CMSC 341 Data Structures Fall 2007
Section 0201 (Mondays and Wednesdays, 5:30-6:45 PM ITE229)
Mr. Mitch Edelman
Course Announcements
Additional office hours Mr. Edelman will hold additional
office hours on Tuesday, Nov 20, from 6:00-8:00 for last-minute
Project 4 questions
Generics Notes You may find additional materials on the java.sun.com
tutorials pages. Also, you might find
this writeup
helpful.
Another link you may find useful is from the
Sun web site.
Course Description
course content
We will cover the design and implementation of a number of "classical"
data structures - lists, stacks, queues, trees, sets, and graphs, to
name a few.
We will also cover techniques for analyzing the performance of our
implementations of these data structures, using a technique known
as "algorithm analysis".
course objectives
You will learn how to select an appropriate data structure and implementation
based on the problem you are solving.
You will learn some Java - as will the instructor.
you will learn how to analyze the performance of code, both in terms of
their running time and space requirements.
You will have ample opportunities (in the form of quizzes and coding
projects) to practice these skills.
Textbooks
Required: Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis in Java,
2rd Edition, by Mark Alan Weiss, Addison-Wesley, ISBN 0-321-37013-9
Recommended:
- Your favorite Java reference book -- here are some of mine (NOTE:
Most of these are rather new. Java is an evolving language, and release
1.5 includes many language features not described in earlier texts)
- Absolute Java, Third Edition by Walter Savitch
Addison Wesley Publishing, ISBN: 0-321-48792-3
This is the text used in CMSC 202
- Java in a Nutshell, 5th Edition by David Flanagan,
O'Reilly, 2005, ISBN 0-596-00773-6
- Thinking in Java, edition by Bruce Eckel, Prentice-Hall PTR, 2006, ISBN 0-131-87248-6. Available online at http://www.codeguru.com/java/tij/tij_c.shtml.
- Head First Java, Second Edition by Kathy Sierra and Bert Bates,
O'Reilly, 2005, ISBN 0-596-00920-8
- Learning Java by Neimeyer & Knudsen, O'Reilly Press, 2005 ISBN 0-596-00873-2
- Data structures and algorithms with object-oriented design patterns in Java by Bruno Preiss, Wiley, 1999.
- Data Structures and Algorithm Analysis by Clifford
Shaffer,
Prentice-Hall, 1996. 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 by
Sartaj Sahni, McGraw-Hill, 1998.
- Data Structures and Algorithms by Alfred Aho, John
Hopcroft, and Jeffrey Ullman, Addison-Wesley, 1983. This is one of the
all-time classics, written in Pascal.
- Fundamentals of Data Structures in C++ by Ellis Horowitz, Sartaj
Sahni, and Dinesh Mehta, 2006. Update of another classic.
- Abstract Data Types by Nell Dale and Henry Walker, D.C.
Heath and Company, 1996. 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. 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). Projects are due on or before the published due date, and
they will not be accepted after that time. Please plan your schedules
accordingly. Note that it's much better for you to turn in a partially-completed
project than not to turn anything in. Makeup exams are
generally not given. If your work schedule precludes your taking an exam,
please notify me in advance.
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 keep up with the work to do well in this course. If the
only coding you do is just the projects, and all your studying is just
before the exam, you can reasonably expect a "c". If you want to earn a
better grade, you will need to do more than just 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:
- Please do not email program 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, and my mail filters will probably
not eliminate campus mail.
- Include a meaningful subject line, something like "CMSC 341
Project 2 question."
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.
Lab Access and Policies
During TA Lab Office Hours, students enrolled in CSMC 341 will be able
to use computers in the CSEE Systems Lab (ITE 240) for their project work.
The lab contains 24 high-end Pentium machines with 1 GB RAM, dual-processor
Pentium 4 CPUs and a CD-RW drive. Working there, during those
times, will give students almost instant access to TA assistance as they
work on projects.
Students using the lab must observe all the rules below:
-
Observe all the University and Departmental policies regarding the use of the University's and the Department's computer and laboratory facilities.
-
No Food or Drinks Allowed in the Lab. Absolutely Never!
-
Do not log in to multiple machines, especially when there are students waiting for access to the lab.
-
Be respectful of others working in the lab. DO NOT create disturbances (e.g. don't be noisy, don't play audible music, etc).
-
CMSC 421 related activities have priority. This is because they have special
requirements that limit them to this lab, while there are designated OIT Labs
across campus that provide general computer access.
-
Observe the TA hours in the lab. CMSC 341 students are only allowed to work during the TA lab hours. Sign in with the
TA when you arrive. You must leave the lab by when the TA goes off duty - no excuses, no exceptions!
- When you complete working in the lab, remove all your code from the lab machines. Leaving your code where others may find
it does not absolve you from being charged with cheating, should some other student find and "borrow" your code.
-
Report offenders of lab rules to the instructional staff.
-
Report any suspicious activity to the instructional staff or the Campus police, as appropriate.
-
The lab is provided to you by the University for your benefit. Take good care of it! Do not abuse it!
-
Repeated offenses might result in shutting down the laboratory for everybody.
Failure to observe all the lab rules will result in suspending your lab access, as well as further disciplinary
actions as determined by Departmental and University policy.
As lab time and resources are limited, you should plan to use them to your best advantage. I suggest that
your best use of the lab is to obtain assistance from the TA on some problems you have, rather than to experiment
with code design (or any other such activity that can be done effectively in one of the regular labs, without
the TA's presence). Lab time and space are limited resources. Please use them when you must, but please try to
use them only when you must.
Class Schedule
Class |
Date
|
Topic
|
Reading
|
1 |
Wed 8/29 |
Introduction and Java |
MAW 1 |
2 |
Wed 9/5 |
Java and OOP |
MAW 1; tutorial |
|
Wed 9/5 |
Project 1 Assigned |
|
3 |
Mon 9/10 |
Java and OOP |
MAW 1; tutorial |
4 |
Wed 9/12 |
Asymptotic Analysis (Presented by Professor Rheingans) |
MAW 2 |
5 |
Mon 9/17 |
Asymptotic Analysis |
MAW 2 |
6 |
Wed 9/19 |
List ADT and Implementations |
MAW 3 |
|
Fri 9/21 |
Project 1 Due |
|
7 |
Mon 9/24 |
Stacks and Queues |
MAW 3 |
8 |
Wed 9/26 |
Exam 1 |
Classes 1 - 8 |
|
Wed 9/26 |
Project 2 Assigned |
|
9 |
Mon 10/1 |
Basic UI and Event Handling in Java |
Handouts |
10 |
Wed 10/3 |
TBD |
|
11 |
Mon 10/8 |
Introduction to Trees |
MAW 4.1 & 4.2 |
12 |
Wed 10/10 |
Binary Search Trees |
MAW 4.3 |
|
Fri 10/12 |
Project 2 Due |
|
13 |
Mon 10/15 |
Binary Search Trees |
MAW 4.3 |
|
Mon 10/15 |
Project 3 Assigned |
|
14 |
Wed 10/17 |
Splay Trees |
MAW 4.5-6, 11.5 |
15 |
Mon 10/22 |
K-D Trees |
MAW 12.6 |
16 |
Wed 10/24 |
Red-Black Trees |
MAW 12.2 + notes |
17 |
Mon 10/29 |
Red-Black Trees |
MAW 12.2 + notes |
18 |
Wed 10/31 |
B-Trees |
MAW 4.7 |
|
Fri 11/2 |
Project 3 Due |
|
19 |
Mon 11/5 |
B-Trees |
MAW 4.7 |
20 |
Wed 11/7 |
Exam 2 |
Classes 10 - 20 |
|
Wed 11/7 |
Project 4 Assigned |
|
21 |
Mon 11/12 |
Hashing |
MAW 5 |
22 |
Wed 11/14 |
Hashing |
MAW 5 |
23 |
Mon 11/19 |
Priority Queues and Heaps |
MAW 6 |
23 |
Wed 11/21 | Priority Queues and Heaps |
MAW 6 |
|
Wed 11/21 |
Project 4 Due |
|
25 |
Mon 11/26 |
Skip Lists |
MAW 10.4.2 + notes |
|
Mon 11/26 |
Project 5 Assigned |
|
26 |
Wed 11/28 |
Disjoint Sets |
MAW 8 |
27 |
Mon 12/3 |
Graphs |
MAW 9.1, 9.3 + notes |
28 |
Wed 12/5 |
Graphs |
MAW 9.1, 9.3 + notes |
29 |
Mon 12/10 |
Review |
|
|
Wed 12/12 |
Project 5 Due |
|
|
Mon 12/17 6:00PM |
Final Exam
|
Classes 1 - 29 |
- Dates and topics are subject to change as required by class
progress
- MAW = Weiss text "Data Structures & Algorithm Analysis
in Java"
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/fall07/index.shtml
Please check the web page frequently. Any changes to the page will be
mentioned in the "Latest News" link.
Last modified on Sunday, August 26, 2007 by Mitch Edelman
email: edelman AT umbc.edu
Back up to Fall 2007 CMSC-341 Homepage