CS2013-final-report

Introduction to Computer Science, Harvey Mudd College
Claremont, CA 91711
Zachary Dodds
dodds@cs.hmc.edu
https://www.cs.hmc.edu/twiki/bin/view/CS5
Knowledge Areas that contain topics and learning outcomes covered in the course
Knowledge Area
Software Development Fundamentals (SDF) 24
Algorithms and Complexity (AL) 9
Architecture and Organization (AR) 7.5
Programming Languages (PL) 3
Parallel and Distributed Computing (PD) 1.5
Total Hours of Coverage
Where does the course fit in your curriculum
Every first-semester student at Harvey Mudd College – and about 100 students from sister institutions at the
Claremont Colleges – take one of the sections of this course. It has no prerequisites and is offered in three distinct
“colors”: CS 5 “gold” is for students with no prior experience, CS 5 “black” is for students with some experience,
and CS 5 “green” is a version with a biological context to all of the computational content. 275 students were in
CS 5 in fall 2012.
What is covered in the course
This course has five distinct modules of roughly three weeks each:
(1) We begin with conditionals and recursion, practicing a functional problem-solving approach to a variety of
homework problems. Python is the language in which students solve all of their assignments in this module.
(2) In the second module students investigate the fundamental ideas of binary representation, combinational
circuits, machine architecture, and assembly language; they complete assignments in each of these topics using
Python, Logisim, and a custom-built assembly language named Hmmm. This unit culminates with the handimplementation
of a recursive function in assembly, pulling back the curtain on the “magic” that recursion can
sometimes seem.
(3) Students return to Python in the third module, building imperative/iterative idioms and skills that build from
the previous unit’s assembly language jumps. Creating the Mandelbrot set from scratch, Markov text-generation,
and John Conway’s Game of Life are part of this module’s student work.
(4) The fourth module introduces object-oriented skills, again in Python, with students implementing a Date
calculator, a Board class that can host a game of Connect Four, and a Player class that implements game-tree
search.
(5) The fifth module introduces mathematical and theoretical facets of computer science, including finite-state
machines, Turing machines, and uncomputable functions such as Kolmogorov complexity and the halting
problem. Small assignments use JFLAP to complement this in-class content, even as students’ work centers on a
medium-sized Python final project, such as a genetic algorithm, a game using 3d graphics with the VPython
library, or a text-analysis web application.
What is the format of the course
This is a three-credit course with two 75-minute lectures per week. An optional, but incentivized lab attracts 90+%
of the students to a two-hour supplemental session each week.
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