This page will change: last modified on 1/16/01
Taught by Dr. William Mitchell, Spring 2001.( wmmitchell@ualr.edu )
Office in ETAS 258, Office hours 10-11:00 daily and 3-4 TR (generally in the rest of the day as well).
Textbooks: David Taylor, Object Technology (presents concepts of object-orientation for software design)
Russell Ackoff, The Art of Problem Solving (describes systems analysis and operations research kinds of problems)
William Mitchell, Prelude to Programming[distributed in class] (looks at puzzles to illustrate problem solving techniques and discusses algorithms and how they are described and implemented by machines)
Requirements:
two exams and final = 50% of course grade
Homework: Projects: = 10% (team problem assignments to be presented
[4])
Log = 10% (daily entries on your study habits. Each worth 4%)
Questions = 30% (individual responses to daily assignments. Each worth 4%)
Grading: 10 pt scale (A=90%, B=80%, etc.) Raw scores will be normalized to a 70% mean if the class average on a component is below 70%.
Proposed Spring 2001 Schedule of Topics
Lect Jan topic
1 16 Intro to Information Science (Overview course, discuss program vision paper, jobs, and skills developed in curriculum)
2 18 Mitchell 1: two systems: (problem-solving skills and developing skills)
3 23 Mitchell 2: tools (Let arith) (Organizing a problem, automating a problem solution, sample project)
4 25 Mitchell 3/Ackoff 1/Taylor 1(Review parts of problem, systematic problem-solving, object paradigm, and the role of creativity (Adams Blockbusting )
5 30 Mitchell 4: Algorithms [reverse] (Expressing algorithms, characteristics of algorithms)
Feb
6 1 Mitchell 5: drawing language (Task-oriented/machine constrained programming language, sub-problems)
7 6 Mitchell 6: Turing Machines (Symbol processing machine, coding problems, machine decoding.)
8 8 BinNumbSys/polynomials/Taylor 2&3 (Binary number system operations; polynomial expressions for numbers)
9 13 Mitchell 6: programming Turing machines (Programming Binary addition)
10 15 Mitchell 7: state diagrams (State diagrams, binary/decimal conversion)
11 20 Mitchell 8 & 9: diagrams (control operations: sequence, looping, branch/ structured programming)
22 exam 1 (sessions 1-10)
12 27 binomial Theorem/combinations/Taylor 4&5 (Counting cases: formulas for permutations and combinations, pascal's triangle, summations)
March
13 1 enumerating cases/Taylor Appendix A(Weighings and river crossing puzzles)
14 6 Ackoff 2-5 (Ackoff s problem-solving model)
15 8 Probability and conditional probability/Taylor 6
16 13 Ackoff 6-8 (idealized design, reference projections, control and effect)
17 15 recursion & recursive definitions/Taylor 7
18 20 UML
19 22 series and mathematical induction/Taylor 8&9
27 SB
29 SB
April
20 3 Mitchell 10: decision tables & pseudo code
21 5 code patterns
10 exam 2 (sessions 11-20)
22 12 UML
23 17 Ackoff 9-11 (supervision, statistical studies)
24 19 Ackoff 12 (an organizational problem monitoring system)
25 24 UML
26 26 Design Patterns
May
27 1 search engines
3 final review (comprehensive)
8 Final 1:30 pm.
DISABLED STUDENT POLICY:
It is the policy of UALR to accommodate students with disabilities, pursuant to federal and state law. Any student with a disability who needs accommodation, for example in seating placement or in arrangements for examinations, should inform the instructor at the beginning of the course. The chair of the department offering this course is also available to assist with accommodations. Students with disabilities are also encouraged to contact the Office of Disability Support Services, which is located in the Donaghey Student Center, Room 103, telephone 569-3143.
CLASSES BEGIN: JANUARY 16, 2001
LAST DAY TO REGISTER, ADD, OR ADJUST SCHEDULE: JANUARY 22, BY 5:00 PM
-no refunds for dropped classes after this date
-grade of "W" for dropped classes after this date
-last day to switch from credit to audit or vice-versa
HOLIDAY CLASS CANCELLATIONS: MARCH 26-APRIL 1, SPRING BREAK
LAST DAY TO DROP AN INDIVIDUAL CLASS: APRIL 13, BY 500PM
LAST DAY TO WITHDRAW FROM THE UNIVERSITY: MAY 3, BY 500PM
LAST DAY OF CLASSES: MAY 3