CS2013-final-report

What is the format of the course
The course meets face-to-face for 3.25 contact hours per week, split into three 65-minute class sessions. Two
sessions each week consist of lectures and laboratory exercises on technical topics. The third session is a discussion
of social/ethical issues. Students prepare for these discussions by reading several articles and writing a short
response paper.
How are students assessed
Students are assigned:
• 11 homework assignments (slightly fewer than one per week) – typically one large problem or 2-5 medium
sized problems, often including writeups of in-class lab exercises. For example, when students learn
HTML, they create their own Web site of 2-3 interlinked pages. When they learn digital logic, they design
simple circuits.
• 2 in-class exams: a midterm and a cumulative final.
• 10 reading response papers, 1-2 pages each, one for each discussion topic.
• An “emerging technology analysis”: a 4-5 page paper accompanied by a 4-minute “lightning” presentation.
Students identify a new technology (reported within the last two years) and analyze its social or ethical
implications.
Course textbooks and materials
The course currently does not use a textbook. Online readings are used to augment lectures on some technical topics.
Readings on social and ethical issues are drawn from the CACM, particularly the columns, which often focus on
social and ethical issues. For example, the following readings are assigned for the topic of energy and sustainability:
• P. Kurp. Green computing. CACM 51(10): 11-13.
• G. Mone. Redesigning the data center. CACM 55(10): 14-16.
• M. Garrett. Powering down. CACM 51(9): 43-46.
• R.T. Watson. Corbett, M.C. Boudreau, and J. Webster. An information strategy for environmental
sustainability. CACM 55(7): 28-30.
• T. Kostyk and J. Herkert. Societal implications of the emerging smart grid. CACM 55(11): 34-36.
Readings from the CACM are sometimes augmented with online news articles about current events.
Why do you teach the course this way
The course is intended to appeal to a broad range of students, but particularly those who are interested in
approaching computing from the perspective of intellectual curiosity and informed citizenship. Students who want to
learn to program or who intend to become computer science majors typically begin with our other introductory
course, CSC 151, Functional Problem Solving.
Major objectives for the course include:
• Fluency in basic computing concepts, components, and operation
• Learning how computers can be used to solve problems and create new things
• Sharpening analytical and problem-solving skills
• Understanding legal, social, and ethical implications of both existing and potential technologies
Body of Knowledge coverage
KA Knowledge Unit Topics Covered Hours
AL Basic Analysis Best, expected, worst case
1
Empirical measurements of performance
AL Basic Automata Computability
and Complexity
Intractable problems
Halting problem
1
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