CMSC 341 Data Structures Spring 2008

Section 0101 (Mon/Wed 10:00 - 11:15am, ACIV013)

Mr. Ryan Bergeron

Office: ITE 215

Office hours: Mon/Wed 11:15 - 12:15 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, 2rd Edition, by Mark Alan Weiss, Addison-Wesley, ISBN 0-321-37013-9

Recommended:


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. Since Java has not been covered in the prerequisite courses, for this semester we will assume no prior knowledge of Java.

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 (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 28 Introduction and Java MAW 1
2
Wed Jan 30 Java and OOP MAW 1; tutorial

Wed Jan 30
Project 1 Assigned

3
Mon Feb 4 Java and OOP MAW 1; tutorial
4 Wen Feb 6 Asymptotic Analysis MAW 2
5 Mon Feb 11 Asymptotic Analysis MAW 2
6 Wed Feb 13 List ADT and Implementations MAW 3

Fri Feb 15
Project 1 Due

7 Mon Feb 18 Stacks and Queues MAW 3
8 Wed Feb 20
Exam 1
Classes 1 - 7

Mon Feb 25
Project 2 Assigned

9 Mon Feb 25 Basic UI layout in Java Handouts
10 Wed Feb 27 Basic Event Handling in Java Handouts
11 Mon Mar 3 Introduction to Trees MAW 4.1 & 4.2
12
Wed Mar 5 Binary Search Trees MAW 4.3
13
Mon Mar 10 Binary Search Trees MAW 4.3
14 Wed Mar 12 Splay Trees MAW 4.5-6, 11.5

Fri March 14
Project 2 Due


Mon Mar 17
Spring Break


Wed Mar 19
Spring Break


Mon Mar 24
Project 3 Assigned
15 Mon Mar 24 K-D Trees MAW 12.6
16 Wed Mar 26 Red-Black Trees MAW 12.2 + notes
17 Mon Mar 31 Red-Black Trees MAW 12.2 + notes
18 Wed Apr 2 B-Trees MAW 4.7
19 Mon Apr 7 B-Trees MAW 4.7
20 Wed Apr 9 Hashing MAW 5

Fri Apr 11
Project 3 Due

21 Mon Apr 14
Exam 2
Classes 9 - 19

Wed Apr 16
Project 4 Assigned

22 Wed Apr 16 Hashing MAW 5
23 Mon Apr 21 Priority Queues and Heaps MAW 6
24 Wed Apr 23 Priority Queues and Heaps MAW 6
25 Mon Apr 28 Skip Lists MAW 10.4.2 + notes
26 Wed Apr 30 Disjoint Sets MAW 8

Wed Apr 30
Project 4 Due


Wed Apr 30
Project 5 Assigned

27 Mon May 5 Graphs MAW 9.1, 9.3 + notes
28 Wed May 7 Graphs MAW 9.1, 9.3 + notes
29 Mon May 12 Review

Tues May 13
Project 5 Due


Mon May 19
Final Exam
10:30a-12:30p
Classes 20 - 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/spring08/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 25, 2008 by Yun Peng

email: rberge1 AT umbc.edu
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