Syllabus

Please see the main page of this website for scheduling information (lectures, sections, office hours, exams).

Instructor: Mark Friedman

Important Information

This seminar introduces database management systems and techniques that use such systems; data models, query languages, database tuning and optimization, data warehousing, and parallel processing. Intended for undergraduate students who are not CSE-majors.

The format is lectures, plus hands-on labs. There are regular homework assignments, a mid-term and a final exam. We are holding all lectures & labs remotely. Homeworks and exams are administered using Gradescope.

The class will begin with a mandatory organizational meeting on Monday, March 30.

This virtual classroom meeting is restricted to students affiliated with the University. You are required to authenticate using your UW Net ID prior to entering the virtual meeting. When you enter the meeting, your audio will be muted. There is a Q&A feature to Zoom, plus a live chat channel. We will try to figure out the best way to use these features to everyone's advantage at the initial meeting.

Meets on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 3:30 - 4:20 PM

Zoom meeting for lectures: https://washington.zoom.us/j/958487279

Following class, there will be a separate virtual meeting for Q&A: https://washington.zoom.us/j/846535889 This Zoom meeting will use the Waiting Room feature, where you wait in a queue for the opportunity to chat with me One on One.

Instructor: Mark B. Friedman (Office: CSE 330; E-mail me at mbfried@uw.edu.)

Virtual Office Hours: Wednesdays 2:00 - 3:00 using https://washington.zoom.us/j/846535889 or by appointment)

Post your questions on ed CSE-414 Discussion Board: https://us.edstem.org/courses/393/discussion/

Required Text: Database Systems: the Complete Book, 2nd Edition by Molina, Ullman and Widom. Pearson Prentice Hall: 2009. It is available through the University Book Store. If you are purchasing it used, make sure you are buying the (latest and greatest) 2nd edition.

Grading and Exams

• Homework assignments: 30%
• Midterm exam: 30%
• Final exam: 30%
• TBD: 10%

Please note that these breakdowns are preliminary as this class is constantly evolving. We reserve the right to change them.

Collaboration policy

You are encouraged to discuss the content of this course with anyone you like. Each team should write and submit their own assignment solutions.

Computer use policy

Some excerpts from the campus policies. Take them seriously: "You must use all UW [computing] resources in strict accordance with local, state, and federal laws. These laws cover such areas as illegal access to computer systems, networks, and files; copyright violations; and harassment issues... Software and information resources provided through the university for use by faculty, staff, and students may be used on computing equipment only as specified in the various software licenses. Unauthorized use of software, images, or files is regarded as a serious matter and any such use is without the consent of the University of Washington...If abuse of computer software, images, or files occurs, those responsible for such abuse will be held legally accountable."

Academic conduct

An iSchool professor, Amy Ko, wrote the following guidelines. I repeat them here as they really hit the spot!

• Respect each other's humanity. We all have lives, struggles, fears, and goals. You're more than a student, I'm more than a professor, your TAs are more than TAs, and your classmates more more than classmates. Start every conversation remembering that.
• Respect each other's differences. Technology is for people and people are different: learn about each other's different perspectives, experiences, and ideas.
• Focus on learning, not grades. Having knowledge and skills is what gets you into majors, internships, jobs, and graduate school. Grades are imprecise, narrow measures of what you know and can do, so if you optimize for them instead of skills, you'll end up with narrow knowledge and skills.
• Be resourceful. Ask questions, ask for help, and seek expertise. It can be scary to admit you need help, but I expect that you need help. That's how learning happens.
• Be confident. Even if you don't believe you can learn something, I believe you can. It just takes the right instruction, the right practice, and the right feedback. Most of those are my job, so if you're struggling, it's probably my fault.
• Be demanding. I want this course to be great. If you don't like how it's going, give me feedback. The only way I can make it better is if you tell me what's wrong.
• Be skeptical. If you don't believe something I say, demand evidence or a better argument. If you hear about some exciting new technology, probe closely to understand its true merits.
• Be constructive. Don't just critique ideas; use your knowledge of their limitations to make them better. This is especially important when you collaborate with other people.
• Don't deceive. Tell the truth, even it's hard to share. You didn't do your homework? Admit it, and let's find a way for you get future assignments done on time. You don't understand something? Admit it, and let's help you understand it. You don't want to learn something? Admit, and let's find a way to make it more interesting to you.

Academic integrity

You're here to learn, aren't you? Plagiarism is not the way! If you really feel that the course structure incentivizes you to cheat in order to maximize your learning, please contact me (the instructor). I'd rather receive your feedback proactively than report your actions to the university reactively.

The guidelines for this course and academic integrity in general are in a separate document. You are responsible for knowing the information in that document.

Accommodations

There are two important kinds of accommodations you can request to support your learning in this class:

• Accommodations for disability. I strongly encourage you to reach out to Disability Resources for any and all accommodations you might need. They're helpful, constructive, and private, and I'm 100% supportive of anything you need. You don't have to go through DRS to ask for accommodate; you can just ask me, if you feel comfortable.
• Accommodations for religion. Washington state law requires accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Faculty Syllabus Guidelines and Resources. Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form. I'm fully supportive of this policy; your life is bigger than this class.