1. I’ve changed the deadline for one of the sets that was due on Monday; Logarithmic functions – equations is now due Wednesday.
  2. This week’s quiz will cover material/exercises from Sections 13-16 of your text.
  3. Our conversation about Part #1 of the project in class last week about bank accounts, credit cards, and investments made me think about a few things:
    1. We talked about how difficult it is to get along in the US in 2019 without a bank account or without a credit card, but it’s not necessarily in everyone’s best interest to have one. For example, if someone is undocumented or doesn’t have a permanent address, they would have to weigh the pros and cons of making such a decision. There could be other reasons as well.
    2. We talked a little about investing money in the stock market instead of keeping it in a bank account. It’s important to stress that the value of the stock market over time is not an exponential function; in particular, it goes up and down. However, over a long period of time, the stock market does display approximate exponential growth. For example, the average annual return of the S&P 500 over the last 50 years is around 8 or 9%. Compare this rate to the rates you looked up for savings accounts, which are much lower.
  4. We are about to start the trigonometry unit of the course. I will assume you have seen some trigonometry in your life. You have the option to complete a trigonometry activity as a refresher outside of class. Anyone who completes the project perfectly will earn 5 participation points (there is no partial credit). The trigonometry activity can be accessed here. It is due by 11:59pm on Tuesday, November 19.