Room: RH 315
Time: Fridays, 9:00 AM-10:50 AM
Pedagogic Philosophy:
The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of the vast field of Comptuter Science and Engineering. To this end, we will take a "top-down approach" by looking at a number of computer science technologies and asking ourselves how they work, and what CS building blocks they employ. The course will also have some elements of I2E (Invention, Innovation and Entrepreneurship). The class will be highly interactive, with the professor lecturing for only about 20% of the time.
But the course is not to be taken lightly: A and B grades will be reserved for outstanding performance. Grades will be based on a variety of inputs: class participation an attendance, your oral presentation, two homework assignments, and two exams.
Classoom time will be divided up as follows:
- The video documentary "Triumph of the Nerds," which is provides an overview of both the technology and business issues behind the development of the personal computer. After watching snippets of the video in class, we will discuss the various technologies that are described in the video. This will be the focus for about 15% of the course.
- Student presentations on technologies and concepts in CS, including selected Google applications, Google data centers, Google business models, and technologies from Skype, Microsoft, and other organizations. This will be the focus for about 65% of the course.
- Professor's lectures on computer architecture, computer networks, and Web search. This will be the focus for about 20% of the course.
Grading:
- Class participation and attendance (20%): The class is intended to be highly interactive. All students are expected to contribute to the classroom experience. Attendance will be taken at the beginning of each class.
- Presentation (40%): You will give a presentation on a contemporary technology and its underlying CS building blocks. Each presentation will consist of 6-7 minutes of presentation and 3-4 minutes of questions and answers. This task is described in Your Presentations.
- HW assignments (20%): There will be a Wireshark and a Google API lab.
- Exams (20%)
Textbook:
Teaching Assistants:
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