CSE 341 Administrivia & Useful Information

The Team:

Class Meetings

Lectures: MWF 10:30-11:20, THO 134
Quiz AA: TH 8:30-9:20 (yawn), MEB 234
Quiz AB: TH 9:30-10:20 MEB 250

Objective

Our objective is to learn fundamental programming language concepts. We approach this by acquiring practical experience with a set of three quite different programming languages -- Scheme, ML, and Smalltalk-80. Following the study of the three languages, we'll finish up with a comparative discussion of programming language concepts in these and other languages. We will spend about 2-3 weeks per topic.

Required Texts

These books have all been used in the past, and you may be able to get used copies from former 341 students. (Naturally we would like to think that these books will become treasured volumes in your permanent library, but tastes differ ...)

Important Dates

Remember these dates! Class will not meet on January 21 (MLK Day) and February 18 (President's Day). The final exam will take place on Monday, March 18th, at 8:30AM.

Coursework

There will be approximately one small homework per language. Additionally, there will be three large programming projects (Scheme, ML, Smalltalk). There will be two midterms. This will be an interactive class and you will all be expected and encouraged to participate. If I call on you, that does not mean that I'm picking on you, just that I'm trying to get you to participate. There will come a time when you will be expected to answer a question to which you don't know the answer. In this case, you should not be ashamed to say, "I don't know." I guarantee this will happen to all of us (myself included) at some point.

Grading

Your final grade will be based on homework (15%), projects (30%), midterms (20-30%) and the final (20-30%). Individual grades may vary slightly, based on effort, contribution to class and section, etc. This grading structure is subject to change.

Late Assignments and Incompletes

Assignments are due at the beginning of lecture. If you write answers out by hand, please make sure they are legible. Write your name, quiz section, and the name(s) of your collaborators (see below) on each assignment. The late policy is as follows: each student is granted two late days to use at his/her discretion during the quarter. A late day is defined as the period of time until the beginning of the next lecture. For example, if an assignment is due Wednesday, turning in the assignment anytime up to the beginning of Friday's lecture constitutes the use of one late day. Turning it in anytime up to the start of Monday's lecture constitutes the use of two late days. Please use your late days wisely. Barring exceptional circumstances, extra late days or other extensions will not be granted.

You may not use your late days for the final assignment of the quarter!

Collaboration/Cheating Policy

Students in this course are encouraged to work together. However, there are a few groundrules everyone must follow. Failure to understand and follow these rules will constitute cheating, and will be dealt with as per university guidelines.
  1. The Gilligan's Island Rule: This rule says that you are free to meet with fellow students(s) and discuss the assignment with them. Writing on a board or shared piece of paper is acceptable during the meeting; however, you should not take any written (electronic or otherwise) record away from the meeting. After the meeting, engage in a half hour of mind-numbing activity (like watching an episode of Gilligan's Island), before starting to work on the assignment. This will assure that you are able to reconstruct what you learned from the meeting, by yourself, using your own brain.
  2. The Freedom of Information Rule: To assure that all collaboration is on the level, you must always write the name(s) of your collaborators on your assignment.