Time and location
| Class: | M/W/F 9:05AM-9:55AM, | 35 Nicholson Hall |
| Recitation: | Th, 09:05AM-09:55AM, | 211 Akerman Hall |
| | Th, 10:10AM-11:00AM, | 215 Akerman Hall |
| | Th, 11:15AM-12:05PM, | 120 Amundson Hall |
Instructor
Prof. Antonia Zhai
E-mail: zhai at cs dot umn dot edu
Phone: 612-626-1285
Office: EE/CSci 6-205
Office Hour: Wed. 10:00am-11:00am & 1:00pm-2:00pm
Teaching Assistance(s)
| Name | Email | Office | Office Hour | |
| Yangchun Luo | yluo at cs dot umn dot edu | EE/CSci 2-209 | Monday 3:30pm - 4:30pm |
| Puja Das | dasxx067 at umn dot edu | EE/CSci 2-209 | Tuesday 2:00pm - 4:00pm |
Online Information:
- Course Webpage: http://www-users.itlabs.umn.edu/classes/Fall-2008/csci2021
- Mailing List: csci2021@itlabs.umn.edu, visit here to subscribe
- Course Forum: https://wwws.cs.umn.edu/it-forum/list.php?432
- Lecture Notes: Password protected. User Id and password will be announced in class. Links to the lecture notes can be found on the class schedule.
- Grades: available on webct.
Prerequisite
CSCI 1902 or instructor's permission
Description
This course will introduce you to the basic concepts underlying all computer systems and prepare you for in-depth study in
any area of computer science.
This is the first course on computer organization and computer systems. It provides broad coverage of processor operation and
the aspects of system software such as compilers, linkers, and operating systems that are important from the programmer's perspective.
It also introduces you to the organization of basic components in modern computers such as processors, hierarchical memory systems,
and I/O peripherals and includes basic concepts in logic circuit design.
Why do you need this course if you have already taken 1901/1902?
Oversimplifying matters somewhat, CSCI 1901 is based on a simplified model of program execution, and CSCI 1902 builds further layers
of abstraction. CSCI 2021 looks "under the hood", and introduces greater detail about system behavior and operation.
This is NOT an assembly programming language course!
Textbooks
- Required Readings: R. Bryant, D. O'Hallaron. Computer Systems: A Programmer's Perspective. Prentice Hall, 2003
- Recommended Readings: Any good book on C to serve as a reference.
Course Work and Grading
|
| Item | Fraction of Grade | |
| Programming Assignments | 34% |
| Quizzes | 36% |
| Final Exam | 25% |
| Class Participation | 5% |
|
Your Responsibility
- Read the syllabus and know the class policies outlined in it.
- Come to class regularly and be prepared to participate. Slides on the class webpage are incomplete, and thus you must
come to class to find out what is missing. Furthurmore, class participation counts towards your final grade.
- Turn in individual and original work. This means that what you turn in must be your own work. If you turn in work done
by someone else, or work containing even a sentence or phrase copied from someone else, you may be assigned an F in
this course.
- Start your homework early enough that you can get help and still turn it in on time.
- Read the directions for submitting homework and follow them. It is your responsibility to submit the assignments on time.
- Pick up your graded homework and exams. They contain important feedback.
- Check the class web page regularly for announcements or changes.
- Check your grades on WebCT regularly.
- Keep up with the reading. It is very important that you read the assignments from the textbook prior to attending class.
If you do not have some exposure to the topic, you will be quite lost in the lectures.
- Do the homework. The assignments are provided as a way of reinforcing the lecture material and allowing you to practice
what has been learned in class. In general, the exam questions will be very similar to the homework, and the homework has
been designed to prepare you for the exams.
- Do not leave things to the last minute. The assignments will be challenging. Leaving them to the last possible minute is
a recipe for disaster. Try to complete the assignments as soon as possible after you receive them, while the material is
"fresh". Computers crash, files are lost, Murphy's Law is continually reinforced.
- Ask questions. I am here to help you learn, but unfortunately I cannot read your mind. If a concept is not clear to you,
ASK. If there is not sufficient time in class, additional time can be arranged to go over a topic until you are comfortable.
Course Policies:
- Homework: Several homework will be posted on the class homepage. You are
encouraged to work through these problems to prepare for the quizzes and
the final exam.
However, these assignments will not be graded and do not need to be turned in.
The solutions to these problems will be discussed in the recitations.
The solutions to selected problems will be posted online.
- Program in C: If you don't already know C, learn it now!
- Late submission: Late submission will receive a reduction of 15% of the
maximum possible score for each day they are late and no
submission is allowed after three days, except for
documented illnesses.
- Lab Access: We will be using PCs running Linux for the lab assignments,
and thus you must have
an ITLabs account. There is no formal lab for this course.
- Appealing: After each quiz and programming assignment is graded, we will post
a message on the class forum.
You have seven calendar days from the date the message is posted to
appeal your grade. If you have questions about the grade you received on a quiz or an assignment,
please talk first to the person in charge of the quiz/assignment, who will be clearly identified
in the course schedule. If you are still unsatisfied, please come and visit
Professor Zhai. She will re-grade the ENTIRE quiz/assignment.
- Incomplete: Incompletes are to be given only when a student who has SUCCESSFULLY completed
all the programming assignments and at least three quizzes and is unable to
finish the final exam for reasons beyond their control such as a medical emergency.
- Missed quizzes: Make-up quizzes will NEVER be granted. If you miss one quiz, your
final exam is worth 34% of your final grade; if you miss two quizzes, your final exam will
worth %43.
For the third and the fourth quiz that you miss, you will obtain a score of zero
for that quiz.
- Final Grade: Grades for the course will be determined by a curve. The total score will
be plotted as a histogram, and then approximate cutoff points for the different letter grades
will be
determined. Individual cases, especially those near the cutoff points may be adjusted upward
or downward based on factors such as attendance, class participation, improvement throughout
the course, final exam performance, and special circumstances.
- Open book quizzes and exams All quizzes and exams will be open book. You are not expect to memorize.
- The contents of this document and everything on the course webpage are subject
to change, and you are responsible for monitoring such changes.
- Cheating will not be tolerated.
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