Basic High School Algebra and College Algebra are prerequisites to MA123. Trigonometry is not a prerequisite. However the basic properties of the sine and cosine functions are covered in high school algebra, college algebra, and all pre-calculus courses.

The following are a few of the ideas from basic algebra and geometry which you will encounter in MA123. The list is far from complete. You should have previously studied and understood all of them. Although you may have forgotten the details of most you should be confident that with a very brief review you could re-establish your ability to solve problems with these ideas.

If you have not previously encountered the major part of the following then
you may want to speak to your instructor or teaching assistant. They can discuss your background and preparation with you and help you make sure that you are in the right course.

Cartesian coordinates: coordinates of points in the plane

slope of a line

slope of a line perpendicular to a given line

equation of a line through two points

equation of line given point and slope

area of circle, rectangle, triangle

surface area of sphere, cylinder, rectangular box

volume of sphere, rectangular box, cylinder, cone

circumference of circle

perimeter of rectangle

quadratic formula

multiplication and "long division" of polynomials

addition and multiplication of rational functions

factorization of

equation of a circle with given center and radius

points of intersection of a circle and a line

factor and

expand and

absolute value

right triangle

similar triangles

Pythagorean Theorem

law of sines

law of cosines

radian measure

You should have worked with and previously explored the graphs of functions like the following. You should be able to graph these on a graphics calculator or computer.

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graphs of the negatives of the above