Additional Course Descriptions 2005-2006
CS 525F Foundational Aspects of Database Systems (Fall 2005)
This course will cover the theoretical foundations of database systems, with focus on practical systems, suited for an advanced graduate course. This course is appropriate for all graduate students specializing in database systems; also students not specializing in datatabase systems will find the course useful to infer the impact database systems have had since 1970 on the way computer systems have evolved in general.
This course will cover topics on database query language concepts such as fixpoint semantics, recursion, and negation; query evaluation techniques; query optimization techniques from logic such as query composition, removing conjuncts, impact of integrity constraints; and algebraic optimization techniques such as decorrelation.
CS 525D Data Visualization (Spring 2006)
This course presents the fundamental concepts and techniques for effective presentation of numeric data in an interactive graphical form. Topics to be covered include human visual perception, the structure and characteristics of data, techniques for mapping data to graphical entities and attributes, interactive tools for exploratory visual data analysis, and techniques for evaluating the quality of visualizations. Students will be expected to implement a number of visualization algorithms as well as do projects involving the use of commercial and public-domain visualization tools. (Prerequisite: a graduate or undergraduate course in computer graphics.)
CS 525M Mobile and Ubiquitous Computing (Spring 2006)
Mobile computing is a fast-growing segment of computer networking. Increasingly, users access wireless LANs and ad hoc networks using PDAs, laptops and other mobile devices. The goal of this course is to acquaint participants with some of the fundamental concepts and state-of-the-art research in the areas of mobile and ubiquitous computing, and wireless networking. A brief overview of the wireless physical layer will be given but focus will be on the computer science issues in ubiquitous and mobile computing. Topics covered will include wireless network protocols (MAC, TCP, mobile IP), disconnected filesystems, power saving techniques, data replication and consistency, trace-based mobile user studies, indoor and outdoor wireless standards, application-aware adaptation, location sensing, sensor networks and wireless security. Prerequisites: computer networks, operating systems, distributed systems or consent of the instructor)
CS 525T Intelligent Tutoring Systems (Spring 2006)
This course addresses the use of artificial intelligence and cognitive psychology to build computer-based "intelligent tutoring systems". Students will learn empirical and theoretical methods for creating cognitive models of human problem solving. Such models have been used to create educational software that has been demonstrated to dramatically enhance student learning in domains like mathematics and computer programming. This course will have three components; 1) literature review of some of the fundamental papers in the field, 2) some lectures on the needed cognitive psychology and human-computer interaction (HCI) background, and 3) a significant project component in which students will be practicing the use of methods used to design tutors. Students will create cognitive models written in a production-rule system (e.g., JESS). The culminating project will be building a cognitive model to be used in an intelligent tutoring system for a domain of their interest. At the end of this course a student should be able to do research in intelligent tutoring systems. Good programming skills are required. Artificial intelligence would he helpful but not required. Knowledge of cognitive psychology or human-computer interaction would be a plus. Good class projects will potentially be used by thousands of students using our extensible web-based delivery mechanism.
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