Course Administration for CS250

The Instructor

Ryerson 156
Voice: (773) 834-1477
Email: fensterm@cs.uchicago.edu

Office hours

Tuesdays 2-4pm or by appointment
Usually, I will also be available after class on both Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Course Communication

We'll communicate amongst ourselves in several ways. Lectures and class discussions are obviously a key element, but there's more. Much more. Generally, I'll post relevant information to the Web site¹, which you should check frequently. The Web site will often have updated information on assignments (e.g., hints, reductions and expansions). There are also HyperNews discussion groups so that we can continue our discussions outside of class. Finally, I will sometimes send email to the class (or just you), and email is a great way to reach me.

Course Grades

Course grades will be based on class discussion, a midterm, programming assignments and a final project. Approximate breakdown of the weight of each component is given below, but the weight will often vary among individuals.

Class discussion (20%) - Class discussion is more likely to help you than hurt you, but it's always possible to shoot yourself in the foot. If you are uncomfortable speaking out in class, you can submit your thoughts on the day's topic in writing. You might also actively participate in the HyperNews discussion group.
Exam (20%) - There will be an in-class midterm.
Programming assignments (35%) - You'll receive fairly regular assignments to exercise your growing ability in Lisp. There will probably be about 5 assignments throughout the quarter.
Final project (25%) - You can do anything you want, as long as it relates to AI and I approve it. Your project can be a paper, a program or a combination. The project can be done in groups of 2 or 3, or on your own.

Final project

The aim of the final project is to give you chance to dig a bit deeper into a topic that interests you. Your project doesn't neccesarily need to focus on a topic that we cover during the quarter, as long as its related to AI. Papers and/or code will be acceptable. As a rough gauge of the size of the project, a paper alone should run about 10 pages, and a program would probably be several hundred lines of Lisp code. (Several hundred lines might not sound like much if you're used to C, but Lisp is a different ballgame.) Some example projects would be:

An analysis of arguments for (or against) the feasability of intelligent machines. You might evaluate the criticisms of Roger Penrose or Dreyfus.
Opportunities for the use of AI in electronic commerce, which might include building communities with collaborative filtering or building bargain-finding agents.
Write a neural network program in Lisp.
Create a representation for a task domain, and write a Lisp program that uses that representation.
Write a program that plays a simple game (such as 'Hunt the Wumpus').

Pass/fail grades

Pass-fail is at the discretion of the instructor , and I'm generally inclined against it for this class. If you'd like to take the class pass/fail, send me a note by email stating your reasons.

Collaboration

Sharing thoughts and ideas with your fellow students is not only suggested, it is encouraged. Except for the final project, you should turn in your own work. If you gave or received extensive help, you should note on your assignment who you gave help to, or received help from. In this context, "extensive" means either in terms of time or difficulty. For example, if you struggled with a Lisp function for two days, and some one showed the trick to writing an elegant recursive version, that constitutes extensive help, even if the whole exchange only took a few moments.

Academic Honesty

It's a shame I even have to include a section on this topic, but I've learned from past experience. In a nutshell, if I catch you cheating I reserve the right to adminster the most severe punishment I can possibly muster under the academic code. If there is any doubt in your mind regarding the prorpriety of your actions (past or planned), talk to me. Do not mistake my gentle, easy-going nature as a sign of someone who is sympathetic to the cries of those caught red-handed.

1. The Web site generally uses more advanced features, so you'll need to use one of the latest browsers. Netscape Navigator 4.x or Internet Explorer 4.x should do just fine. (Return).

This page maintained by Kurt D. Fenstermacher.
Last updated on December 29th, 1998.

Contents