged to collaborate on homework, but it is definitely not acceptable to copy someone's solution, or to ask for a solution without having tried the problem yourself. If you are inclined to collaborate, it is best to work on the problems alone at first, develop some ideas and questions, and only then discuss them; after that, you are responsible for writing all the solutions in your own words (you should do the final write-up on your own). Whether you collaborate or not, you have to turn in your own assignment, with the solution to every problem written by yourself, expressing your own understanding of each problem. Identical solutions will be noticed, and treated as cheating. I hope no-one needs reminders about cheating in exams. If copying or "collaboration" occurs during a test, the consequences will be serious.