Undergraduate Level 300 Courses
Computer Architecture
General organization of a computer system. Memory hierarchy. Emphasis on memory organization and management implementation. Local and long distance communication, bus, input-output organization and control. Programmed I/O and I/O processors. Interrupt handling. Processor organization; instruction set; arithmetic-logic unit; parallel and stack processors. Programmed and hardwired, central and distributed control.
Algorithms and Data Structures
Comprehensive coverage of all major groups of algorithms, including divide-and-conquer, dynamic programming, greedy, backtracking, branch-and-bound, and parallel algorithms. Discussion of the design and implementation of complex, dynamic data structures. Time and space complexity of algorithms are covered, including Big-O, Theta and Omega notations, Master theorem.
Models of Computation
Prerequisites: CIS 181, MTH 182
Models of sequential, parallel, and distributed computations. The Chomsky hierarchy of formal languages and their accepting machines are studied in detail. The relationship of these languages and machines to computer programs is presented. Influence of a Turing machine and related formalisms on modern computing are studied. Decidability of decision problems is explained. Several models of parallel and distributed computations are introduced and compared.
Empirical Methods for Computer Science
Prerequisite: MTH 331
Topics and methods supporting an experimental approach to the study of issues in computer science and software engineering. Course covers the basic principles of experimental design and case study construction. Emphasis in the course is on the use of empirical methods for decision making and the evaluation of research in computer science and software engineering that employ empirical methods.
Design of Operating Systems
Prerequisite: CIS 273
3 hours lecture; 2 hours laboratory
Principles of modern operating systems and their design. Scientific principles and engineering rules of operating systems are explored. Process and storage management subsystems are analyzed in detail. Protection and security are taken into account in design. An introduction to distributed operating systems is also presented. This is a design and project based course with a laboratory component.
Prerequisite: Junior standing
Introduction to the social, legal, and ethical issues of computing. Topics include how computer use affects social and work relationships and the uses of computers in society. These will be reviewed in the context of risks, privacy and intrusion, computer crime, intellectual property, and professional decision-making. Students analyze scenarios that allow them to view ethical decision-making as a crucial part of understanding the world of computing.
