CS 1050: Power of Computing: Think Like a Computer

CS 1050: Power of Computing: Think Like a Computer

Semester Hours:    3.0
Contact Hours:    3
Coordinator:    Jong Kwan "Jake" Lee
Text:    Blown to Bits: Your life, liberty, and happiness after the digital explosion
Author(s):    ABELSON, H., LEDEEN, K., & LEWIS, H. R
Year:    2008

SPECIFIC COURSE INFORMATION

Catalog Description:

Computing as a creative process; Problem solving using abstraction; How data and information create knowledge; Algorithms and computer programs; Internet, digital devices and their impact on society; Privacy and security issues; Computation leading to innovations in other fields.

Course type: ELECTIVE

SPECIFIC COURSE GOALS

• I can demonstrate computational thinking practices.
• I can use the core ideas of computer science, such as abstraction, and algorithms.
• I can do simple computer programming.
• I can give an overview of the Internet and its impact to the human society.
• I can discuss the privacy and security issues in using digital devices.

LIST OF TOPICS COVERED

• Connecting Computing (~10%)
  • Introduction to computers, digital devices, the Internet and Big Data
  • The structure of the Internet
  • How computation led innovations in different science fields
  • (Positive and negative) impact of computing and Internet on human society
• Computational Artifacts (~15%)
  • Create a webpage using HTML
  • Data representation in digital devices: decimal to binary conversion, binary arithmetic, Base 16, and color (RGB), more
  • What is a computer program?
• Abstraction in Art / Life / Programming (~15%)
  • Use of abstraction in computation or modeling
  • Representing information or knowledge for computational use
• Computational Thinking (~20%)
  • Introduction to Algorithms
  • How to analyze a problem to design the algorithm for solving the problem
  • Example algorithm: How to repeat an operation by using the “conditional loop” concept
  • How to write a program implementing an algorithm (e.g. use of the loop construct)
• Understanding popular algorithms (~15%)
  • How to find stuff: search algorithms (linear and binary search)
  • How to arrange stuff: sorting algorithms (insertion sort and selection sort)
• Special hands-on programming experience (~13%)
  • Introduction to hands-on programming environments (e.g., robots, MIT Scratch lab), which enable programmers to create interactive stories, games, etc.
• Secrecy and Privacy in the digital world (~12%)
  • Data theft and unintended information disclosure
  • Cryptography for data encryption.
  • Privacy issues related to the use of the Internet, online social networks, mobile devices, and the likes