Introduction to Algorithm
Analysis and Design
CSE 331
August 31, 2009
Let’s do some introductions
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Atri Rudra (Instructor)
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123 Bell Hall
atri@buffalo.edu
645-3180 x 117 (will change on Sep 10)
Office hours: TBA
Jiun-Jie Wang (TA)
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jiunjiew@buffalo.edu
Office hours: TBA
Now it’s your turn
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I’ll take me some time before I remember your name though
Recitations
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Mon 9:00 - 9:50 am (120 Baldy)
Mon 11:00 – 11:50 am (213 Norton)
Tue 8:00 - 8:50 am (260 Capen)
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It is for your benefit: make use of it
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No recitations this week
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Handouts for today
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Syllabus
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Feedback form
Plug for feedback forms
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Completing the form is voluntary
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Purpose of the form
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Fix office hours
Fix the agenda of recitations
For me to get an idea of your technical
background
Last 5 minutes of the lecture to complete it
Course webpage
Course blog (cse331.wordpress.com)
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Used for announcements
YOU are responsible for checking the blog for
updates
Why use a blog?
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Easy access
Easier to link to URLs and displaying math
What will appear on the blog?
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Change in office hours
An entry for each lecture/homework
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Comments section to ask questions or post
comments
Your entries (more on this in a bit)
A post on some interesting side
story/comment
Other stuff on the blog
Questions/Comments?
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If something is broken on the blog (e.g. you
cannot post a comment), let me know
References
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Text Book
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Jon Kleinberg, Eva Tardos
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Algorithm Design
Other references
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Cormen, Leiserson, Rivest, Stein
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Introduction to Algorithms
Don Knuth
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The Art of Computer Programming
Pre-requisites
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Required
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CSE 250 and MTH 142
Useful
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Comfort with proofs
Willingness to work hard!
Grades and such like
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Blog Entry
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Homework
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30 %
Mid-term Exam
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5%
25 %
Final exam
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40 %
Blog entry
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Each one of you will write a post on some
lecture
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Email me your five preferred lectures
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The first week, I will write the entries
Some lectures will have two guest bloggers
Assignment on a first-come-first-serve basis
If no one volunteers for some lectures
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I’ll pick a non-volunteer at random
Current guest bloggers
Also linked from the course webpage
Questions/Comments?
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Check out the syllabus for more details
Homework
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10 weekly homeworks
Collaboration generally allowed
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Work in groups of size at most 3
Write up your own solutions
Acknowledge your collaborators
Breaking these rules will be considered as
cheating
No late submission
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Lowest homework score will be dropped
Exams
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Mid term
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Oct 16, 2009. Usual place and time.
Final exam
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Time and date to be determined by UB
A clarification on the homeworks
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Think about each problem for 30 mins
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Even if you spend the time just staring at it
This is for your own benefit
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Otherwise almost surely you will
flunk the exams
A cautionary tale…
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When I was an undergrad
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Understood all the lectures
Did not study outside of lectures
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Took algorithms as a sophomore
(We had no homeworks)
Did decent on the mid-term
Nearly flunked the finals
Got a C
The silver lining…
Ph.D. in algorithms/complexity
C in undergrad algorithms
Questions/Comments?
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Check out the syllabus for more details
Some of my teaching “quirks”
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Neighbor talk time
© cedoburlington.org
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Periodic feedback forms
©icanhascheezburger.com
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Puzzles
©lolcats.com
Lectures in general
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On the board
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Slides to recap last lecture
Academic Dishonesty
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All your submissions must be your own work
Penalty:
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YOUR responsibility to know what is cheating,
plagarism etc.
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Minimum: zero credit on the particular assignment
Highly likely: An F grade
Possible: F “due to academic dishonesty” on your
transcript
If not sure, come talk to me
Excuses like “I have a job,” “This was OK earlier/in
my country,” etc. WON’T WORK
Questions/Comments?
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Check out the syllabus for more details
Let the fun begin!
This course: how to solve problems!
http://xkcd.com/173/