Course Web Site

• http://www.cs.rit.edu/~rlaz/cs380Spring2011

Grading Scheme

This course consists of the activities shown below, which are weighted as indicated to compute the final grade:

Component	Weight
Homework Assignments (8) and Discrete Math Quiz  (Best 8 of 9)	50%
Midterm Exams (2), Weeks 5 and 8	30%
Final Exam, Week 11	20%

All grades will be made available through myCourses.

Homework Assignments:

There are 8 homework assignments, essentially one each week.  Each homework assignment will be collected and graded.  Homework assignments and their due dates will be available in the SCHEDULE section on the course Web page.  You will have one week to complete each assignment other than the first (which will be shorter).  

Unless it is specifically stated otherwise, you may work on and submit your homework in groups 2.  If you choose to work as a group of 2, both of you should contribute significantly to the solution for every question.  You should only submit one copy of the homework with both your names on it.  Each student in the pair must be able to explain every question on the homework when asked.

A student that has worked in a group up until the first exam and then receives a grade at least 20 points lower than their partner on that exam will no longer be permitted to work in a group.  This student will be required to complete the remaining homework assignments as an individual contributor.

Your homework assignments are due at the start of class on Tuesdays (4pm), to be submitted in-class (on paper), or as a .pdf or .txt file via mycourses.  Late assignments will not be accepted (not even 5 minutes late)!!!   If you are unable to be on campus on the day an assignment is due, you need to ensure that your assignment is submitted in class or through mycourses by the deadline.  The lowest homework grade will be dropped, unless you are given a zero for cheating.

There will be no programming assignments, however, you will be asked to use the software package, JFLAP, to build and test various state machines.  JFLAP is freely available for download here.

Note on Grade Changes  

Theory Tutoring 

Exams:

There will be two midterm examinations (Thursday in Weeks 5 and 8) and a final examination (in Week 11). The midterm examinations will last one hour each, and the final exam will be a two-hour exam.  The content covered on each exam will be announced during class. All exams are closed book and notes, but you may have one sheet of letter-sized paper with your own hand-written notes.  There will be no make-up exams.  

In addition, there will be a 40 minute quiz on Discrete Math during the first week of class. This quiz will count as an additional homework assignment.

Policy on Academic Dishonesty

• You may help each other freely to complete homework, as the purpose of the homework is to increase your understanding. However, this does not mean that someone else can do your homework for you. Any homework you submit must contain a significant intellectual contribution by you.

• The corollary is that you may not do someone else's work for them either. A willing supplier of the material is as guilty of academic dishonesty as the receiver.

• Any help you receive from someone must be acknowledged in the work submitted. Failure to acknowledge the source of a significant idea or approach is considered plagiarism and not allowed.
  

General Conduct

Student conduct will be evaluated in accordance with the Policy on Academic Dishonesty and Code of Conduct for Computer Use found in RIT's Educational Policies and Procedures Manual. You should also have two related documents, the Code of Conduct for the Use of Department of Computer Science Facilities and the Policy on the Use of Computer Games on Department of Computer Science Facilities, which are refinements of the general Institute policies.

Policy on W and I Grades

RIT policy allows you to withdraw from a course with a grade of W on or before the Friday of the 8th week in the quarter. After this date, your instructor cannot give you a W, but must assign you a grade based on your work.

This course has been designed so that you can complete all the work in one quarter. Thus incomplete grades will be given only in the most exceptional circumstances, and then only by prior arrangement with your lecture instructor. Your lecture instructor has the final say in this matter.

Disclaimer

Every effort has been made to provide accurate information in this document. We reserve the right, however, to make changes to any facet of the course should circumstances warrant it. Any such changes will be announced in both lecture and lab.