CMSC 160: Intro to algorithm design I
Fall 2019
Prof. Blaheta
Edsger Dijkstra famously said that "computer science is no more about computers than astronomy is about telescopes." What did he mean?
In this course, we will indeed spend plenty of time with computers, but my focus is ultimately to teach a different way of thinking about problems. The key skills I hope to help you develop are analytical problem solving and thinking in terms of abstractions. Should you choose to continue with more computer science courses, you will use these skills in every CS course you take, whether you are writing programs in C++, or in some other language, or not at all. And if I really do my job, the precision of thought you learn here will help to shape how you think about problems in your other courses, even if you never take another CS course again.
Section 1 meets 10am on MWF, with a required lab section that meets at 9:30am on Thursday; Section 2 meets 11am on MWF, with a required lab section that meets at 2pm on Thursday.
The textbook is Cay Horstmann, C++ for everyone, 2e, ISBN 978-0-470-92713-7 OR Cay Horstmann, Brief C++, 3e (no ISBN, check at the bookstore). You pick.
(To see the board photos and assignments formerly listed here, see the Calendar and Assignments tabs above)