To be announced by the first day of class.

The text book for this course is

Thomas H. Cormen, Charles E. Leiserson, Ronald L. Rivest, and Clifford Stein.
Introduction to Algorithm. MIT Press/McGraw-Hill, 1990 (2nd edition).


If you have the first edition of the text, here are the summary of the
changes that are relevant to this course.  The chapters on greedy
algorithms, dynamic programming and NP-completeness have been revised
and some of the examples and presentation has been changed.  Also a
chapter on linear programming has been added which is a topic briefly
covered in this course.  A copy of the second edition will be put on
reserve at Olin Library.

Homework Assignments: There will by 5 homework assignments
(not counting Homework 0 which is optional).  The assignments are due
either in Dr. Goldman's mailbox in Bryan 509 by 11:20am or in class at
the beginning of class on the given due date.  Any homework
submitted in class after 11:40 will be given a 15 point late penalty.
If you arrive to class after 11:40, wait until the end of class to
bring up your homeworks.  It is VERY disruptive to have students
walking in late and coming to the front of the class to submit their
homeworks.   No assignments will be accepted after the solutions are
handed out at the end of class. Each homework will have the
following two sections.


A core section that contains the problems required by all
students enrolled for credit in either CS 441T or CS 539T.

An advanced section contains problems required
only for students registered in CS 539T.  They are extra credit
problems for CS 441T students.  Note that the points obtained on the
extra credit problems are recorded but not added into the score.  They
are only used to help decide the grade in border line cases.  Thus you
should be sure to do the core section before beginning the extra
credit problems.  

You are strongly advised to get started early so that you can get help
if needed!  These homeworks are not designed to be done in
just a few days.  I expect you to spend 10-14 hours for a two week
homework assignment --- It will be very frustrating if you try to do
this all in the last few days. For some problems you may need to think
about them a while and then set them aside for a little.

Exams:  There will be two in-class exams and a final exam.
There will be additional problems on the CS 539T version of the exam.
All exams will be closed book.

Policy on Collaboration: Each homework you submit
should be the result of your own effort.  For ALL homework
problems you ARE NOT permitted to consult the solutions from
another student (former or current), or copy/consult the provided
solutions from previous years.  Each homework must be submitted
with a signed cover sheet

In solving your homework problems, you may discuss HIGH-LEVEL
approaches to solving the homework problems with your classmates,
HOWEVER, you are to work out all details of any solutions discussed
and write up the solution completely on your own.  In particular, when
working with a student on an assigned homework problem you should do
so verbally -- Nothing should be written.  Remember to keep your
discussion at a high-level so that everyone can work out the details
on their own. Also you must clearly acknowledge anyone (besides
me or a class TA) with whom you discussed any problem and say briefly
what you discussed.

Please keep any discussions you have with other students to a small
group of no more than 3 students and be sure that each of you are
equally involved.  If you just listen in and are then able to understand
and write up the solution you have missed at least half of the benefit
of the homework and this will show up on the exam.  It is really 
important to work through the process of recognizing when you are
heading the wrong way and learning how to work through the problem
solving process.

Violations of any of the above rules will be dealt with harshly!
These homework problems are designed to help you learn the material
being taught.  Being told the solution and understanding it is VERY
different from working through the process of actually finding a
solution.  If you do not take an active role in the process of solving
the homework problems, then you won't get much out of it, hence you
won't learn the material and you are unlikely to pass the exams.

Switching Between CS 441T and CS 539T:  Through November 14th
you may switch from CS 539T to CS 441T, but not the other way.
Thus if you are undecided I encourage you to begin by doing the
required work for CS 539T and see how that goes for you.

Computation of the Final Grade:  The total number of
homework points that you receive across the six homeworks will account
for 50% of your grade, each of the in-class exams will count for 15%
of your grade, and the final will account for 20% of your grade.
An "A" will be awarded for an overall percentage of 85% or better, a
"B" is given for an overall percentage between 75% and 84%, a "C" is
given for an overall percentage between 65% and 74%, a "D" is given
for an overall percentage between 55% and 64%.  No credit (i.e. an "F")
will be given an overall percentage less than 55%.