CSC 151.01, Class 42: Wrap Up

Overview

• Preliminaries
  • Notes and news
  • Upcoming work
  • Extra credit
  • Questions
• Project presentations
• The subject matter(s) of the course
• Course evaluation
• Concluding comments
• Final Friday PSA
• Comments on the final (optional)

News / Etc.

• Don’t forget that epilogues are due tonight!
• I don’t have office hours next week, but I should be in my office at assorted times on Monday and Tuesday. I’ll also be in 3815 from 9-noon on Wednesday.

Upcoming work

• Cover sheets for exam 4 due NOW!
• Epilogues due TONIGHT!
• Optional final during finals week (Wed 2pm, Thu 9am, or Fri 9am).

Extra credit (Peer)

• Recitals Friday at 4:15 pm in Sebring-Lewis

Extra credit (Misc)

Other good things

• Musical: Next to Normal Friday at 7:30, Saturday and Sunday at 2:30. Arrive early and put your name on a waiting list.
• Stay healthy and sane during finals week.

Questions

Presentations

The subject matter(s) of the course

Problem solving

• Draw it out
• You think better about problems when you work with another person.
• You think better about problems when you work an imaginary other person or potted plant.
• Work on small cases and then generalize.
• Don’t just jump in: Plan. Think about the problem and then let your subconscious work on it a bit.

The core of computer science: Algorithms and data structures

• Some famous algorithms
  • Filter
  • Map-Reduce
  • Sorting: Insertion sort, Selection Sort, Merge Sort
  • Searching: Linear search, Binary Search
• Some famous data structures
  • List
  • Vector
  • Tree
  • Binary Search Trees
• Core parts of an algorithm
  • Ohyeah
  • O - original routines and data
  • variables/naming
  • output and input
  • conditionals
  • sequencing
  • subroutines
  • repetition

Functional programming

• Some higher-order procedures
  • map
  • apply
• Traditionally, a function does not mutate its parameters and, given the same inputs, gives the same output.
• Recursion is a great technique for solving problems, particularly if your trust the magic recursion fairy.
• UM - use map and apply

Program and software design

• Um
  • use mutation (not in functional programming)
• Document, document, document
• Um2
  • Use masterful formatting
  • Name variables and procedures clearly clearly
• It’s not just important that it works, it’s important that it works efficiently.

Scheme

• '(par (en (((the)) is)))
• UM: Use (already-)Made procedures
  • Approximately 212.45
• Syntax, like let for local variables.

Data science

• Data often needs to be cleaned. You can do it by hand, you can write a program, or you can work with dirty data.
• Once you clean the data, you may still want to select some elements (so use filter) and then work with the data (so use map). More generally, a process for dealing with data.
• Store data in sensible ways and use procedures like assoc to search the data. (keys, values, comparators, compound data)

General thinking skills

• Practice in answering questions “on your feet”, as it were.
  • It’s okay to say “Give me a minute to think”
  • It’s okay to say “I’m not sure”
  • It’s okay to say “Let me ask my partner.”
• Practice working with other people (pair programming)

And beyond

• There’s more to life than
• Sam failed at: “Don’t start your responses with ‘um’”
• Believe in yourself. If you keep working at it, you may succeed.
• Time management.
• You have awesome peers (even if they don’t have activities). Support them.
• There is a lot of stuff going on on campus. Don’t live under a rock.
  • Read eboards or _the_sand_b`
• When things go wrong, laugh. When things go right, laugh.
• You are awesome. Please take care of your selves.

Course evaluation

Sam leaves.

Concluding comments

Final Friday PSA

Comments on the final