Course Description

Introduction to algorithms, programming, and software packages for solving standard mathematical problems common to all engineering disciplines: finding roots of equations, solving linear systems and ordinary differential equations, curve fitting and approximation. Methods are illustrated with problems selected from a variety of engineering disciplines. Laboratory work gives experience with a variety of systems: computer algebra systems, matrix software, etc.

How This Course Works

CS 310 is taught using online technology to make learning more interesting and efficient. Each week of the course is devoted to some topic module from the syllabus. There are several pieces to this course. Here are the pieces:

• Course Content Modules: There is no required textbook as all content is available online. There a content module developed for each week which includes: Learning Outcomes and several Lessons. Each Lesson has a Topic Discussion, Examples, and Exercises. See the Syllabus link for direct links to each week's module.
  
• Lectures. These are held once a week on Monday's to introduce the week's topic. The lectures also give students a chance ask questions about the content and hear answers to other students questions.
  
• Team labs (Tues or Wed). Meet in 187 CAE and work in a group of three to solve problems related to the topic of the week. Each team will share a single computer and work together to solve the problems posed in the team lab for that week. See the Team Labs link for direct links to each week's team lab document and solution (once posted).
  
• Individual study time. This lab format does not eliminate the need for you to work through and study the material on your own time. Students are encouraged to work in B540 during times when TAs have scheduled office hours, to get individual questions answered. Learning to program can be a very time-consuming activity for some students. The best approach is to break large problems into smaller and smaller problems and then solve the small problems before combining them into larger solutions.
  
• Homeworks. Approximately six problem sets that you may complete individually or with one other student. See the collaboration policy for more details. More information on homeworks is posted on the Homeworks link in the NavBar.
  
• Individual labs (Thurs or Fri). In these weekly labs, complete work on the current week's module content, review the current week's Team Lab solutions, ask questions about the material, complete weekly quiz.
• Individual lab quizzes. A quiz on the current week's material. To do well on this timed quiz, you must have learned how to solve the various problems presented without additional help. See the Quizzes link for links to the current week's Individual Lab quiz.
  
• Exams. There are three written exams that require students to show what they have learned [without the benefit of trying it first on the computer or looking it up online or in the program's help system]. It is imperative that you understand (and learn) how you solved each type of problem. Simply doing trial and error until you get the solution and then moving on to the next problem will not be adequate for getting a good grade in this course. A and AB students will understand what each command does, how to use it, and how to combine it with other commands to solve similar, but different problems. More information on exams is posted on the Exams link in the NavBar.

Suggestions on improving the course are always welcome. Just send email to the course coordinator or use the Errata link. Please include your email address so that we may contact you to get more information about your suggestion, clarify a topic that was confusing, or correct any misunderstandings your suggestion might indicate.

Prerequisites

One year of calculus (Math 221 and Math 222). Maximum benefit will accrue to students who take CS 310 early in their college careers. A few students have suggested taking it concurrently with Math 340.

TIP: If you do not remember what a derivative or integral is or your pre-calculus algebra, geometry, and trigonometry courses are distant memories, now is a good time to start refreshing your memory. We do assume that you have all of these Math skills as the majority of our problems require some recall of your earlier (high school) Math and Science course work.

Readings

All course material is available online. See the Syllabus for links to each week's content module. Contact your instructor if you would like additional reference material recommendations.

Computer Facilities

Students will use accounts on the Windows workstations at 187 CAE and B540 Engr Hall.

Related Courses

CS 310 and NEEP 271 emphasize scripting (programming) numerical methods as well as teaching basic programming concepts in Matlab. If you want even more programming instruction, take CS 302.

Credits

This is a 3-credit course. Students can not get credit for both CS310 and NEEP271.

Grading

Most students tend to average around 76-82% over all components in the course and thus the average grade in the course is typically a B. However, many students do above and beyond the average work (and above the minimum requirements for homework) and understand the material at or above 90% correct. For students with a percentage of 90% or higher, the grade in the course is AB orA. If you are consistently performing below the class average on quizzes and homeworks, please be sure to contact us for a review of (and suggestions for improving) your study habits for this course. We will suggest ways in which you can prepare to better test your comprehension and performance on the problems you are asked to solve.