CMSC 341 — Data Structures

Syllabus

Course Information

Course/Section: CMSC 341: Data Structures — Section 0201

Time/Place: Monday & Wednesday 5:30–6:45pm, ITE 229

Instructor: Daniel J. Hood

Office: ITE 211

Office Hours: Monday & Wednesday 7–8pm, or by appointment

Course Description

Data Structures are the paramount concern of this course. The principle objective of the course is to help you learn how to design and analyze a wide range of data structures.

The course covers data structures and associated algorithms. Relationships among data structures, their utility in various situations, and factors affecting their performance in algorithms will be considered. You will learn to analyze the demands of algorithms, how to choose appropriate data structures, and how to integrate data structures into algorithms.

Textbooks

Required:

Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis in Java, 2nd Edition Author: Mark Alan Weiss Publisher: Addison-Wesley ISBN-10: 0321370139

Recommended:

Your favorite Java reference book — here are some recommendations:

	Java In A Nutshell, 5th Edition Author: David Flanagan Publisher: O'Reilly ISBN-10: 0596007736
	Thinking in Java, 4th Edition Author: Bruce Eckel Publisher: Prentice Hall PTR ISBN-10: 0131872486 Online: 3rd Edition avialable for free download
	Head First Java, 2nd Edition Authors: Kathy Sierra & Bert Bates Publisher: O'Reilly ISBN-10: 0596009208

Some other data structures texts:

	Data Structures and Algorithms with Object-Oriented Design Patterns in Java Author: Bruno R. Preiss Publisher: Wiley ISBN-10: 0471346136
	Practical Introduction to Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis Author: Clifford A. Shaffer Publisher: Prentice Hall ISBN-10: 0130284467 This book has good coverage of data structures and algorithm analysis in C++. It has excellent descriptions of a number of data structures.
	Data Structures, Algorithms, And Applications In Java, 2nd Edition Author: Sartaj Sahni Publisher: Silicon Pr ISBN-10: 0929306333
	Data Structures and Algorithms Authors: Alfred V. Aho, Jeffrey D. Ullman, John E. Hopcroft Publisher: Addison Wesley ISBN-10: 0201000237 This is one of the all-time classics, written in Pascal.
	Fundamentals of Data Structures in C++ Authors: Ellis Horowitz, Sartaj Sahni, Dinesh Mehta Publisher: Silicon Press ISBN-10: 0929306376 Update of another classic.
	Abstract Data Types Author: Nell Dale, Henry Walker Publisher: Heath ISBN-10: 0669400009 A high-level view of data structures and algorithms, with no programming language specified. A very worthwhile and modern text with an alternative viewpoint.

Prerequisites

We will assume that you have mastered the material from CMSC 201, CMSC 202, and CMSC 203. We will not review material that has been covered in the prerequisite courses. We do cover a few of the concepts from CMSC 202, but from a deeper point-of-view. We assume prior experience with Java, but will review Java briefly in the first few lectures and will have more intense reviews outside of class hours early in the semester for those who are a little rusty.

Grading

Your grade for this course will be based on 5 programming projects, 2 in-class exams and the final exam.

Each programming project is 8% of your grade, each exam is 20% of your grade.

Note that the due dates for the projects and the dates of the exams are already set (i.e., the syllabus and project policy handout). Please plan your schedules accordingly. Makeup exams will be given only under the most dire circumstances (almost never).

Your final letter grade is based on the standard formula:

0 ≤ F < 60, 60 ≤ D < 70, 70 ≤ C < 80, 80 ≤ B < 90, 90 ≤ A ≤ 100

These levels may be adjusted slightly in your favor, but grades will not be “curved” in the conventional sense.

Your grade is given for timely work done during the semester; incomplete grades will only be given for medical illness or other such dire circumstances.

Attendance and Readings

You are expected to attend all lectures. You are responsible for all material covered in the lecture, even if it is not in the textbook. You should keep up with the assigned readings during the semester. Some reading material will be distributed through the course web page. You are responsible for the material in the readings, even if it is not covered during lecture.

You must study to do well in this course. It will not be enough to attend lectures and do the homework. As advanced undergraduates, you will be responsible for learning material that is not necessarily covered in lectures. A prime learning requirement is that you contribute to class discussions and raise questions about the course material.

Classroom Etiquette

Please be respectful of your peers, the TA and the Instructor. This includes...

• Arriving on time and remaining for the full lecture.
• Not talking during lecture.
• Setting cell phones to vibrate or silent. If you forget and it starts going off in class please turn it off. Continuing to let it ring is far more annoying that taking a moment to turn it off. If you absolutely must answer your cell phone in the middle of class, leave the room before taking the call.
• Using laptops in an appropriate manner. Answering email, instant messaging, working on assignments and playing games are all inappropriate things to be doing during class. If your laptop use becomes distracting you will be asked to discontinue its use.

Contacting Me or the TAs

Please feel free to visit me or the TAs during our office hours. If you can't make it during the regular hours, please ask for an appointment. We will do everything we can to be available to provide help with this course. Office hours, phone numbers and other contact information is available on-line. If you need to contact any of the course staff outside of lecture and office hours, email is much better than the telephone. You should, however, observe the following etiquette:

• Do not email source code. If you want me or the TA to help you debug your code submit the code in the usual way, and then send email about the problem. We will look at the submitted code. Please, do NOT mail code to me or to the TA!
• Note that the Help Center does not offer help with code for this course.
• Please use your your UMBC account to send mail. This will remove any ambiguity about who you are.
• Include a meaningful subject line, something like “CMSC 341 Project 2 question.”

Questions, Concerns and Special Needs

Students are encouraged to ask questions of the instructor for clarification of any policies or class procedures at any time. Students are encouraged to notify the instructor as soon as possible if they have any special needs the instructor should be aware of.

Academic Integrity

Cheating in any form will not be tolerated. Instances of cheating will be reported to the UMBC Academic Conduct Committee. These reports are filed by the Committee and can be used for disciplinary action such as a permanent record on your transcript. Academic honesty is absolutely required of you. You are expected to be honest yourself and to report any cases of dishonesty you see among other students in this class. Reports of dishonest behavior will be kept anonymous.

Further details on honesty in doing projects for this course are on-line at the Project Policy link.

Students are welcome and encouraged to study together for exams, but examinations are to be your own work — not your neighbor's and not your notes. All exams are closed-book, closed-notes. Only pencils (or pens) and erasers are permitted in the exam room unless otherwise indicated. Scratch paper is provided to you, as needed. Having any other materials in your possession during an exam will be taken as evidence of cheating and dealt with accordingly.

The following is a non-exhaustive list of violations of academic integrity:

• Emailing code in whole or in part
• Instant Messaging code in whole or in part
• Posting or obtaining code in whole or in part on the web including but not limited to forums, newsgroups, etc...
• Using free or open-source software without prior consent
• Not taking the appropriate measures to protect your source code, including:
  • Placing your code in a public directory
  • Failing to lock your screen when away from your computer
  • Allowing someone to copy code from your monitor

The penalty for violation of this policy (single offense) is three-fold:

1. A project grade of zero
2. A 10% reduction of your semester average (one letter grade)
3. Actions reported to the Academic Conduct Committee

Multiple violations will result in automatic failure of the course.

Class Schedule

The online schedule will be updated (based on class progress) to contain the most recent version of the schedule of topics, assigned readings, project due dates, and other significant dates.

Course Web Pages

A few handouts will be provided in paper form at the first class. After that, all handouts will be provided only on the web.

• The CMSC 341 webpage is at: www.cs.umbc.edu/courses/undergraduate/341/fall08/
• Any section specific content is at: www.cs.umbc.edu/courses/undergraduate/341/fall08/hood/