CSE/MATH 1019, Winter 2008

CSE/MATH 1019: Discrete Math for Computer Science
Section M
Winter 2008

This is the web page for Section M (with Professor Gryz).

Web page contents:

General Information
Announcements
Important Dates
Resources
Reading and Homework Assignments

General Information

Instructor: Jarek Gryz
Office: Computer Science Building, room 2049
Telephone: (416) 736-2100 ext. 70150
Lectures: Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10:00-11:30 in CLH E
Email: [my first name]@cs.yorku.ca

The best way to contact me is to see me during my office hours.

Please use a York account when sending me email, and start your subject line with "[1019]". Send messages in plain text, without attachments.

Office Hours

Ordinarily I will have office hours on in my office, CSEB 2049. The building elevator should give you access to second floor during the above times.

These office hours are immediately after one of my lectures, so I may stay at the classroom for a few minutes, answering questions, before returning to my office. If you want to see me outside these times, you can (1) send me email to arrange an appointment or (2) drop by my office whenever I'm in (but if I'm feeling overwhelmed when you do, I may ask you to come back another time).

The Math Tutorial Lab supports this course. It is open weekdays from 10:30 to 15:30.

Academic Honesty

It is important that you look at the computer science department's guidelines on academic honesty.

Solutions you hand in for homework assignments must be your own work. Although you may discuss the general approach to solving a problem with other people, you should never discuss the solution in detail. You must not take any written notes away from such a discussion, and you should wait at least one hour after the discussion to write down anything about the homework questions. Also, you must list on the cover page of your solutions any people with whom you have discussed the problems. The solutions you hand in should be your own work. While writing them, you may look at the course textbook and your own lecture notes but no other outside sources.

Policy on e-mail from students on course materials, and questions

  • I will not answer these e-mails in general. My time is spent more productively for the class's sake in different ways. For pertinent questions on the materials that students send me by e-mail, or for questions that many people seem to be having, I will try to address them in class.

  • If you have a burning question I have not addressed, come see me during my office hours, or make an appointment if you need to.

    Many students do this already, and it is a good use of my time and theirs. I can usually answer a question a student asks in person in about a tenth the time than by an e-mail exchange. This is because writing it out takes much longer. Also, 80% of the questions people send me, I have no idea what they are asking. We would have to go back and forth by e-mail several times before I get to the bottom of it.

  • For personal requests, such as "I cannot make the test", and so forth, e-mail is fine and I will attempt to answer you directly.

    So I do not mind students sending questions by e-mail. By all means, continue. Just do not necessarily expect a direct reply. I do read them, and mostly I try to address the issues and questions people have raised. If your question or issue remains after some time, let me know. For anyone who believes that I am purposely ignoring them, my apologies.

    Marking Scheme

    Homework assignments20%
    Midterm(during class)30%
    Final exam50%

    Announcements

    • Extra (and last) office hours will be held on April 15 and 16. Send me an email if you want to make an appointment then.
    • The final exam will be held on April 25 at 9AM in CSE C. The sections to be covered at the final exam are as follows:
      • 3.2 (except big-omega and big-theta notation)
      • 4.1
      • 4.3 (except structural induction)
      • 5.1
      • 5.3
      • 5.4 (except Pascal's identity)
      • 7.1
      • 7.2 (except non-homogeneous recurrences)
      • 7.3 (just the Master Theorem)
      • 8.1
      • 8.2
      • 8.3 (except matrix representation of relations)
      • 8.4
      • 8.5
      Again, the exam is open book/notes.
    • Midterm solutions are available.
    • If you miss the midterm for a valid medical reason, your final exam will count for 80% of the total grade.
    • The midterm will cover chapters 1 and 2 from the book. The questions will be similar to the ones you did for homeworks. The exam is open book/notes. It takes place in class.
    • The class on Feb 19 is cancelled. Instead, I will have extended office hours 10AM-noon and 2:30-5PM on that day.

    Important Dates

    (Information will be added to this table thoughout the term.)

    First class January 3
    Midterm (in class) Feb 21
    Drop deadline March 7
    Last class April 1

    Resources

    Textbook

    • Kenneth H. Rosen. Discrete Mathematics and Its Applications, Sixth Edition. McGraw-Hill, 2007. Textbook web site. There is a list of errata on that site.

    Other References

    • Norman L. Biggs. Discrete Mathematics. Oxford University Press, 2002.
    • Alan Doerr and Kenneth Lavasseur. Applied Discrete Structures for Computer Science. Science Research Associates, 1985.
    • Gary Haggard, John Schlipf and Sue Whitesides. Discrete Mathematics for Computer Science. Thomson, 2006.
    • Rod Haggarty. Discrete Mathematics for computing. Addison-Wesley, 2002.
    • Bernard Kolman, Robert C. Busby and Sharon Cutler Ross. Discrete Mathematical Structures. Pearson, 2004.
    • Edward Scheinerman. Mathematics: A Discrete Introduction. Thomson, 2006.
    • Daniel Solow. How to Read and Do Proofs: An Introduction to Mathematical Thought Processes. Wiley, 2002.
    • Andrew Wohlgemuth. Introduction to Proof in Abstract Mathematics. Saunders College Publishing, 1990.

    Reading and Homework Assignments

    This section will be filled in as we go. These readings refer to sections of the course textbook. It is important not to fall behind with your reading.

    When a section is assigned as reading, you should do a significant number of the associated exercises as practice. The homework excercises assigned below should be considered a starting point, but you should do more. (And if you have trouble with one particular exercise, do more similar ones.)

    The back of the text contains answers for odd-numbered exercises. (In some cases the answers are very brief to save space; you would be expected to show more work.) Homework assignments must be readable and should show the work that led to your answer. All homework assignments must be dropped off at the drop off box in the CSE department by noon of the day they are due. Absolutely no late assignments will be accepted. Any discussion about the grading should be conducted with the TA.

    TA: Nassim Nasser

    email: nassim@cse.yorku.ca

    Office hours - Wed 3-3:30 PM, CSEB 2023

    Date DueSectionHomework Assignments
    Jan 141.1, skim 1.21.1: 30(f), 32(e), 56; 1.2: 30, 32
    Jan 211.3, 1.4, skim 1.5 1.3: 24, 36; 1.4: 12 (c), (e), (g), (j), (k), 24; 1.5: 10 (a), (b), (c)
    Jan 281.6, 1.7, 2.11.6: 10, 18; 1.7: 14, 32; 2.1: 8, 28
    Feb 42.2, 2.32.2: 20, 48; 2.3: 2, 12, 18, 26
    Feb 19 at noon2.42.3: 64 (a),(d), 70 (b),(c); 2.4: 18 (c),(d), 28, 34
    Mar 33.2, 4.13.2: 8, 20; 4.1: 12, 22, 34, 44
    Mar 104.3, 5.14.3: 6, 8, 24; 5.1: 24, 38
    Mar 175.3, 5.4, 7.1 5.3: 22, 40; 5.4: 8, 20; 7.1: 6, 8, 20
    Mar 25 at noon7.2, skim 7.3, 8.1 7.2: 4 (d)-(g), 20, 22; 7.3: 12; 8.1: 32
    Mar 318.2, skim 8.3, 8.4, 8.58.2: 12, 26; 8.4: 10; 8.5: 2, 30

    Updated March 11, 2008