| Course Code | COMP9020 |
| Course Title | Foundations of Computer Science |
| Convenor | Paul Hunter |
| Admin | Paul Hunter |
| Classes |
Lectures: Wed 3-6, Rex Vowels, Weeks 1-12 |
| Consultation | Paul Hunter, TBA |
| Units of Credit | 6 |
| Course Website | http://www.cse.unsw.edu.au/~cs9020 |
| Handbook Entry | http://www.handbook.unsw.edu.au/postgraduate/courses/current/COMP9020.html |
The official scope is: mathematical methods for designing correct and efficient programs; mathematics for algorithm analysis; logic for proving and verification.
The actual content is taken from a list of subjects that constitute the basis of the tool box of every serious practitioner of computing: set and relation theory; induction, recursion and recurrence relations; order of growth of functions; structured counting (combinatorics); discrete probability; graph theory and trees for algorithmic applications; propositional logic and boolean algebras.
The course timetable is available here.
After successfully completing this course, you will have developed an increased level of mathematical maturity to assist with the fundamental problem of finding, formulating, and proving properties of programs.
After According to UNSW policy, graduate attributes are important because the disciplinary knowledge that students develop at university is not adequate in itself as the basis for their future lives. Instead, graduates need qualities and skills that equip them for lifelong learning. These include critical thinking and problem-solving skills as well as communication skills and information literacy skills.
This course contributes to the development of the following graduate capabilities:
| Graduate Capability | Acquired in |
| scholarship: understanding of their discipline in its interdisciplinary context | lectures |
| scholarship: capable of independent and collaborative enquiry | quizzes, assignments |
| scholarship: rigorous in their analysis, critique, and reflection | in-class exercises, assignments |
| scholarship: able to apply their knowledge and skills to solving problems | quizzes, assignments |
| scholarship: capable of effective communication | forum |
| scholarship: information literate | lectures, quizzes, assignments |
| scholarship: digitally literate | lectures, quizzes |
| professionalism: capable of independent, self-directed practice | assignments, quizzes |
| professionalism: capable of operating within an agreed Code of Practice | all course-work, by doing it yourself |
| global citizens: culturally aware and capable of respecting diversity and acting in socially just/responsible ways | interaction with your fellow students |
None
Lectures will include exercises where we examine the practice of formulating and proving mathematical properties of relevance to Computer Science. Weekly quizzes aim to cement understanding and provide immediate and ongoing feedback for students to assess their understanding of the course material. Assignments aim to deepen analysis and understanding via additional examples and problems. There are no tutorials or laboratory classes for this subject.
Quizzes are to be completed (on webcms) during the week between lectures and will cover the material of the previous lecture. Assignments are due at the end of weeks 4, 9 (after the mid-semester break), and 13. Late submissions (for both quizzes and assignments) will be penalized at a rate of 10% per 12 hour period or part thereof. See also the section on Special Consideration.
The final mark is determined as the sum of the marks for the assessible components for this course:
The Student Code of Conduct ( Information , Policy ) sets out what the University expects from students as members of the UNSW community. As well as the learning, teaching and research environment, the University aims to provide an environment that enables students to achieve their full potential and to provide an experience consistent with the University’s values and guiding principles. A condition of enrolment is that students inform themselves of the University’s rules and policies affecting them, and conduct themselves accordingly.
In particular, students have the responsibility to observe standards of equity and respect in dealing with every member of the University community. This applies to all activities on UNSW premises and all external activities related to study and research. This includes behaviour in person as well as behaviour on social media, for example Facebook groups set up for the purpose of discussing UNSW courses or course work. Behaviour that is considered in breach of the Student Code Policy as discriminatory, sexually inappropriate, bullying, harassing, invading another’s privacy or causing any person to fear for their personal safety is serious misconduct and can lead to severe penalties, including suspension or exclusion from UNSW.
If you have any concerns, you may raise them with your lecturer, or approach the School Ethics Officer , Grievance Officer , or one of the student representatives .
Plagiarism is defined as using the words or ideas of others and presenting them as your own. UNSW and CSE treat plagiarism as academic misconduct, which means that it carries penalties as severe as being excluded from further study at UNSW. There are several on-line sources to help you understand what plagiarism is and how it is dealt with at UNSW:
Make sure that you read and understand these. Ignorance is not accepted as an excuse for plagiarism. In particular, you are also responsible that your assignment files are not accessible by anyone but you by setting the correct permissions in your CSE directory and code repository, if using. Note also that plagiarism includes paying or asking another person to do a piece of work for you and then submitting it as your own work.
UNSW has an ongoing commitment to fostering a culture of learning informed by academic integrity. All UNSW staff and students have a responsibility to adhere to this principle of academic integrity. Plagiarism undermines academic integrity and is not tolerated at UNSW. Plagiarism at UNSW is defined as using the words or ideas of others and passing them off as your own.
If you haven't done so yet, please take the time to read the full text of
The pages below describe the policies and procedures in more detail:
You should also read the following page which describes your rights and responsibilities in the CSE context:
If your work in this course is affected by unforseen adverse circumstances, you should apply for Special Consideration through MyUNSW, including documentation on how your have been affected. If your request is reasonable and your work has clearly been impacted, then
Note the use of the word "may". None of the above is guaranteed. It depends on you making a convincing case that the circumstances have clearly impacted your ability to work.
If you are registered with Disability Services, please forward your documentation to Paul Hunter within the first two weeks of semester.
The following is a tentative schedule of when topics will be covered.
| Week | Topic | Quiz | Assignment |
| 1 | Numbers, Sets, and Alphabets | ||
| 2 | Functions and Relations | Quiz 1 due | |
| 3 | Functions and Relations | Quiz 2 due | |
| 4 | Graph theory | Quiz 3 due | Assignment 1 due |
| 5 | Logic | Quiz 4 due | |
| 6 | Induction | Quiz 5 due | |
| 7 | Recursion | Quiz 6 due | |
| 8 | Running time of programs | Quiz 7 due | Assignment 2 due |
| 9 | Counting | Quiz 8 due | |
| 10 | Probability and Expectation | Quiz 9 due | |
| 11 | Probability and Expectation | Quiz 10 due | |
| 12 | Course review | Assignment 3 due |
The primary textbook associated with this course is
This has been the recommended textbook for the course for the last 10 or more years. The following comprehensive lecture notes, which are from a similar course at MIT, provide supplementary material:
This course is being continuously improved and we will conduct a survey through the CATEI (Course and Teaching Evaluation and Improvement) process at the end of session to obtain feedback on the quality of the various course components. Your participation in the survey will be greatly appreciated. Students are also encouraged to provide informal feedback during the session, and to notify the lecturer-in-charge of any problems as soon as they arise.
Student feedback from last offerings indicated that students were very satisfied with the course, but expressed an interest in more quizzes and exercises. We will endeavour to achieve this in this offering.