Computer Science Classes

This course provides an introduction to the handling, analysis, and interpretation of the big datasets now routinely being collected in science, commerce, and government. Students achieve facility with a sophisticated, technical computing environment. The course aligns with techniques being used in several courses in the natural and social sciences, statistics, and mathematics. The course is intended to be accessible to all students, regardless of background.

General Education Requirements:
Quantitative Thinking Q2

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course provides an introduction to the handling, analysis, and interpretation of the big datasets now routinely being collected in science, commerce, and government. Students achieve facility with a sophisticated, technical computing environment. The course aligns with techniques being used in several courses in the natural and social sciences, statistics, and mathematics. The course is intended to be accessible to all students, regardless of background.

General Education Requirements:
Quantitative Thinking Q2

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

At its core, Computer Science is about information and process. Information becomes data that a computer can manipulate; a process describes in a standard way the steps to solve a given problem. The computer and the Internet have transformed our lives by allowing us to store and manipulate data in unprecedented ways, and by automating incredibly complex processes. Computer science is also fundamentally about the interplay of design, creativity, technique, and experimentation. Creating complex systems or ways to represent complex data requires us to plan carefully (design), and to know how to use the computer’s tools (technique), but we also experience inspiration and build something beautiful out of our imaginations (creativity), and often we just have to get our hands dirty trying things out (experimentation). This course will introduce you to computer science, including central concepts of the field such as design and implementation of algorithms and programs, testing and analyzing programs, and the representation of information within the computer. Our exploration of these central ideas will be organized around several major topics, including turtle graphics, text and data analysis, image processing, and graphical user interfaces. Throughout, we will apply our techniques to simulations, data analysis, and visualizations that explore topics that make our world a better place. We will use the popular Python programming language.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the field of computer science, including central concepts such as the design and implementation of algorithms and programs, testing and analyzing programs, the representation of information within the computer, and the role of abstraction and metaphor in computer science. The exploration of these central ideas will draw examples from a range of application areas including multimedia processing, turtle graphics, and text processing. Course work will use the Python programming language.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the field of computer science, including central concepts such as the design and implementation of algorithms and programs, testing and analyzing programs, the representation of information within the computer, and the role of abstraction and metaphor in computer science. The exploration of these central ideas will draw examples from a range of application areas including multimedia processing, turtle graphics, and text processing. Course work will use the Python programming language.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the field of computer science, including central concepts such as the design and implementation of algorithms and programs, testing and analyzing programs, the representation of information within the computer, and the role of abstraction and metaphor in computer science. The exploration of these central ideas will draw examples from a range of application areas including multimedia processing, turtle graphics, and text processing. Course work will use the Python programming language.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the field of computer science, including central concepts such as the design and implementation of algorithms and programs, testing and analyzing programs, the representation of information within the computer, and the role of abstraction and metaphor in computer science. The exploration of these central ideas will draw examples from a range of application areas including multimedia processing, turtle graphics, and text processing. Course work will use the Python programming language.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the field of computer science, including central concepts such as the design and implementation of algorithms and programs, testing and analyzing programs, the representation of information within the computer, and the role of abstraction and metaphor in computer science. The exploration of these central ideas will draw examples from a range of application areas including multimedia processing, turtle graphics, and text processing. Course work will use the Python programming language.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces the principles of software design and development using the object-oriented paradigm (OOP) and the Java programming language. Students will learn to use data structures such as lists, trees and hash tables and they will compare the efficiency of these data structures for a particular application. Students will learn to decompose a project using OOP principles. They will work with integrated development environments (IDEs) and version control systems. Students will practice their skills by creating applications in areas such as graphics, games, simulations, and natural language processing. There is a required 1.5 hour laboratory section associated with this course. Prerequisite(s): COMP 120 or  COMP 123 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

An in-depth introduction to the design and analysis of algorithms. Topics may include algorithmic paradigms and structures, including recursion, divide and conquer, dynamic programming, greedy methods, branch and bound, randomized, probabilistic, and parallel algorithms, non-determinism and NP completeness. Applications to searching and sorting, graphs and optimization, geometric algorithms, and transforms. Prerequisite(s): COMP 124 and MATH 279, or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course is an introduction to the problem of building software with humans and for humans. Students work in teams to design and implement a semester-long user-facing software project of their own invention. There are no limitations on topic or technology; on the contrary, students are responsible for imagining possibilities, articulating goals, and researching and selecting suitable technologies. The format resembles a studio art class, with in-class discussion guided by sharing and critiquing classmates' ongoing work. Topics include communication, division of labor, user-centered design, human-computer interaction, product management, project management, iterative development, engineering tradeoffs, separation of concerns, code readability and maintainability, refactoring, testing, and version control. Teams give a public demonstration of their working projects at the end of the semester. Prerequisite(s): COMP 124 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course is an introduction to the problem of building software with humans and for humans. Students work in teams to design and implement a semester-long user-facing software project of their own invention. There are no limitations on topic or technology; on the contrary, students are responsible for imagining possibilities, articulating goals, and researching and selecting suitable technologies. The format resembles a studio art class, with in-class discussion guided by sharing and critiquing classmates' ongoing work. Topics include communication, division of labor, user-centered design, human-computer interaction, product management, project management, iterative development, engineering tradeoffs, separation of concerns, code readability and maintainability, refactoring, testing, and version control. Teams give a public demonstration of their working projects at the end of the semester. Prerequisite(s): COMP 124 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course is an introduction to the problem of building software with humans and for humans. Students work in teams to design and implement a semester-long user-facing software project of their own invention. There are no limitations on topic or technology; on the contrary, students are responsible for imagining possibilities, articulating goals, and researching and selecting suitable technologies. The format resembles a studio art class, with in-class discussion guided by sharing and critiquing classmates' ongoing work. Topics include communication, division of labor, user-centered design, human-computer interaction, product management, project management, iterative development, engineering tradeoffs, separation of concerns, code readability and maintainability, refactoring, testing, and version control. Teams give a public demonstration of their working projects at the end of the semester. Prerequisite(s): COMP 124 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course is an introduction to the problem of building software with humans and for humans. Students work in teams to design and implement a semester-long user-facing software project of their own invention. There are no limitations on topic or technology; on the contrary, students are responsible for imagining possibilities, articulating goals, and researching and selecting suitable technologies. The format resembles a studio art class, with in-class discussion guided by sharing and critiquing classmates' ongoing work. Topics include communication, division of labor, user-centered design, human-computer interaction, product management, project management, iterative development, engineering tradeoffs, separation of concerns, code readability and maintainability, refactoring, testing, and version control. Teams give a public demonstration of their working projects at the end of the semester. Prerequisite(s): COMP 124 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course familiarizes the student with the internal design and organization of computers. Topics include number systems, internal data representations, microarchitectures, the functional units of a computer system, memory, processor, and input/output structures, instruction sets and assembly language, addressing techniques, system software, and concurrency and parallelism. Prerequisite(s): COMP 124, or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course familiarizes the student with the internal design and organization of computers. Topics include number systems, internal data representations, microarchitectures, the functional units of a computer system, memory, processor, and input/output structures, instruction sets and assembly language, addressing techniques, system software, and concurrency and parallelism. Prerequisite(s): COMP 124, or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course familiarizes the student with the internal design and organization of computers. Topics include number systems, internal data representations, microarchitectures, the functional units of a computer system, memory, processor, and input/output structures, instruction sets and assembly language, addressing techniques, system software, and concurrency and parallelism. Prerequisite(s): COMP 124, or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course examines the theoretical foundations of computation. It explores different mathematical models that try to formalize our informal notion of an algorithm. Models include finite automata, regular expressions, grammars, and Turing machines. The course also discusses ideas about what can and cannot be computed. In addition, the course explores the basics of complexity theory, examining broad categories of problems and their algorithms, and their efficiency. The focus is on the question of P versus NP, and the NP-complete set. Prerequisite(s): COMP 124 and MATH 279, or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course will introduce students to the design, implementation, and analysis of databases stored in database management systems (DBMS). Topics include implementation-neutral data modeling, database design, database implementation, and data analysis using relational algebra and SQL. Students will generate data models based on real-world problems, and implement a database in a state-of-the-art DBMS. Students will master complex data analysis by learning to first design database queries and then implement them in a database query language such as SQL. Advanced topics include objects in databases, indexing for improved performance, distributed databases, and data warehouses.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This interdisciplnary course will examine selected topics in computational biology, including basic bioinformatics, algorithms used in genomics and genome analysis, computational techniques for systems biology, and synthetic biology. Prerequisite(s): COMP 123, or permission of the instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This course introduces technologies for building dynamic web applications. It will look at all stages in the web application design process, including: 1) the basic protocols and technologies underlying the web (e.g. HTTP, REST), 2) front-end web technologies, such as HTML, CSS, and Javascript, 3) and application servers that manage requests for information, update data, etc. The course will be programming-intensive, with students using web frameworks to design and implement Internet applications. The format of the course will be mainly laboratory-based sessions, where students learn components of a web application, supported by lectures and discussions. Students will research particular topics and present their findings during these discussion sessions. The course will also investigate the usability of designs from a human factors standpoint and discuss privacy and other social consequences of this technology. Prerequisite(s): COMP 225 or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

This capstone course will investigate the theory and practice of computer graphics programming using C++ and OpenGL. Through hands-on projects, supported by lecture and discussion, you will learn the fundamentals of creating interactive 2D and 3D images with applications in art, design, games, movies, science, and medicine. Topics covered will include event loops, polygonal models, rendering techniques, texturing, lighting, interaction techniques, and virtual reality. Prerequisite(s): COMP 240; Linear Algebra recommended but not required.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

An introduction to the basic principles and techniques of artificial intelligence. Topics will include specific AI techniques, a range of application areas, and connections between AI and other areas of study (i.e., philosophy, psychology). Techniques may include heuristic search, automated reasoning, machine learning, deliberative planning and behavior-based agent control. Application areas include robotics, games, knowledge representation, and natural language processing. Prerequisite(s): COMP 221, or permission of instructor.

General Education Requirements:
Writing WP

Distribution Requirements:
Natural science and mathematics

Course Materials

Varies by semester. Consult the department or class schedule for current listing.

General Education Requirements:

Distribution Requirements:

Course Materials