CS3120 - Discrete Mathematics and Theory 2 Course Logistics

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Syllabus | Lectures | Textbook |Quizzes | Homeworks and Grading Policy | Final Exam | Final Letter Grades |

Syllabus

The syllabus for the course can be found here. Most (but not all) of that information is summarized here.

Lectures

Attendance is required. For each missed lecture, your grade will be deducted 4 percentage points. I will take attendance each day. If you are on your phone / laptop or otherwise a distraction to others or to me then you may also lose these attendance points for that particular day.

Textbook

You will really need to read and study material other than the slides. There are many choices where you can get more details about our topics, but a textbook is the easiest option.

We’ll post readings from the following textbook, and we urge you to read them or get that info from another source.

Introduction to the Theory of Computation by Michael Sipser, 2nd edition.

Modules

The course is divided into 4 modules, each which lasts for about 2-5 lectures each. The 5 modules are listed below:

• Module 1: Introduction, Cardinality, Regular Languages
• Module 2: Context-Free Grammars
• Module 3: Turing Machines and Decidability
• Module 4: Complexity Theory

Quizzes (Exams)

There will be two midterms and one final exam. The dates for these assessments is:

• Midterm 1: Fri. July 24
• Midterm 2: Fri. Aug. 31
• Final Exam: Fri. Aug. 7

Homeworks

There are one or two homework assignments per module (depending on the module), that must be completed. These will be graded on a traditional scale (out of 10 points). See the syllabus and the homeworks page for more details.

Late Policy: Homeworks have firm deadlines, but extensions are automatically given and grant an additional 3 days of time to work on the assignment. There will be No extensions for any reason beyond the 3 day extension. If you need additional time on homeworks, you should consider appealing for a grade of Incomplete at the end of the semester (contact the instructor for details).

Grades

Your letter grade will be calculated using a traditional weighted average. The weights are:

• Attendance: 20 percent (4 point deduction per missed class period)
• Homework: 20 percent (about 6 homeworks)
• Midterms: 30 percent (15 percent each)
• Final Exam: 30 percent

Homeworks and quizzes will be graded on a traditional percentage scale. Your final letter grade will be determined by the traditional decade curve. The table for which is shown below: