CS 1010 - Intro to Computer Science

On behalf of the Computer Science Department, I would like to welcome you to the department.

You have chosen well your institution and area of study. This department, the faculty and staff, will do its best to make your college experience a positive and profitable one. You have much to learn over the course of the next few years. Some semesters will be easier than others, some more difficult. The result of your hard labors will serve you immeasurably in the years to come. Work hard and you will succeed. Fail to put your all into your studies and you may lose out.

This course, CS 1010, is designed to introduce you as the student to the faculty of the CS dept. I have arranged for the faculty to speak to you during these class meetings. You will learn what they teach, about their research interests, and something of their personalities. As a result of this introduction, you may discover new topics in computer science that will pique your interest and direct your attentions to projects you hadn't imagined. Perhaps you will discover that one of our faculty will have a research interest that coincides with yours and a graduate, or even an undergraduate, research project can come out of it. I trust that you will find their talks informative if not enlightening. Please show them all the appropriate courtesies.

Your grade in this class will be determined by your attendance. You are required to attend every meeting of this class. You will be notified if we are not going to meet during any particular week. I have your e-mail addresses and will use them to correspond with you. Be sure to check your e-mail regularly. Notices will be posted using email. (I do not us Blackboard for this course.) I also invite representatives from industry to give talks about their company, how computer science plays a part in their sector of the economy and their business, what they will expect or you as a potential hire, etc. You get to know them, their businesses, and what your future may hold.

One hundred percent of your grade will depend on attendance. So come and relax for a hour each week and enjoy the talks of the faculty you will be learning from for the next four years.... you can learn a lot from them. Since you are "graded" solely on your attendance of the presentations, missing these talks will have a significant detriment on your grade. I will give you one miss: that means you don't have to justify missing one single session. If you miss 2 or 3, your grade drops to a B. Each miss after that lowers your grade one letter-grade. So, show up and enjoy. I will accept NO excuse for missing class. "NO excuse" means just that: job related, family related, health related, military or other govt duty, emergencies, etc. NO excuse. If you would like to "make up" a miss after the first miss, you can write a 5-page term paper for me on a topic of my choosing (related to the ethical use of computing, of course). If you opt to do this, you must give me ample time (three weeks) to discuss it with you before the end of the semester.

Note: If you have a documented disability and anticipate needing accommodations in this course, you are strongly encouraged to meet with me early in the semester. You will need to request that the Disability Services staff send a letter to me verifying your disability and specifying the accommodation you will need before I can arrange your accommodation.

If you have any questions concerning the class or the department, do not hesitate to contact me in my office. Outside of my stated office hours I am usually in my office and welcome all visitors.

Also, use the links below if you need the indicated services:

egress map | Academic Alert System | Disability Services | Academic Dishonesty