8/26: Thanks to Dr. Welch for the source for this website.
Instructor:
Prof. Valerie Taylor
Office: 305B H.R. Bright Bldg
Office Hours: Thursdays 2:00pm - 3:30pm;
other times by appointment
Email: taylor (at) cs.tamu.edu
Office Phone: 845-5820
Teaching Assistant:
Roger Pearce
Office: 229 Reed McDonald
Office Hours: Mondays 11am - 1pm, Thursdays 3:30 - 5:30 pm, Fridays 11am - 12:30pm
other times by appointment
Email: rpearce (at) gmail.com
Peer Teacher:
Cynthia (Cindy) Skach
Office Hours: Mondays, Wednesdays 1:40pm - 2:40pm (CE 137), Thursdays 2:20pm - 3:30pm HRBB 124
other times by appointment
Email: skach2 (at) neo.tamu.edu
Grader:
Phillip Coleman
Office Hours: by appointment
Email: pbcoleman (at) gmail.com
Class Meeting Time:
Tuesdays (and Thursday, 11/13/08) 2:20 - 3:35 PM, room 124 H.R. Bright Building.
There will be 15 class meetings total, typically one each week.
Please check course web page for exact schedule, which is subject
to change.
Course Web Page:
http://courses.cs.tamu.edu/taylor/cpsc181.
You are responsible for checking it regularly.
Required Text:
Writing for Computer Science, 2nd Edition, by Justin Zobel,
Springer, 2004. Readings will be assigned from the book. You are
expected to read these sections, and use the information to aid your
writing. The book should also be an excellent reference for the
future.
Recommended Texts:
- Great Ideas in Computer Science, Alan W. Bierman,
MIT Press, 1990. Not so new but still has good general material.
- Computer Science, An Overview, J. Glenn Brookshear,
Addison Wesley, multiple editions.
- An Invitation to Computer Science, G. Michael
Schneider and Judith L. Gersting, Brooks/Cole, multiple editions.
- A Balanced Introduction to Computer Science, David Reed,
Prentice Hall, multiple editions.
Course Goals:
The major goals of this course are [1] to introduce freshman level students to the broad field of computing and [2] to introduce students to technical writing. The first goal is achieved through presentations by the industry and academia about fundamental computer science concepts are used in research and end products. The second goal is achieved through writing assignments consisting of one
to two page write-ups about at least six of the class presentations and a five to seven page final report about a computer science concept of your choice.
Grading:
Grading is on a pass/fail basis. To receive a satisfactory grade,
you must complete all of the following satisfactorily.
More detail about the written reports is available below.
- Short Reports: Complete six short written reports with
a grade of 7 or higher (out of 10)
- Final Report: Complete this report with a grade of
70 or higher (out of 100)
- Class Participation: You are expected to ask questions
of the speakers. State your name before asking the question so
that the teaching assistant can record the information during
class. You must ask at least two questions, in two different
classes. You must also visit either Dr. Taylor, Phillip Coleman, or Roger Pearce at least
once during the semester (the point is to encourage you to take
advantage of their office hours).
- Attendance: Attendance will be taken, and is mandatory
for the class. At most two unexcused absences will be allowed.
Students with more than two unexcused absences will fail the course.
An absence is considered excused with proper university-approved
documentation. More information is available at
http://student-rules.tamu.edu/rule7.htm.
Academic Integrity:
The Aggie Honor Code states
"An Aggie does not lie, cheat or steal or tolerate those who do".
More information on academic integrity, plagiarism, etc. is available at
the Aggie Honor System Office web site
http://www.tamu.edu/aggiehonor,
including:
Please review this material.
For the assignments in this class, discussion of concepts with others
is encouraged, but all assignments must be done on your
own, unless otherwise instructed.
If you use any source other than the text, reference it/him/her,
whether it be a person, a book, a solution set, a web page or whatever.
You MUST write up the solutions in your own words.
Copying is strictly forbidden.
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Policy Statement:
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal
antidiscrimination
statute that provides comprehensive civil rights protection for
persons
with disabilities. Among other things, this legislation requires that
all students with disabilities be guaranteed a learning
environment that provides for reasonable accommodation of their
disabilities. If you believe you have a disability requiring an
accommodation, please contact the Department of Student Life,
Services for Students with
Disabilities in Cain Hall, Rm. B118,
or call 845-1637.
Back to beginning
Under assignments, Chapters refer to Zobel book.
| DATE
| TOPIC
| ASSIGNMENT
|
| Tuesday, 8/26
| Introduction to the department, curriculum, and writing center; pre-test
| Read Chapters 1 and 13
|
| Tuesday, 9/2
| Technical Writing: style, presentation, and editing
| Read Chapters 2, 3, 4, 8 and 9
|
| Tuesday, 9/9
| Brief History of Computing;
| Short report 1 is due
|
| Tuesday, 9/16
| Industry Talk: IAP Distinguished Lecturer
| .
|
| Tuesday, 9/23
| Faculty Talk: Dr. Ioerger (AI)
| Short Report 2 and the revised Short Report 1 are due
|
| Tuesday, 9/30
| Industry Talk: Mr. Noah Smith (Hewlett-Packard)
| .
|
| Tuesday, 10/7
| Faculty Talk: Valerie Taylor (parallel processing)
| The revised Short Report 2 and Project Topic and References are due
|
| Tuesday, 10/14
| Faculty Talk: Dr. Shipman (User Interfaces)
| Reports: at least 3 reports submitted
|
| Thursday, 10/16
| Faculty Talk: Dr. Welch (Distributed Systems)
| .
|
| Tuesday,10/21
| NO CLASS
| .
|
| Tuesday, 10/28
| Industry Talk: Mr. Stanley Wood, IBM
| .
|
| Friday, 10/31
|
| Project Outline with full references is due
|
| Tuesday, 11/4
| Faculty Talk: Dr. John Keyser (Graphics)
| Reports: at least 4 reports submitted
|
| Thursday, 11/6
| Writing Workshop
| .
|
| Tuesday, 11/11
| Panel on Undergraduate Research Opportunities: Research and Internships
| .
|
| Thursday,11/13
| Industry Talk: Mr. Emmitt Wells, CompuCom
| .
|
| Tuesday,11/18
| NO CLASS
| .
|
| Friday, 11/21
|
| Project: First draft of project report is due
|
| Tuesday, 11/25
| NO CLASS
| .
|
| Tuesday, 12/2
| Issues of Computing and Society
| All 6 short reports are due
|
| Wednesday, 12/10
|
| Final project report is due
|
Back to beginning
All reports are to be typed, single-spaced, using a 12-point font,
on pages with 1-inch margins. Each report should include a cover
sheet that lists your name, the report number (e.g., "Short Report 1"),
and information identifying the topic of the report.
The short reports should be one to two pages long (not including the
cover sheet), and the final report should be five to seven pages long (not
including the cover sheet).
All reports are due at the beginning of class.
Short Report 1:
You are to choose six faculty members from our department, and write
one long paragraph (6 to 8 sentences, taking about 1/4 to 1/3 of a
page) about the research of each.
You should choose two assistant professors, two associate professors,
and two full professors.
Each paragraph should give a brief summary of the research
conducted by that faculty member.
Do not just list buzzwords (e.g., "Prof. Smith studies underwater
basket-weaving." is not sufficient), but try to learn a little more
about the issues being studied.
Short Report 2:
Brief review of the IAP Distinguished Lecture scheduled for 16 September 2008
Short Reports 2 - 6:
For each of these reports, you are to give a brief review of a prior
lecture from class that has occurred before the due date of the report.
Each report should contain the following sections:
- Topic: In your own words, describe the topic discussed
in class (1 paragraph)
- Summary: In your own words, provide the major points of
what was covered in the class (at least 2 paragraphs)
- Personal View: summarize your personal view of the lecture
(1 to 2 paragraphs)
Due dates are listed in the schedule and summarized here:
- Short Report 1 due Tue, 9/9
- Short Report 2 due Tue, 9/23
Grading for Short Reports:
The following grading rubric will be used for all short reports.
Note that a 7 is considered passing.
| Aspect
| High (Exceeds Expectations)
| Medium (Meets Expectations)
| Low (Below Expectations)
|
| Spelling
| 2
| 1
| 0
|
| Grammar/Punctuation
| 3
| 2
| 0
|
| Completeness
| 3
| 1
| 0
|
| Style
| 2
| 1
| 0
|
| TOTAL
| 10
| 5
| 0
|
- Spelling:
- High: No spelling errors
- Medium: One or two spelling errors, but not the type to make
meaning obscure, and not of basic or common words
- Low: Major misspelling of important or common words, or a
number of minor errors that interfere with reading or comprehension.
- Grammar and Punctuation:
- High: Punctuation and grammar are appropriate to the audience
and genre and enhance the style. The grammar and punctuation
conform to the conventions for edited American English.
There are no punctuation or grammar errors.
- Medium: Punctuation and grammar are appropriate to the
audience and genre. They conform to the conventions for edited
American English. Errors may occur but are few and do not
markedly distract the reader.
- Low: Errors occur frequently and mar the writer's intent
and the reader's comprehension. Reading is frequently interrupted
by error. The writer has not proofread.
- Completeness:
- High: All sections are included and the content is consistent
with the lecture/assignment.
- Medium: One section is missing and/or the content is not
consistent with the lecture/assignment.
- Low: More than one section is missing and the content is
not consistent with the lecture/assignment.
- Style:
- High: The writing sounds mature and professional and reads
clearly. The style is concise and to the point.
- Medium: the writing is comprehensible but at times a bit
unclear or wordy.
- Low: The writing seems inappropriate for the professional
or educated reader, is difficult to read, wordy, or unclear.
If you do not get at least a 7 on a report, you will be given the
opportunity to make it up with a report on another presentation,
if it appears a good-faith effort was made.
Late Penalty: If any one of the 6 short reports is turned in
late, then an additional short report will be required, for a total of 7.
Final Report:
Your final report should be about a computer science topic of your choice.
You should pick a particular subarea of computer science; your topic may
be either somewhat general (e.g., "graphics") or much more specific
(e.g., "real-time ray tracing methods").
Your report should give an overview of that area, including:
- A summary of the types of challenges and problems that this area
addresses
- the current state-of-the-art
- Major open challenges in this area
The report will be worked on throughout the semester, and feedback will be
given throughout. The following schedule will be used:
- Tue, 10/7: Final Report proposal due: Turn in a one-page typed document giving
(in addition to your name) the topic you have chosen, along with an
initial list of at least three references you plan to use.
Be sure to use appropriate bibliographic citation.
- Fri, 10/31: Final Report outline: Turn in a 1-2 page outline of your
report, along with the full set of references you will be using.
- Fri, 11/21: Final Report draft: You are to turn in an initial draft of
your paper. Feedback will be given. If this draft is satisfactory,
then you do not need to do a revision.
- Wed, 12/10: Final Report due. This final draft should be revised to
reflect the feedback you got on your earlier draft.
Grading for Final Report:
The following grading rubric will be used for the final report.
| Aspect
| High (Exceeds Expectations)
| Medium (Meets Expectations)
| Low (Below Expectations)
|
| Spelling
| 20
| 15
| 0
|
| Grammar/Punctuation
| 25
| 15
| 0
|
| Style
| 15
| 10
| 0
|
| Completeness
| 10
| 5
| 0
|
| Content
| 30
| 20
| 0
|
| TOTAL
| 100
| 65
| 0
|
The meaning of levels for Spelling, Grammar/Punctuation, and Style will
be as in the short assignments. However, a finer gradation may be
used for the final report. Note that 70% is considered passing.
- Completeness:
- High: The report addresses all aspects (e.g., state of the
art, challenges) of the topic at a reasonably complete level.
- Medium: One aspect of the topic is missing or is only
mentioned with no exposition.
- Low: More than one aspect are not addressed or are addressed
only superficially.
- Content:
- High: The material presented shows a clear understanding
of the topic and the major challenges within it. It effectively
synthesizes material gained from multiple sources.
- Medium: The subarea chosen is reviewed, but there is not
much depth to the presentation. The topic is reviewed at a level
similar to that which might be found in an overview chapter of
a textbook. It does not give more information than would
typically be found in a single reference source on the topic.
- Low: Only a superficial overview of the subarea of choice
is given. The depth does not go beyond that which might be
found in the introductory page of a text in that area.
Late Penalty: For each of the deadlines that is not met
(topic, outline, draft, final version), 10 percent will be deducted from your final report grade.
Back to beginning
Most of this material came from previous teachings of the course by Prof. John Keyser, Prof. Jennifer Welch, and me.