Syllabus for CS 27500
Data Structures
Fall, 2012

Professor Roger Kraft
Office: Classroom Office Building (CLO), Room 368
Office phone: (219) 989-2696
Office hours: 11:00-12:00 MW and by appointment.
E-mail: roger@purduecal.edu

Text: Data Structures & Algorithms in Java, 4th Edition, by Michael Main, Pearson, 2012.
(NOTE: The 4th Edition of the textbook is the official textbook, but the 3rd Edition can also be used.)

Supplemental Text: Java Structures, Data Structures in Java for the Principled Programmer, by Duane Bailey.
(NOTE: This is a free textbook. More information about the book is available from its web site.)

This course is an introduction to data structures. We will cover Chapters 1 - 9 and Chapter 12 of the textbook. Our goal is to cover the use and implementation of the most important data structures (linked lists, stacks, queues, hash tables, trees). All of these data structures will be studied using the concepts of Abstract Data Types. We will also study how recursion can be used both to process and define data structures.

In addition to the study of data structures, three other subjects will be important in this course, the Java programming language, Object Oriented Programming (OOP), and generics. We will see how object oriented programming techniques, in particular Java generics, can be used to define and implement abstract data types. All of the programming assignments will be done in Java and make use of object oriented programming and design.

Your grade for this course will be based on 8 to 10 programming assignments and two exams in the following manner: 

           40%    programming assignments,
           30%    midterm exam,
           30%    Final Exam.
Tentative dates for the two exams are 
           Exam 1   Monday, October 22
           Final    Final exam week.
Each of the programming assignments will have a due date. To receive full credit for an assignment, it must be turned in by the due date. All programs handed in late will be marked off 5\% of the total points for each calendar day late. If an assignment is more than two weeks late, then I reserve the right not to accept it for credit. When you complete an assignment you will submit your solution using Blackboard. In this course web site there are detailed instructions on how you are to turn in your assignments. You will be expected to follow the instructions. Also in the course web site is information on the criteria used to grade your programming assignments.

You should turn in your own work for each programming assignment. Here is what that means: You may talk with your classmates about the course material and the ideas behind each homework assignment but you should solve the problem on your own and write your own code for the solution. Turning in someone else's solution (or even a modified version of someone else's solution) is a breach of academic integrity. Similarly, giving a copy of your solution to someone else in the class is also a breach of academic integrity. If you need help with a homework assignment, come and ask me. You can ask me as many questions as you want! Please do not hesitate to ask me questions after class, in my office, in an e-mail message, over the phone, etc.

In this web site you will find more information about this course. There are links to online help and documentation for Java, information about course reading assignments, and, very importantly, all of your homework assignments and their due dates will be posted on one of the web pages.

The software that you need to do all of your programming assignments are on computers in the Mathematics Computer Labs in CLO 363 and CLO 365. If you wish to work at home, I will show you in class how to install and use a couple of different Java development environments. There is more information about this in these web pages.

If you are a student with a documented disability who will require academic/classroom accommodations in this course, please register with the Coordinator of Services for Students with Disabilities in the Student Support Services Office located in the Student Union and Library Building (SUL), Room 341, phone numbers: 219-989-2455, 219-989-2454(voice/TTY) or 219-989-2920.

Ethics are an integral part of being a student and a professional. Academic integrity is the hallmark of this University. Therefore, Purdue University does not tolerate academic dishonesty in any form. If a student breaches integrity, the student risks sanctions in both the academic and conduct arenas. Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to, the unauthorized use of other's intellectual property (plagiarism), and lying to an instructor or any University employee. Such actions WILL result in a failing grade on the assignment with the strong possibility of referral to the Office of the Dean of Students for a conduct sanction (see the Purdue University Calumet Student Handbook available from the Dean of Students office and the Dean of Students web site).


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