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Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

robotics.umich.edu

31–40 of 75 posts

Re: Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

#31
post #14

Man this would have been nice when I was in school. For some reason linear algebra still isn't part of standard Mechanical Engineering course load (Calc 1, 2, 3, DiffEq) which made life extremely difficult in some of the later classes. I remember spending weeks brute forcing a lot of things that would have been trivial with a little bit of matrix math. I took a superficially similar class as a 400 level elective but…

> For some reason linear algebra still isn't part of standard Mechanical Engineering course load (Calc 1, 2, 3, DiffEq) Wow. In my undergrad all engineering majors had to take linear algebra (calc 3 was optional for computer engineering).

We had the basic Linear Algebra in high school

Re: Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

#32
For folks interested in 101 on linear algebra - I highly recommend book "Linear Algebra: Theory, Intuition, Code" by Mike X Cohen.

After trying a couple of courses and books, I liked it the most because it gives a pretty deep overview of the concepts, alongside the numpy and matlab code, which I found refreshing.

It's has good amount of proofs and has sections designed to build your intuition, which I really appreciated.

Re: Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

#33
post #7

I took this course 3 years ago. I found it fast-moving, and it focused a lot more on applications than fundamentals, which meant it was more wide than it was deep. This didn't turn out so well when I decided to study ML later and needed stronger linear algebra fundamentals, but it was a fun course. There were a couple interesting course projects, one of which was using linear algebra to balance a (simulated) 2D robot…

No one, and let me repeat that, no one "gets" linear algebra, differential equations, or frequency domain on the first pass. It takes years to absorb and multiple passes.

See:

Bruner / Spiral Curriculum.

Ebbinghaus / Spacing effect

Hattie / Deep-surface-transfer learning

Chunking ("How People Learn" has a good copy on this)

Etc.

The way you do this is you take a course, and then you take more courses. After a few years, it all connects and makes sense. The first course, I find, is often best short, simplified, and applied. Once you get through that, you can go deeper.

Different angles are nice too. For linear algebra:

- Quantum computing

- Statistics and probability

- Machine learning

- Control theory

- Image processing

- Abstract algebra / groups / etc.

- Computer graphics

All come to mind.

On a mile-high level, this course seems ideal for a first pass. On a detailed level, I'm confused by some licensing issues.

Re: Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

#35
post #24
post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What would you recommend for building a strong linear algebra foundation?

Also a big fan of Strang. "Linear algebra and its applications" has problem sets with solutions for odd number questions. Would highly recommend https://mathacademy.com/courses/linear-algebra or https://mathacademy.com/courses/mathematics-for-machine-lear... I originally spent time working through practice problems from one of Strang's books, now really appreciate how systematic math academy is in assessing, building…

After working with math academy, any form of video learning seems so inefficient. I think people lose a lot of time watching these videos thinking that they are learning without applying anything by themselves.

Re: Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

#36
post #7

I took this course 3 years ago. I found it fast-moving, and it focused a lot more on applications than fundamentals, which meant it was more wide than it was deep. This didn't turn out so well when I decided to study ML later and needed stronger linear algebra fundamentals, but it was a fun course. There were a couple interesting course projects, one of which was using linear algebra to balance a (simulated) 2D robot…

No one, and let me repeat that, no one "gets" linear algebra, differential equations, or frequency domain on the first pass. It takes years to absorb and multiple passes. See: Bruner / Spiral Curriculum. Ebbinghaus / Spacing effect Hattie / Deep-surface-transfer learning Chunking ("How People Learn" has a good copy on this) Etc. The way you do this is you take a course, and then you take more courses. After a few yea…

Not with the way it is taught. But if the course structure is changed slightly to have reinforcement of early concepts woven through the course, people learn much better.

At least that was my experience when I taught it. See https://bentilly.blogspot.com/2009/09/teaching-linear-algebr... for more detail on my experience.

Re: Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

#37

Man this would have been nice when I was in school. For some reason linear algebra still isn't part of standard Mechanical Engineering course load (Calc 1, 2, 3, DiffEq) which made life extremely difficult in some of the later classes. I remember spending weeks brute forcing a lot of things that would have been trivial with a little bit of matrix math. I took a superficially similar class as a 400 level elective but…

Same... I didn't have to take Linear Algebra in ChemE undergrad. DiffEq had a little bit of LA... and ChemE had few classes where bits of pieces of LA where introduced and applied.

Graduate school definitely made up for lost time... LA was very front and center in the applied math courses.

Re: Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

#38

What's the best online credential for doing linear algebra? I like to do some self-studying but also, I'd like some form of "evidence" that I actually know my stuff and don't have t constantly explain that I do

Who are you trying to prove this to?

Re: Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

#39

What's the best online credential for doing linear algebra? I like to do some self-studying but also, I'd like some form of "evidence" that I actually know my stuff and don't have t constantly explain that I do

I can't personally vouch for the program as I have not attended, but the University of Illinois offers quite a few mathematics courses online geared toward high school students, distance learners, and those preparing for grad school.

It is self-paced, so may not be what you're looking for, and it is expensive ($1250 if you have a BS already), but I seriously considered going this route before deciding to save big $$ and attend the local community college (which was actually a decent decision).

Program link: https://netmath.illinois.edu/

They offer 2 linear algebra courses, Math 257, which is Linear Algebra with Computer Applications (likely the "easy" applied version) and Math 416, Abstract Linear Algebra. Some of these Netmath courses do not have online lectures, but the Abstract LA course has video lectures from 2016.

From their site: "Math 416 is a rigorous, abstract treatment of linear algebra. Topics to be covered include vector spaces, linear transformations, eigenvalues and eigenvectors, diagonalizability, and inner product spaces. The course concludes with a brief introduction to the theory of canonical forms for matrices and linear transformations."

When I was investigating what to do in order to solidify my math credentials (still a work in progress), I knew UofI was a good school, and figured credit in one of their courses (online or not) would not be a terrible investment. At a bare minimum it wouldn't be belittled or untrusted like other online certificates might.

Plus the credit should transfer anywhere, if that's important.

Re: Robotics 101 at UMich: Applied numerical linear algebra as intro linear algebra

#40
post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> For some reason linear algebra still isn't part of standard Mechanical Engineering course load (Calc 1, 2, 3, DiffEq) Wow. In my undergrad all engineering majors had to take linear algebra (calc 3 was optional for computer engineering).

This would have helped me get an actual CS degree 25 years ago instead of CS-lite (networking & server admin). It's not that I can't do calculus, I took it in high school, and then again in my first go-round in CS. It's that I hate calculus. Not the subject itself, just the grinding away at problem sets. I did a refresher in pre-calc, calc I, calc II & discrete mathematics during COVID at the local community college…

Maybe stop torturing yourself for a bit. Sounds miserable.
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