Most of our time will be spent in Chapters 4 and 6-10. The major topics covered will be advanced tree structures (including heaps), graphs, advanced searching and sorting techniques, and introductory algorithmic analysis and design. Before covering these topics, we will review elementary data types and the corresponding classes in the Java collections library.
All tests will be open book and open notes. Calculators are not allowed.
For each exam or assignment, numeric grades are given and intervals for each letter grade are assigned (usually 90% for A-, 80 for B-, etc.). Your course grade will be determined by comparing the sum of your numeric grades to the sum of the intervals, except that I often give a higher than this to students who have just one poor grade, or who have been improving throughout the course. The intervals for + and - grades are rather small. My standards for the I grade, for makeup exams, and for extending assignment due dates are quite strict. At a minimum, I expect documentation of why you cannot complete the work in the expected time.
See the separate sheets on Assignments and Documentation for specific requirements in these areas. These and other useful documents will be available on the class web page at
The work you turn in should be your own. Do not share your work with anyone else. Please become familiar with the official university definition and policy on academic dishonesty, as stated in the 2002-2004 catalog, pp. 448-9, or at http://info.sjsu.edu/web-dbgen/narr/catalog-policies/catalog-policies-180.html and http://info.sjsu.edu/web-dbgen/narr/catalog-policies/catalog-policies-181.html. See my web page on this topic for further information.