Dr. Antonio Sanchez (TTC 332 – a.sanchez-aguilar@tcu.edu)
My website is located at:
http://www.cs.tcu.edu/people/professors/asanchez/asanchez.html
You will find access to the material of the course there.
The textbook website is https://www.cog-sys.com/DFtext/.
Access to the textbook requires a username and password which will be provided
in class. Sharing the username and password with anyone not enrolled in the
class is both a violation of the TCU student code of conduct and a federal
crime, so please do not do that.
Lecture slides are posted and additional resources linked
from the textbook site. While we want you to make copies of the lecture slides
for your own use, please respect the material’s copyright and do not provide
this material to any third party. The goal is to use the textbook website to
develop a published textbook for future TCU students and any distribution of
the material to others will hurt our ability to get a publisher to publish the
text.
This course focuses on how we can develop technological solutions to problems by applying the scientific method to the study of major technological accidents and failures. The lecture material will be augmented by laboratory experiences where the student will be able to experiment with some common everyday complex systems and study their failures under carefully controlled conditions.
Outcomes
Students will demonstrate a basic understanding of:
1) The investigation methodologies, computer models and simulation methods used by engineers and scientists in the development of modern technologies.
2) The engineering, and the underlying natural science, behind a set of modern technologies.
3) How the engineering and the underlying natural science behind modern technologies control not only what we can do, but how society must deal with both the positive and negative effects of a technology.
Grades will be determined using the following breakdown:
Unit
Quizzes
|
40% |
|
Final |
10% |
|
Lab Write-ups |
44% |
|
Lab Introduction and Final |
6% |
Normally, thirteen unit quizzes will be administered
during the course. These will normally be given in the first 10 minutes of
class after the unit is covered. If class attendance starts to drop off, the
instructor may either, 1) randomly select the quiz date, 2) divide the unit
quiz into two shorter quizzes given on two different days, and/or 3) give
additional pop quizzes.
Normally, the lowest quiz will be dropped, the rest will
count about 3 points each. No make-up quizzes will be given. If you miss one or more quizzes and have a valid
excuse for any of the quizzes you have missed, your quiz grade will be
calculated on the total number of quizzes you should have taken. For example, if
13 quizzes were given over the semester and you missed 4 quizzes and have an
excused absence for 2 quizzes, your average will be based on the 11 quizzes you
should have taken. In other words, the two zeros for the quizzes without an
excused absence will be averaged into your final quiz grade.
Final determination of whether an absence is excused rests
with your professor. Unless the absence is due to a long-term situation
verified by Campus Life, you must request (via email) the dropping of a missed
quiz no later than 1 week after the date it was given, otherwise you will
receive a zero for that quiz.
Each quiz will be either 10 multiple choice questions or
1-3 short answer questions. This is a change from past semesters and the result
of student feedback, so please do not blame us. Short answer questions create
much more work for us, which is why we were using multiple choice questions.
Please remember that the reason for dropping one quiz is
to allow you to better handle an unexpected absence or an inability to properly
prepare for one quiz. In our experience with this course, not preparing for
quizzes and completely missing quizzes due to lack of attendance are the major
factors causing students to receive final course grades below what they either
expected or desired.
All lecture final exams will be comprehensive and count 10
percent of your grade. There are two possible final formats, 1) a final made up
of multiple choice and short answer questions taken directly from the unit
quizzes, and 2) a final containing 5 essay questions (20 points each). Most
students will be given a final using format number one. However, each
instructor can at their discretion give all students in their class that have
missed more than 4 quizzes or have an overall quiz average below 60 a final
using format number two. All make-up finals, regardless of the reason for
taking it at a different time, will (for reasons of fairness) use format number
two.
The laboratory experience will reinforce the lecture material by giving the student a chance to discover how the scientific method is used in the design of complex products/systems and study of technologies. All laboratories will be completed in teams of two (or more) at the assigned laboratory time. A write up (mostly fill-in-the-blank) for each lab will be due at the end the scheduled lab. The lab write up is to be your own work and points will be deducted if your essay style answers are too similar to other members of your team.
There are 12 assigned labs. Normally, the lowest lab grade
will be dropped, the rest will count about 4 points each.
No make-up labs will be given unless your assigned lab
section does not meet for some reason.
If you miss one or more labs and have a
valid excuse for any of the labs you have missed, your lab grade will be
calculated on the total number of labs you should have taken. For example, if your
assigned lab section completed 12 labs and you missed 2 labs and have an excused
absence for 1 lab, your average will be based on the 11 labs you should have
taken. In other words, the a zero for the lab to missed without an excused
absence will be averaged into your final lab grade.
Lab Introduction and Final
The first lab session will consist of a lab introduction. This introduction will include some practice calculations for a standard calculator test based on the Unit 1 material. Before the first lab (second lab session), you will be given a calculator test to complete which will be worth 0.5% of your overall grade.
The lab final will primarily cover what you have learned in the lab, but this material naturally overlaps the lecture material. The lab final will be comprehensive and will consist of short answers and some discussion question. It is worth 5.5% percent of your grade.
Class Participation
Due to the nature of this course, this class will require that your body and mind show up to every class. Due to the size of the class, we may use a seating chart and you can assume that attendance is being monitored. In addition to simply being in class, you should review the website material for that day before you come to class and be prepared to ask and answer questions about the material being covered that day.
The schedules provided for this class should only be viewed as a guide (i.e., we can and will change things as we see fit). The first version is given on a separate link from the web site’s main page. We will attempt to keep the schedule updated as best we can, but each professor is free to deviate from the schedules as he/she sees fit.
Academic Dishonesty
The Computer Science Department takes academic dishonesty quite seriously. Academic misconduct will not be tolerated. Such acts are detailed in the current TCU Bulletin and include: copying, using, or in any way misrepresenting another’s work as your own; substituting for another or having someone substitute for you; plagiarism; collusion; abusing resource materials; unauthorized use of computer software or hardware; fabrication and falsification; complicity in misconduct. Such conduct at a minimum results in a zero on the test or assignment, and may result in a failing grade for the course.
Texas Christian University complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 regarding students with disabilities. If you require accommodations for a disability, please contact the Coordinator for Students with Disabilities in the Center for Academic Services, located in Sadler Hall 11. Further information can be obtained from the Center for Academic Services, TCU Box 297710, Fort Worth, TX 76129, or at 817-257-7486.
Adequate time must be allowed to arrange accommodations and accommodations are not retroactive; therefore, students should contact the Coordinator as soon as possible in the academic term for which they are seeking accommodations. Each eligible student is responsible for presenting relevant, verifiable, professional documentation and/or assessment reports to the Coordinator. Guidelines for documentation may be found at http://www.acs.tcu.edu/DISABILITY.HTM.
****Students with emergency medical information or
needing special arrangements in case a building must be evacuated should
discuss this information with their instructor/professor as soon as
possible.****
|
CITE 10003/CITE10433
DF&OTT Weekly Schedule: Fall 2008 |
|||||
|
Week |
Date |
Lec # |
Lecture Topic |
Quiz |
Lab |
|
#1 |
Mon- Aug 25 |
1 |
1-Process & Tools |
|
Lab Introduction |
|
|
Wed - Aug 27 |
2 |
1-Process & Tools |
|
|
|
#2 |
|
|
|
|
Calculator Test |
|
Wed - Sep 03 |
3 |
2-Bridges |
U1 |
1-Process & Tools |
|
|
#3 |
Mon - Sep 08 |
4 |
2-Bridges |
|
2-Bridges |
|
Wed - Sep 10 |
5 |
2-Bridges |
|
|
|
|
#4 |
Mon - Sep 15 |
6 |
3-Nuclear Medicine |
U2 |
3-Nuclear Medicine |
|
Wed - Sep 17 |
7 |
3-Nuclear Medicine |
|
||
|
#5 |
Mon - Sep 22 |
8 |
4-Airplanes |
U3 |
4-Airplanes |
|
Wed - Sep 24 |
9 |
4-Airplanes |
|
||
|
#6 |
Mon - Sep 29 |
10 |
5-Power Grid |
U4 |
5-Power Grid |
|
Wed - Oct 01 |
11 |
5-Power Grid |
|
||
|
#7 |
Mon - Oct 06 |
12 |
6-Nuclear Power |
U5 |
Fall Break |
|
Wed - Oct 08 |
13 |
6-Nuclear Power |
|
No Lab |
|
|
#8 |
Mon - Oct 13 |
14 |
7-Telephones |
U6 |
6-Nuclear Power |
|
Wed - Oct 15 |
15 |
7-Telephones |
|
|
|
|
#9 |
Mon - Oct 20 |
16 |
8-Tech Markets |
U7 |
7-Telephones |
|
Wed - Oct 22 |
17 |
8-Tech Markets |
|
|
|
|
#10 |
Mon - Oct 27 |
18 |
9-The Internet |
U8 |
8-Tech Markets |
|
Wed - Oct 29 |
19 |
9-The Internet |
|
|
|
|
#11 |
Mon - Nov 03 |
20 |
10-ISS |
U9 |
9-The Internet |
|
Wed - Nov 05 |
21 |
10-ISS |
|
|
|
|
#12 |
Mon - Nov 10 |
22 |
11-Exporation |
U10 |
10-ISS |
|
Wed - Nov 12 |
23 |
11-Exporation |
|
|
|
|
#13 |
Mon - Nov 17 |
24 |
12-Limits |
U11 |
11-Exporation |
|
Wed - Nov 19 |
25 |
12-Limits |
|
|
|
|
#14 |
Mon - Nov 24 |
|
No Class |
|
Thanksgivng |
|
|
|
|
|
No Lab |
|
|
#15 |
Mon - Dec 01 |
26 |
13-WTC-9/11 |
U12 |
12 Limits |
|
Wed - Dec 03 |
27 |
13-WTC-9/11 |
|
|
|
|
#16 |
Mon - Dec 08 |
28 |
14-Movies |
U13 |
Lab Final |
|
|
Wed - Dec 10 |
30 |
Review |
|
|
|
Finals |
|||||