George Mason University – Graduate Council
Graduate Course Approval Form
All courses numbered 500 or above must be submitted to the Graduate Council for final approval after approval by the
sponsoring College, School or Institute.
Graduate Council requires submission of this form for a new course or any change to existing courses. For a new course,
please attach a copy of the syllabus and catalog description (with catalog credit format, e.g. 3:2:1). The designated
representative of the College, School or Institute should forward the form along with the syllabus and catalog description, if
required, as an email attachment (in one file) to the secretary of the Graduate Council. A printed copy of the form with
signatures and the attachments should be brought to the Graduate Council meeting. Please complete the Graduate Course
Coordinator Form if the proposed changes will affect other units.
Note: Colleges, Schools or Institutes are responsible for submitting new or modified catalog descriptions (35 words or
less, using catalog format) to Creative Services by deadlines outlined in the yearly Catalog production calendar.
Please indicate: New_______
Modify___X____
Delete_______
Department/Unit:___ Computer Science_____ Course Subject/Number:___INFS 515_______________________
Submitted by:____Larry Kerschberg_________________ Ext:_3-1661___ Email:___kersch@gmu.edu_________
Course Title:____ Computer Organization ______________________________________________________________
Effective Term (New/Modified Courses only): ___Spring 2009___ Final Term (deleted courses only):____________
Credit Hours: (Fixed) __3_
(Var.) ______ to ______
Grade Type (check one):
___X __ Regular graduate (A, B, C, etc.)
_____ Satisfactory/No Credit only
_____ Special graduate (A, B, C, etc. + IP)
Repeat Status*(check one): ___ NR-Not repeatable ____ RD-Repeatable within degree ____ RT-Repeatable within term
*Note: Used only for special topics, independent study, or internships courses
Total Number of Hours Allowed: _______
Schedule Type Code(s): 1._LEC_ LEC=Lecture SEM=Seminar STU=Studio INT=Internship IND=Independent Study
2.____ LAB=Lab RCT=Recitation (second code used only for courses with Lab or Rct component)
Prereq ___ Coreq ___ (Check one):_______________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________________
Note: Modified courses - review prereq or coreq for necessary changes; Deleted courses - review other courses to correct prereqs that list the deleted course.
Description of Modification (for modified courses):_ Course Description and Syllabus changed to reflect addition of operating systems
concepts to course______
Special Instructions (major/college/class code restrictions, if needed):__________________________________________
Department/Unit Approval Signature:_________________________________________ Date: _____________
College/School Committee Approval Signature:__________________________________ Date:_____________
Graduate Council Approval Date:____________ Provost Office Signature:_________________________________
George Mason University
Graduate Course Coordination Form
Approval from other units:
Please list those units outside of your own who may be affected by this new, modified, or deleted course. Each of these units must
approve this change prior to its being submitted to the Graduate Council for approval.
Unit:
Head of Unit’s Signature:
Date:
Unit:
Head of Unit’s Signature:
Date:
Unit:
Head of Unit’s Signature:
Date:
Unit:
Head of Unit’s Signature:
Date:
Unit:
Head of Units Signature:
Date:
Graduate Council approval: ______________________________________________ Date: ____________
Graduate Council representative: __________________________________________
Date: ____________
Provost Office representative: ____________________________________________
Date: ____________
COURSE PROPOSAL
BY
THE DEPARTMENT OF
COMPUTER SCIENCE
PROPOSAL DESIGNATION
Modified Course Description and Syllabus
I. CATALOG DESCRIPTION
A. INFS 515 – Computer Organization (3:3:0)
B. Prerequisite: Undergraduate courses or equivalent knowledge in structured programming in a high-level
language.
Computer hardware architecture concepts include number systems, machine representation of numbers,
instruction set formats; addressing techniques, memory organization, internal processor structure and operation;
symbolic assembly language is also covered. Fundamental operating systems concepts include process
synchronization and scheduling, inter-process communication, memory management, virtual memory,
deadlocks, file I/O and disk management. LINUX Operating System case studies will be examined. Credit
cannot be applied to any graduate degree in the Volgenau School or the BS degree in computer science.
II. JUSTIFICATION
A. Desirability of modifying the course description and syllabus of this course:
The changes proposed reflect the changes in the topics to include computer architecture as well as operating
systems concepts.
B. Relation to other courses:
This course is a Foundation Course in MS Programs: Information Systems (MS-IS), Information Security and
Assurance (MS-ISA) and Software Engineering (MS-SWE).
III. SCHEDULING
A. This course is offered every semester.
B. The current instructor is Dr. John Masiyowski. Other possible instructors are Dr. Daniel Barbara, and
Dr. Robert Simon.
IV. SAMPLE SYLLABUS
Syllabus: INFS 515 – Computer Organization
Course Objectives:
This course includes the study computer hardware architecture concepts include number systems; machine representation
of numbers; instruction set formats; addressing techniques, memory organization, internal processor structure and
operation; and symbolic assembly language is also covered. Fundamental operating systems concepts include process
synchronization and scheduling, inter-process communication, memory management, virtual memory, deadlocks, file I/O
and disk management. LINUX Operating System case studies will be examined.
Topics Covered:
The course addresses the following topics:
 Computer hardware architecture concepts include number systems;
 Machine representation of numbers;
 Instruction set formats;
 Addressing techniques, memory organization,
 Internal processor structure and operation;
 Symbolic assembly language.
 Process synchronization and scheduling,
 Inter-process communication,
 Memory management,
 Virtual memory,
 Deadlocks,
 File I/O and disk management.
Grading Policy:
The grade will be determined by grades obtained in individual assignments, research paper review and report, a group
research project, and class participation.




Homework:
25%
Short Quizzes: 20%
Midterm Exam: 25%
Final Exam:
30%
Sample Schedule:
Class
1
2
6
7
Topics
Introduction/Course Overview; Computer Organization
Data representation in Computer Systems – Part 1
Data representation in Computer Systems – Part 2
Quiz 1
MARIE: An Introduction to a Simple Computer
Computer Architecture – Instruction Set Architectures
Quiz 2
Memory and Review
Mid-Term Exam
8
I/O Architecture and Storage Systems
9
Operating Systems Overview
Processes: Description and Control /w Threads
Quiz 3
3
4
5
10
11
12
13
14
15
Concurrency: Mutual Exclusion and Synchronization
Memory Management: Partitioning, Paging
Segmentation
Quiz 4
Memory Management: Virtual Memory
I/O Management and Disk Scheduling
Make-up
Course Wrap-Up/Review
Final Exam
Readings
TX1: C1
TX1: C2.1 – 2.4
TX1: C2.5 – 2.7.1
TX1:C4.1-4.13
TX1:C5
TX1:C6.1-6.5
TX1:C7.1-7.3, 7.6,
7.7, 7.9, 7.10
TX2:C2.1-2.4, 2.9
TX2:C3.1-C.6, C4.1,
C4.3
TX2:C5.1-C5.3,
C5.5-C5.7
TX2:C7
TX2:C8.1-C8.2
TX2:C11.1-C11.7
Textbooks:
Required
reading:
TX1: The Essentials of Computer Organization and Architecture, 2nd Edition, Linda Null and
Julia Lobur, Jones and Barlett Publishers, 2006, ISBN 10:0-7637-3769-0
Required
reading:
TX2: Operating Systems, Internals and Design Principles, 6th Edition, William Stallings,
Prentice-Hall, 2009, ISBN-10: 01360006329
Course Description
515 Computer Organization (3:3:0) Prerequisite: Undergraduate courses or equivalent knowledge in structured programming
in a high-level language. Computer hardware architecture concepts include number systems, machine representation of
numbers, instruction set formats; addressing techniques, memory organization, internal processor structure and operation;
symbolic assembly language is also covered. Fundamental operating systems concepts include process synchronization and
scheduling, inter-process communication, memory management, virtual memory, deadlocks, file I/O and disk management.
LINUX Operating System case studies will be examined. Credit cannot be applied to any graduate degree in the Volgenau
school or the BS degree in computer science.