CMSC 341 Data Structures Spring 2007

Section 0101 (Mon/Wed 10:00 - 11:15pm ACIV 0013)

Mr. Dennis Frey

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 C++, 3rd Edition, by Mark Alan Weiss, Addison-Wesley, ISBN 0-321-37531-9

Recommended:


Prerequisites

We will assume that you have mastered the material from CMSC 201, CMSC 202, and CMSC 203, including mastery of the C++ language. 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. A few advanced C++ topics such as templates and exceptions will be reviewed. 

Grading

Your grade for this course will be based on 5 porgramming 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 (q.v., 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.


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:

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.


Class Schedule

Class
Date
Topic
Reading
1 Mon Jan 29 Introduction and C++ MAW 1
2
Wed Jan 31 C++ and OOP MAW 1

Mon Feb 5
Project 1 Assigned

3 Mon Feb 5 Asymptotic Analysis MAW 2
4 Wed Feb 7 Asymptotic Analysis MAW 3
5 Mon Feb 12 List ADT and Implementations MAW 3
6 Wed Feb 14 List Implementations MAW 3

Sun Feb 18
Project 1 Due

7 Mon Feb 19 Stacks, Queue, Deque ADT MAW 3
8 Wed Feb 21 Stacks, Queue, Deque ADT MAW 3
9 Mon Feb 26
Exam 1
Classes 1 - 8

Wed Feb 28
Project 2 Assigned

10 Wed Feb 28 Introduction to Trees MAW 4.1 & 4.2
11 Mon Mar 5 Introduction to Trees MAW 4.1 & 4.2
12
Wed Mar 7 Binary Search Trees MAW 4.3
13 Mon Mar 12 Binary Search Trees MAW 4.3

Tues Mar 13
Project 2 Due

14 Wed Mar 14 Splay Trees MAW 4.5

Mon Mar 19
Spring Break


Wed Mar 21
Spring Break


Mon Mar 26
Project 3 Assigned

15 Mon Mar 26 Red-Black Trees MAW 12.2 + notes
16 Wed Mar 28 Red-Black Trees MAW 12.2 + notes
17 Mon Apr 2 B-Trees MAW 4.7
18 Wed Apr 4 B-Trees MAW 4.7

Sun Apr 8
Project 3 Due

19 Mon Apr 9 Priority Queues and Heaps MAW 6
20 Wed Apr 11 Priority Queues and Heaps MAW 6
21 Mon Apr 16
Exam 2
Classes 10 - 20

Wed Apr 18
Project 4 Assigned

22 Wed Apr 18 Hashing MAW 5
23 Mon Apr 23 Hashing MAW 5
24 Wed Apr 25 Skip Lists MAW 10.4.2 + notes
25 Mon Apr 30 Disjoint Sets MAW 8

Tues May 1
Project 4 Due


Wed May 2
Project 5 Assigned

26 Wed May 2 Graphs MAW 9.1, 9.3 + notes
27 Mon May 7 Graphs MAW 9.1, 9.3 + notes
28 Wed May 9 Graphs MAW 9.1, 9.3 + notes
29 Mon May 14
Review

Tues May 15
Project 5 Due


Monday May 21st
10:30am - 12:30pm
Final Exam
Classes 22 - 29

Course Web Page

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 course web page URL is

www.cs.umbc.edu/courses/undergraduate/341/spring06/index.shtml
Please check the web page frequently. Any changes to the page will be mentioned in the "Latest News" link. 
Last modified on Friday Jan 13 by Dennis Frey

email: frey@cs.umbc.edu
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