CISC 1100 Structures of Computer Science, R04

Fordham University

Department of Computer and Information Science

Prof. Griffin Miller, Fall 2024

Class times: Tuesday and Friday, 8:30 – 9:45 AM, JMH-330

Instructor: Prof. Griffin Miller

E-mail: griffin@griffinmiller.com

Office hours: Tuesday and Friday 10-11 AM, and by appointment

Required Text

“Fundamentals of Discrete Structures”, D. Lyons, C. Papadakis-Kanaris, G. Weiss, and A. Werschulz, Pearson, 2013, SECOND EDITION.

Tutoring room: Location: JMH 301 Hours: M-F, 9am-5pm

Course description

An introductory course in the discrete structures used in computer and information technology. Emphasis will be placed on the ability to solve problems and develop logical thinking. Topics to be covered include:

• Sets
• Formal logic
• Sequences
• Functions & Relations
• Combinatorics and probability
• Web design and programming

Objectives

To develop mathematical and computational reasoning abilities and to master the basics of discrete mathematics; to become more comfortable and confident with both mathematics and computation. A student who successfully completes this course will be able to:

• Analyze and understand common mathematical notation and concepts
• Develop solutions to mathematical problems across a wide array of topics
• Use a well-defined methodology to reason about mathematical problems
• Be able to complete simple computer-based projects

Attendance and class participation

It is important to attend every class, and to arrive on time. One unexcused absence is permitted for the semester, no need to notify me beforehand. Attendance will be taken every day. Please actively participate in class since this will make the course more interesting for everyone! Ask questions if you are unsure about something.

Class Communication

We will be using Ed Discussion for all questions, discussions, conversations. Please post any questions you have about course concepts here, but please do not upload pictures of your solutions to questions; you may ask questions in private posts to me as well. Help your classmates out! Active students that answer Ed questions may receive extra credit at the end of the semester. Class discussion links are shared with enrolled students.

Course assignments

There will be 5 - 6 homeworks and 2 lab projects assigned for the course. The homeworks will be announced at least 4 days before they are due, e.g., a homework announced on Thursday may be due the following Monday. The lab projects in web design and programming will be announced at least 3 weeks before they are due; we will spend 2 - 3 days in the computer science lab to learn and practice the skills for each of these projects.

Late Days

Things come up—I get it! Each student is permitted 2 late days for assignments, no need to notify me. Each late day is a 24-hour extension. It is your responsibility to keep track of how many late days you have used. Once these two days have been used, late assignments will no longer be accepted. Please contact me if you have any extenuating circumstances that come up that I should be aware of, too, please!

Academic honesty

All work produced in this course must be your own unless it is specifically stated that you may work with others. I strongly encourage discussing the assignment problems and course topics with other students, but each student must produce their own solutions for each problem. Copying of assignments is never acceptable and will be considered a violation of Fordham's academic integrity policy. Violations of this policy will be handled in accordance with university policy which can include automatic failure of the assignment and/or failure of the course. See Fordham's Undergraduate Policy on Academic Integrity for more information.

Internet, AI, and Collaboration Policy

The internet and, in particular, AI are incredibly useful academic tools for further enriching class concepts. However, it is never acceptable to use either of these to produce answers for homework assignments. If you seek clarifying questions from one of these tools or from another student and it proves helpful, cite your exact question and the answer somewhere in your assignment writeup.

Exams

There will be two midterm exams -- one in October, one in November -- the exact dates will be announced at least 3 weeks in advance of the exam. There will be a final exam at the end of the course.

Grading

My priority in teaching this class is your learning. I really want to help you learn important fundamental topics in computer science, and that’s why I’m here—not principally to evaluate you.

The percentages given below are guidelines for both the student and instructor and may be changed as needed to reflect circumstances in the course. Any changes that occur during the semester will be minor. Final course grades will be calculated by determining the raw overall score, and then breaking the score distribution into different letter grades. We do not decide these letter grade cutoff points until the end of the quarter.