Syllabus

Prerequisites

There are no course prerequisites, but to take this course you must be accepted into the UCSB CS Early Research Scholars Program

What will I learn in this class?

Over the course of the next 3 quarters, the Early Research Scholars Program (ERSP) will help you learn the basics of doing computer science research. This will include the following knowledge and skills:

• Identifying and formulating research problems
• Reading research papers
• Working effectively in a team
• Literature searching
• Self-guided learning
• Designing research studies
• Data analysis
• Time management, goal setting and activity logging
• Communicating about research, both orally and in written form
• Effective team work communication and skills

Instructor

Diba Mirza (diba@ucsb.edu) [Home Page]

Office: HFH 1155

Office Hours: See her calendar and by appointment

TA: Chris Zhang

Grad Assistants: Chris Zhang, Aarti Jivarajani

Course Time and Location

For Fall 2019, this course meets Mondays and Wednesdays from 3:30-4:45 in Phelps 3526. In addition, you will attend a weekly research group meeting that is scheduled per group.

Expectations and Grading

This is a 4-unit course which is part of the CSE ERSP program. We expect you to spend approximately 16 hours/week on this course, including time spent doing research on your project and time in class. With this course even more than others, what you get out of it will be a function of what you put into it. As a participant in the ERSP program and a student in this course, you must commit to the following:

1. To participate in the ERSP program actively and fully for the full 3-quarter duration of the program. Each quarter you are expected to register for the course associated with the ERSP program as instructed and to complete all work associated with that course.
2. To attend all classes and group meetings regularly and punctually.
3. To behave professionally toward your ERSP group members and the faculty and students who comprise the research group you are placed with.
4. To complete the assigned work for the ERSP course in a timely fashion, and to "pull your weight" with all assigned group projects.
5. To keep an open line of communication between yourself, the members of your group, and Dr. Mirza. In particular, you must let (Dr. Mirza) know if any issues arise, as soon as they arise.
6. To balance your time so as to maintain success in your other courses, as well as in the ERSP program.

Your letter grade will be based on the following:

Class participation and punctuality

You must attend each class on time, and participate actively in the class activities. You will receive a score of 2 (present, on time, actively participating), 1 (present, on time, but not actively participating OR present and actively participating but late), or 0 (absent or late and not actively participating) for each class period. Your lowest one class participation score will be dropped. This means you can miss one classes with no penalty as long as you are on time and participating in all the others. After that, it will start affecting your grade. If you have an emergency or an extended illness, please contact me as soon as possible.

Research group meeting attendance

Each week (starting in week 2, probably) you will be expected to attend a group meeting with your research group. One person in each group will be designated as the attendance taker. You will receive credit for attendance if you are on time and stay the full time. You must keep the attendance sheet up to date. You may miss up to one research meeting without penalty.

Log Maintenance

Throughout the program you will be expected to keep a regular log of your research activities. You must keep this log updated. We will check your log once per week (usually on Fridays), and you will receive a score of 2 (log up to date and complete), 1 (log partially up to date, or incomplete), or 0 (log not updated) for the week.

Homework assignment completion

There will be a homework assignment that must be completed before class for most class periods. This homework will be graded on a three-point scale: 2 (homework thoughtfully completed and on time), 1 (homework lacking, or completed after the deadline), 0 (homework not done). Your lowest one homework score will be dropped.

Contribution to your research group

At the end of the quarter, I will ask each person to judge the contribution of each of the other members of their group. From this information and my own observations over the quarter, I will make a determination about each person's individual contribution to the team. In a healthy team, everyone will get full marks here.

Project proposal

The project proposal is one of the major deliverables for the quarter. The final submission will be graded at the end of the quarter. (Grades on early drafts will be factored into your homework score).

Final presentation

The final presentation is the other major deliverable. It will be given during the final exam period.

Weighting, curves, and final grade assignment

Your grades will be weighted as follows:

• 15% Class Participation and Punctuality
• 5% Research group meeting attendance
• 10% Logs
• 15%Homework assignments
• 5% Research group contribution
• 30% Project Proposal
• 20% Final Presentation

I will use point values assigned to each element to produce a weighted score at the end of the quarter. I will aim to stick to a standard 90-100 = some kind of A, 80-90 = some kind of B, etc scale, but I will curve the +s and -s within each grade range, and I may introduce a curve if I feel that numeric grades are leading to letter grades that are too low (I will not curve down).

Academic Integrity

You will get out of the CS ERSP what you put into it. For that reason, it does not make any sense to cheat.

This means that all work in this class must be your own or the work of your group, where appropriate. In most cases this work will consist of a short write up, but in some cases the writing will be longer. ALL writing must be your own original work, of the joint work of your group where appropriate, and may not be copied from any source without proper attribution. If you have any questions or concerns about what constitute cheating in this class, please ask me as soon as the question arises.