"Life is good for only two things, discovering mathematics, and teaching mathematics" -- Siméon Poisson

1. Course outline
2. The Professor's website
3. Non-traditional teaching
4. Research profile
5. Downloadable maths publications (You will find here, plenty of tutorial material, as well as sample question papers and quizzes on maths, solutions available on email request).
   
6. Quiz yourself on mathematics (and other subjects)
7. Linux connections
   
   
8. You have a question ?

This course is specifically tailored for students of computer science and related subjects. A knowledge of discrete maths is essential for success in the computer science profession. The course will consist of traditional lecture sessions, interleaved with various other activities. Students would be expected to take active part in the m-LEAD approach. Students are strongly advised to follow this website, and the course blog regularly.

There is no specific or standard definition for what a course on discrete maths should cover. Usually, the institution or the University where I teach this course, will impose a certain syllabus. In which case, I try to stick to the prescribed syllabus. In case, no specific syllabus or framework is prescribed, I will try to cover the following (subject to available duration, and the rate of absorption by the students) :

1. Symbolic logic
2. Graph theory
3. Set theory
4. Combinatorics

1. Advanced algebra
2. Number theory
3. Cryptology

In any case, lookout for a more specific outline from me, when I start the course.

Books I follow

Books are not listed in any particular order. I would expect my students to own at least three titles from the books listed under "primary books", and have access to all the books listed under "support books". In addition to the books listed below, I may use material downloaded from the w-w-web. Any other book I find interesting, will be listed on the web, and announced in the class

Primary books

1. K H Rosen, Discrete mathematics and applications, Pub.: Tata McGraw Hill. (Prof. Partha was a reviewer for the 5th edition of this book. This is a rare honour, reserved for the best gurus of discrete mathematics.).
2. R P Grimaldi, Discrete and combinatorial mathematics, Pub.: Pearson Education.
3. J L Mott, A kandel, T P Baker, Discrete mathematics for computer scientists and mathematicians, Pub.: Prentice Hall of India.
4. C L Lui, Elements of discrete mathematics, Pub.: McGraw Hill
5. J P Tremblay, R Manohar, Discrete mathematical structures with applications, Pub.: McGraw Hill.
6. B Kolman, R C Busby, S Ross, Discrete mathematical structures, Pub.: Prentice Hall of India.
7. S Lipshutz, M Lipson, Discrete mathematics, Pub.: Schaum's outline series, Tata McGRaw Hill.
   
   

Support books

1. S Lang, Algebra, Pub.: Springer Verlag.
2. M Artin, Algebra, Pub.: Prentice Hall of India.
3. S Birkhoff, S Maclane, A survey of modern algebra, Universities Press.
4. Bruce Schneier, Applied cryptography, Pub. Wiley India
5. J A Bondy, U S R Murty, Graph theory with applications, Pub.: North Holland. (This book is a classic in graph theory. It is also available in softcopy, as a PDF file, and can be downloaded from the w-w-web.)
6. S M Cioba, M Ram Murty, A first course in graph theory and combinatorics, Pub. : Hindustan Book Agency, Gurgaon, India.
7. N Deo, Graph theory with applications to engineering and computer science, Pub.: Prentice Hall India.
8. Irving M Copi, Symbolic Logic, Pub.: Prentice Hall of India.
9. Graham, Knuth, Patashnik, Concrete mathematics -- a foundation for computer science, Pub.: Pearson Education.

General

1. Goossens, Mittelbach, Samarin,The LaTeX Companion, Pub.: Addison Wesley.
2. H. Kopka, P W Daly, A guide to LaTeX 2e, Pub.: Addison Wesley
3. G. Polya, How to solve it, Pub.: Prentice Hall of India.
4. C.B. Boyer, U.C. Merzbach, A history of mathematics, Pub.: John Wiley.
5. E.T. Bell, Men of mathematics, Pub.: Simon & Schuster.

1. Prof. Partha's CDROM on mathematics (you can ask for a copy).
   Also, take a look at the catalogue of educational CDROMs by Prof. Partha
2. Downloadable publications from Prof. Partha
3. You can download some of my earlier question papers from my website.

Students would be expected to take active part in the approach. Prof. Partha will primarily be a facilitator, engaged in prompting and nudging students, as they explore, discover, and learn discrete mathematics. He will be available to set goals, and remove genuine doubts and obstacles in the learning process. To get the best of this course, students should interact closely and frequently with Prof. Partha, as well as exhibit considerable initiative to discover and learn. Prof. Partha feels that this approach would be the most durable way to learn and appreciate mathematics.

There will of course be the traditional classroom-based lectures,exercises and exams also (let us all obey the rules).

The Professor loves to answer your questions on discrete mathematics. But, do not use this facility, to get your homework/take-home assignment done by the Professor. And, do not be in a hurry. The Professor will answer your questions, whenever he is not under stress to complete some other obligation. The Professor will acknowledge all your questions/mails and also tell you approximately how long it will take to give you a definitive reply. Or, he may give you pointers to resources where you can find the answer by yourself (according to the m-lead approach). Or, he may even ask you to come and meet him personally.

1. Remember to introduce yourself first (give me your : name, age, gender, where do you live: city/country, which school or University do you study, which year, which major).
2. Give the name and email ID of your Professor/Guide/Supervisor/Class teacher.
3. Describe your problem/question. Be specific and to the point.
4. Explain what steps did you take to solve the problem.
5. Follow these simple guidelines: You need help ?