CSI 3334: Data structures, Spring 2006
Announcements
- Mon May 8 10:23:34 CDT 2006
- All projects must be completed by Wednesday, May 10, 11:59:59 PM. I am in my office this week if you want to talk or need help; I am also available via email.
- Mon Mar 27 17:19:34 CST 2006
- Please note that the hashtable question for homework 3 has been updated, see the homework web page for an explanation.
- Wed Mar 22 10:23:58 CST 2006
- We will not hold class on April 10th or 12th due to the ICPC in San Antonio.
- Mon Jan 9 08:09:22 CST 2006
- Welcome to data structures! Project 0 has been posted, and is due this Friday, so get started!
Please see also the older announcements.
Objectives
This is a course in data structures, which are at the heart of computer science. Data structures and the algorithms that operate on them are the keys to making efficient software. They are also very interesting. This course will allow you to practice your problem solving skills using the material learned in the class. These are the skills you will need to be a successful scientist or engineer.
This course covers:
- fundamental data structures such as arrays, lists, queues, stacks, heaps, trees, and graphs
- standard algorithms to operate on these data structures, including searching and sorting
- separation of interface and implementation using abstract data types
- use of C++ for implementation of the concepts presented in class
- analysis of algorithms for time and space complexity
- appropriateness of different data structures for different tasks
This is a difficult course. Be prepared to invest the time necessary to understand the concepts, and to do the programming projects. My best advice is to attend the lectures, ask questions, and start projects early.
Practical information
Lectures are from 9:00 AM to 9:50 AM in Rogers 104 on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. For this course you can use the lab in Rogers 112, though there is no lab component of the course.
My office is in the Rogers Engineering and Computer Science building. My office hours are listed on my home page. I am glad to talk to students during and outside of office hours. If you can't come to my office hour, please email me to make an appointment at another time.
The TA for this course is Josh Johnston.
Schedule
Here is a schedule of the material we will cover:
Week | Dates | New topics | Reading | Lecture notes | Monday | Wednesday | Friday |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jan 9-13 | Overview, C++, ADTs | 1.1-1.6 | Notes | Project 0 assigned | Quiz #1, Project 1 assigned | |
2 | Jan 16-20 | Intro to analysis, stacks | 2.1-2.2, 3.1, 3.3 | Notes | MLK holiday | Homework 1 assigned | Quiz #2 |
3 | Jan 23-27 | Lists, Queues | 3.2, 3.4 | Notes | Quiz #3 | ||
4 | Jan 30-Feb 3 | Analysis | 2 | Notes | Homework 2 assigned | Project 2 assigned | |
5 | Feb 6-10 | Trees | 4 | Notes | Quiz #4 | ||
6 | Feb 13-17 | Trees | Notes | Quiz #5 | |||
7 | Feb 20-24 | Heaps | 6 | Notes | Quiz #6 | ||
8 | Feb 27-Mar 3 | Heaps | Notes | Project 3 assigned | |||
9 | Mar 6-10 | Hashing, midterm | 5 | Notes | Midterm review | Midterm exam | |
Mar 13-17 | Spring break | ||||||
10 | Mar 20-24 | Hashing | Notes | Homework 3 assigned | Quiz #7 | ||
11 | Mar 27-31 | Sorting | 7 | Notes | Quiz #8 | ||
12 | Apr 3-7 | Sorting, Graphs | 9 | Project 4 assigned, Quiz #9 | |||
13 | Apr 10-14 | Notes | ICPC | ICPC | Easter holiday | ||
14 | Apr 17-21 | Graphs | Easter holiday | Homework 4 assigned | |||
15 | Apr 24-28 | Graphs | Notes | Quiz #10 | |||
16 | May 1-5 | Review | Last lecture | Study day |
The final exam date will be Monday, May 8th between 2:00 and 4:00 PM. The latest university finals information is available here.
Textbooks & resources
Required text: we will be using Mark Weiss' textbook Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis in C++ (2nd Edition). There is a newer edition, but we are continuing to use edition 2. You can purchase this book from the Baylor bookstore or amazon, among other places.
Optional text: I also highly recommend the book Introduction to algorithms, by Thomas Cormen, Charles Leiserson, Ronald Rivest, and Clifford Stein. This is in my opinion the best general-purpose book on algorithms, period. It is well worth buying and keeping. You can purchase it at many places, including amazon.
Further online resources:
- We will use Blackboard as a class discussion board. Feel free to post questions and responses there which do not violate the collaboration agreement.
- Bruce Eckel, Thinking in C++ (2nd edition)
- the Standard Template Library (STL) reference
Grading
Grades will be assigned based on this breakdown:
- in-class quizzes: 10%
- midterm exam: 25%
- final exam: 30%
- projects: 10%
- homework: 25%
Final letter grades will be assigned at the discretion of the instructor, but
this is a minimum guideline for letter grades:
A: 90-100, B+: 88-89, B: 80-87, C+: 78-79, C: 70-77, D: 60-69, F: 0-59
Important: All projects must be completed to obtain a passing grade. If you do not finish some project by the time grades are due, you will not pass this course.
Some homeworks and projects may be worth more than others. Exams and quizzes are closed-book. The final will be comprehensive.
There will be several homework assignments. Homeworks are due at the beginning of class on the due dates for full credit. Homeworks turned in after I have collected them but before the end of class will receive a 20% penalty. No homeworks will be accepted after class on the due date.
Project grading
There will be several programming projects. Please see the project submission guidelines for specific information on how to submit your projects.
You will submit your solutions electronically, and you may submit them as many times as you like. Only the last submission you make will be graded. When you submit your solution, the submission system will test it on my hidden test cases, to which you will not have access. You will receive a response about whether your program's output matched the output of my solution on the hidden inputs. If your program does not produce identical output to my solution on the test cases (character for character), or if you do not follow the style guidelines, or I judge that your project has some flaw that was not discovered by the testing system, then your project does not yet pass or receive credit.
In addition, your program should not leak any memory. I will test your code for leaks using valgrind.
Because the programming projects will be difficult, it is imperative that you start working on them as soon as they are assigned.
Policies
- Check this website every day for updates and announcements. We only meet three times a week, but I may post updates at any time. It is your responsibility to follow these updates by reading this website.
- All work in this course is strictly individual, unless the instructor explicitly states otherwise. While discussion of course material is encouraged, collaboration on any work for the course is not allowed. Collaboration includes (but is not limited to) discussing with anyone other than the professor any material that is specific to completing an assignment. You are not to work with anyone else on any project or assignment unless I expressly permit it. You are encouraged to discuss the course material with the professor, preferably in office hours, and also by email.
- Baylor policy requires 75% class attendance from each student. Even "excused" absences are included in the overall absent count. If a student attends less than 75% of the classes, he or she will automatically fail the course.
- In order to facilitate keeping attendance, on the second class meeting I will ask you to choose a seat for the rest of the course. Please sit in your chosen seat for the remainder of the course.
- Projects and homeworks which are late are not accepted. Exams are the only things which may be made up with prior arrangement (made at least one class before to the exam) or due to illness, with a note from a health care professional.
- Bring any grading correction requests to my attention within 2 weeks of receiving the grade or before the end of the semester, whichever comes first. After that, I will not adjust your grade. If you find any mistake in grading, please let me know.
Academic honesty
I take academic honesty very seriously.
Many studies, including one by Sheilah Maramark and Mindi Barth Maline have suggested that "some students cheat because of ignorance, uncertainty, or confusion regarding what behaviors constitute dishonesty" (Maramark and Maline, Issues in Education: Academic Dishonesty Among College Students, U.S. Department of Education, Office of Research, August 1993, page 5). In an effort to reduce misunderstandings in this course, a minimal list of activities that will be considered cheating have been listed below.
- Copying another student's work. Simply looking over someone else's source code is copying.
- Providing your work for another student to copy.
- Collaboration on any assignment, unless the work is explicitly given as collaborative work.
- Using notes or books during any exam.
- Giving another student answers during an exam.
- Reviewing a stolen copy of an exam.
- Plagiarism.
- Studying tests or using assignments from previous semesters.
- Providing someone with tests or assignments from previous semesters.
- Taking an exam for someone else.
- Turning in someone else's work as your own work.
- Studying a copy of an exam prior to taking a make-up exam.
- Providing a copy of an exam to someone who is going to take a make-up exam.
- Giving test questions to students in another class.
- Reviewing previous copies of the instructor's tests without permission from the instructor.
Copyright © 2006 Greg Hamerly, with some content
taken from a syllabus by Jeff Donahoo.
Computer Science Department
Baylor University