Textbook

Required Textbook

Discrete Structures by Harriet Fell and Javed A. Aslam. You can buy the textbook online or in the Northeastern University bookstore.

Piazza

Sign up for our Piazza page: https://piazza.com/northeastern/summer2020/cs1800.

Because this is a theory course, and solutions sometimes rely on one particular, specific insight, we have a few rules governing our CS1800 Piazza page:

• You may not post solutions to problems.
• You may not post a single, simple insight that enabled you to solve a problem (e.g., “Use Cantor’s diagonalization”), but you may post general approaches (e.g., “I thought this homework problem related to the class discussion on infinite binary sequences”).
• You must be respectful of and courteous towards your fellow students and the teaching staff.

Violations of these rules will result in our closing the Piazza page.

We'll also use Piazza to post course announcements, so make sure your email settings are turned on!

Classroom Environment

In the real-time Zoom lectures and office hours, please ask questions, and answer questions! In computer science, we seldom get anything right on the first try. We see how an attempt turned out, and we try again. I like our classroom to reflect that approach as well; so please answer a question that's been posed, even if you're not sure of the answer.

To create and preserve a classroom atmosphere that optimizes teaching and learning, all participants share a responsibility in creating a civil and non-disruptive forum for the discussion of ideas. This includes all ways you interact with classmates -- in Zoom lectures, office hours, Piazza, etc.

Evaluation

Homeworks and exams will be graded out of 100 points. We will drop one homework when evaluating your course average at the end of the semester. Daily Problem Sets will be worth 1-4 points depending on the number and diffculty of the problems. We will drop 4 Daily Problem Sets, and your DPS score will be your total number of points you earned out of the total points possible from the DPS you completed.

• Daily Problem Sets (4 dropped): 20%
• Homework (1 dropped): 40%
• Exam #1: 15%
• Exam #2: 15%
• Recitation (1802): 10%

Letter Grades

Your final grade for CS1800 will use the following breakpoints when we convert from letter to number grades.

Communication

Piazza is the best place to ask general questions, get clarification on a homework spec, ask a follow-up from lecture, etc.

Email (laneys @ northeastern.edu) is the best tool for specific questions or concerns about your experience in class, or anything sensitive in nature. During the week, I'll respond within 24 hours, but don't expect a response after 9pm. On the weekends I'll be slower to respond, but if you reach out over a weekend you can expect to hear back by Sunday evening.

Office hours are the best place for talking through your approach to a homework problem. We're not here to give you answers, of course, but to be your fellow computer scientists thinking through a tough problem with you. Expect us to ask more questions than we answer.

Assignments

All homework assignments and daily problem sets will be posted on Gradescope. You can type up your solutions, or write them by hand and then scan with your pone. We made this little video tutorial if you're new to Gradescope.

Honor Code and Collaboration

Exams are solo endeavours; no books, notes, phones, or other devices are permitted. We have instituted an honor code for CS1800. You will make the following pledge on every page of your exams: I pledge on my honor that I did not give or receive help on this exam.

On the other hand, homeworks and daily problem sets can be collaborative. We expect that you might study with friends and work out solutions to problems together, but you must write up your own solutions, in your own words.

Here are some concrete guidelines.

• Never look at someone else's homework solutions. Otherwise you might turn in overly similar work.
• If you produce a solution together on a whiteboard, don't simply copy it down afterwards. You must, on your own, write your own solution by hand.
• If someone explains an answer to you, do not write down their exact words; instead, on your own write up your solution afterwards.

If you collaborate with (or get help from) any other student, then write their name on the the first page of your assignment at the top.

The university's academic integrity policy discusses actions regarded as violations and consequences for students: http://www.northeastern.edu/osccr/academic-integrity

Exams

There will be 2 exams during the semester. They will be administered during the scheduled lecture time (9:50-11:30am eastern time). If you cannot take the exam as scheduled due to timezone issues, please email me (laneys@northeastern.edu).

We have an honor code in CS1800 that we expect you to adopt and respect. You will write the following on every page of your exams: I pledge on my honor that I did not give or receive help on this exam.

If you must miss an exam due to extreme, unanticipated circumstances such as an illness or a family emergency, notify me via email before the event.

Lateness Policy

One HW and 4 daily problem sets will be dropped, but we do not accept late submissions. Unless otherwise noted, homeworks are due at 11:59pm and daily problem sets are due at 9:50am.

Title IX

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 protects individuals from sex or gender-based discrimination, including discrimination based on gender-identity, in educational programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance.

Northeastern’s Title IX Policy prohibits Prohibited Offenses, which are defined as sexual harassment, sexual assault, relationship or domestic violence, and stalking. The Title IX Policy applies to the entire community, including male, female, transgender students, faculty and staff.

If you or someone you know has been a survivor of a Prohibited Offense, confidential support and guidance can be found through University Health and Counseling Services staff (http://www.northeastern.edu/uhcs/) and the Center for Spiritual Dialogue and Service clergy members (http://www.northeastern.edu/spirituallife/). By law, those employees are not required to report allegations of sex or gender-based discrimination to the University.

Alleged violations can be reported non-confidentially to the Title IX Coordinator within The Office for Gender Equity and Compliance at: titleix@northeastern.edu and/or through NUPD (Emergency 617.373.3333; Non-Emergency 617.373.2121). Reporting Prohibited Offenses to NUPD does NOT commit the victim/affected party to future legal action.

Faculty members are considered "responsible employees" at Northeastern University, meaning they are required to report all allegations of sex or gender-based discrimination to the Title IX Coordinator.

In case of an emergency, please call campus police.

Please visit http://www.northeastern.edu/titleix for a complete list of reporting options and resources both on- and off-campus.

Students with Disabilities

Students who have disabilities who wish to receive academic services and/or accommodations should visit the Disability Resource Center at 20 Dodge Hall or call (617) 373-2675. If you have already done so, please provide your letter from the DRC to me early in the semester so that I can arrange those accommodations.