Welcome to CS1101 & SOC
 Bad news…
 CS1101 is hard,
 CS1102 is harder
 … need I say more?
 Good news…
 It may be hard, but it is do-able,
 And we have many live examples…
 Aaron is the best instructor
Multiple winners of Best Teacher Awards
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.1
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
CS1101 outcomes…
 Ability to devise computer solutions
 Ability to devise (and plan) algorithm
 Ability to translate plan to code (Java)
 Ability to develop and test programs
 Ability to analyze program running time
 Awareness of program development issues
 History, relevance, and impact of computing
 SW Engineering issues
 Abstraction skills (data and procedural)
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.2
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
CS1101 outcomes (2)…
 Using Java as a vehicle
 Writing Java program
 Famaliarity with Java syntax, features, etc
 Data types (simple, structured, libraries)
 Statements (assignment, if, case, while, repeat)
 OO features: class, objects, inheritance, etc
 Appreciate relevance of mathematics
 Discrete math, discrete modelling, graph theory
 Develop good programming styles and habits
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.3
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
The Message….
Programming is Difficult,
It can be acquired,
It is Challenging,
YET STIMULATING
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.4
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
 Two slides from my USP module
UIT2201: CS and IT Revolution.
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.5
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
Figure 1.9
Organization of the Text into a Six-Layer Hierarchy
(UTT2201: Introduction) Page 6
LeongHW, SoC, NUS
© Leong Hon Wai, 2003-2008
Some Underlying Principles
Recurring principles (themes) in CS & IT.
They pop-up in multiple places…
1. Multiple Levels of Abstraction
 from very high level to very low level
2. Divide and Conquer
 also called “Decomposition”
3. One data, multiple views
 Different “interfaces”
4. Defining set of primitives (building blocks)
 Or basic-operations, mini langugages
5. Power of Iteration
 doing something multiple times
(UTT2201: Introduction) Page 7
LeongHW, SoC, NUS
© Leong Hon Wai, 2003-2008
 Some slides inspired by the
ACM Curriculum Recommendations…
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.8
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
Modern view of Computing…
 Theory, Abstraction, Design and Social Context
 Three distinct paradigms
 Social Context of Computing
Abstraction
Theory
Social
Context
Design
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.9
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
 Theory Paradigm
 Tend to take mathematician’s viewpoint
 Concerned with formal definitions, axioms,
and theorems
 Proofs as underlying media for exploring
ideas and thoughts about computation
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.10
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
Modern view of Computing (2)
 Abstraction Paradigm





Scientific point of view
Rooted in the sciences (physics, chemistry, biology)
Concerned with formation of hypotheses, construction of models
Making predictions, running experiments, and testing results
Perceiving patterns in midst of details and the formal
representation of these patterns
 Design Paradigm
 Rooted in Engineering
 Concerned with system feasibility, costs, efficiency, and
alternatives
 Accessing requirements, formulating specifications
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.11
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.12
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
Road to a CS Professional
 Basic Programming, Data Structures
 Software Engineering
 Database, Networking, Graphics, Media,
Algorithm Design, Embedded Systems,…
 Advanced Courses
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.13
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
All the best to all
 You have come to
“a place of multiple opportunities”
 Work hard, Play hard
 Keep your eyes, ears, open
 Also your online-feeds ALWAYS ON
 Make the best of it
 Do something you are passionate about
 Make a difference
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.14
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
Thank you.
Q &A
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.15
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
 Additional slides adapted from my
recruitment talks…
Hon Wai Leong, NUS
(CS5206, Fall 2008) Page L00.16
Copyright © 2008 by Leong Hon Wai
Flexibility in SOC
One faculty, 2 departments, 6 specializations
You can choose to do different things in SOC
Like research
(all)
Build Things (HW)
with CE
Theoretical stuffs,
algorithms, etc
Build Things (SW)
with CS
Like open
source software
Like architecting
Software systems
Management
with Info Systems
Interactive Design
with CM
Start your own Company
with CS/IS/e-Com
Get into SOC first,
then decide after 1 year in SOC (except CB, CE)
One Degree, Many Majors
COMPUTER SCIENCE
B.Comp.
(Computer Science)
+ BIOLOGY
B. Comp.
(Computational Biology)
+ BUSINESS
B.Comp. (Information Systems)
B.Comp. (E-Commerce)
+ ENGINEERING
B.Comp.
(Computer Engineering)
+ INTERACTIVE DIGITAL MEDIA
B.Comp.
(Communication and Media)
If you like software development…
a SOC Technical Career Ladder.
CTO
Software Architect
Project Manager / Leader
Programmer / Developer
B. Comp (some major)
These positions are from
many areas:
Application Development,
Database development,
Networking/Telecomm,
Security, Data Centers,
Internet programming,
AI specialists,
Optimization specialist,
If you like technical management…
a SOC  Management Career Path.
CIO, COO, GM
These can be in many
types of organizations:
Business Development
Project Manager / Leader
Programmer / Developer
B. Comp (some major)
Software companies,
Vendor environment,
Large MNC,
Government departments,
End-User Organizations
If you like technical sales…
a SOC  Sales Career Path.
CEO, MD, GM
Sales
Project Manager / Leader
Programmer / Developer
B. Comp (some major)
These can be in many
types of organizations:
Software companies,
Vendor environment,
Large MNC,
Government departments,
End-User Organizations
(govt. dept, banks,
hospitals, hotels,
manufacturing, restaurants,
education, startups, etc)
If you like to solve problems…
a SOC  Startup / Consultant Career.
Founder / CTO
Startup / Consultant
Programmer / Developer
B. Comp (some major)
These can be in many
business domains:
Solution provider,
Systems integration,
Networking/Telecom,
Wireless, Internet,
Logistics/Transportation,
AI specialists,
Optimization specialist,
Innovative Product Dev,
Solid and Cool products
Lots of Job Choices for YOU