Old Well


Department of Computer Science
College of Arts and Sciences
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

COMP089H (Fall 2015): Everyday Computing (Honors)


COMP 089H (Fall 2015): Everyday Computing (Honors)

Instructor: Ming C. Lin

GRC: Tanya Amert


Time and Place: MWF 2:30-3:45pm, FB-008
Office Hours: After Class, FB254
Prerequisites: None (Instructor's approval if not in Honors Program)
Textbook: Course Notes and In-Class Handouts


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  • Course Syllabus
  • Course Overview
  • Lectures and Approximate Schedule
  • Course Reading Materials
  • Assignments and Projects
  • Students in This Class
  • Additional Reference Materials
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    COURSE OVERVIEW:

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    The goal of this first-year seminar course is to understand the use of computing technology in our daily activities. In this course, we will study various examples on how computing affects different aspects of our daily life. More specifically, students will learn about use of computing technology in the following:

  • Artistic & Creative Processes
  • Assistive Technology
  • Bioinformatics
  • Computer Animation
  • Computer Game Dynamics
  • Digital Music & Audio Synthesis
  • Image Analysis for Abnormality Detection
  • Medical Simulation and Training
  • Rapid Prototyping for Design
  • Robotics and Automation
  • Special Effects Generation
  • Touch-Enabled Interfaces
  • Virtual Environments
  • Students will learn how to use computational thinking to solve many different problems in the physical and virtual world. We will discuss various considerations and tradeoffs used in designing computational methodologies (e.g. time, storage, ease of implementation, and generality). This will include data structures, algorithms, computational methods and their complexity and implementation.

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    LECTURES AND APPROXIMATE SCHEDULE

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    Here is a list of TENTATIVE lecture topics** (subject to changes). Schedule and information on each topic (e.g. readings, web pointers) will be added during the semester before each class.

  • Overview (Wed, Aug 19, 2015)
  • Computer Technology (Mon, Aug 24, 2015)
  • History of Computing & Algorithms (Wed, Aug 26, 2015)
  • Computational Thinking (Mon, Aug 31, 2015)
  • Multimedia (Wed, Sept 2 2015)
  • LABOR DAY (Mon, Sept 7, 2015)
  • Digital Sounds (Wed, Sept 9, 2015)
  • Touch-Enabled Interfaces (Mon, Sept 14, 2015)
  • Virtual Painting (Wed, Sept 16, 2015)
  • Networking & Web (Mon, Sept 21, 2015)
  • Being There @ UNC Graphics & Virtual Reality Lab (Wed, Sept 23, 2015)
  • Principles of Computer Animation (Mon, Sept 28, 2015)
  • Computer Vision by Prof. Tamara Berg (Wed, Sept 30, 2015)
  • Web Programming and Basic Principles of Programming (Mon, Oct 5, 2015)
  • Intro to Programming in Python (I) (Wed, Oct 7, 2015)
  • Student Success Workshop: Innovate, Research, and Discover (Friday, Oct 9, 2015)
  • Intro to Programming in Python (II) (Mon, Oct 12, 2015)
  • Extra Help Lab Session (Wed, Oct 14, 2015)
  • FALL BREAK (Oct 15-18, 2015)
  • Project Proposal (Mon/Wed, Oct 19-21, 2015)
  • Aerial Robot Swarms by Vijay Kumar (UPENN) (Mon, Oct. 19, 2015 @ 4pm in SN011)
  • Wearables by Prof. Shahriar Nirjon (Mon, Oct 26, 2015)
  • Self Driving Cars (Wed, Oct 28, 2015)
  • A Beginner's Guide to 3D Video Game Design and Immersion & A Comparison Between Nvidia G-Sync and AMD Freesync (Mon, Nov 2, 2015)
  • Video Ram: HBM vs. GDDR5 & Visual Python & TK Tools & BYOB Programming (Wed, Nov 4, 2015)
  • 3D Animation & Special Effects in Film and Television (Mon, Nov 9, 2015)
  • Technology as a Learning Tool & Assistive Technology & Data Mining & Applications in Marketing and Business (Wed, Nov 11, 2015)
  • NO CLASS (Mon, Nov 16, 2015) - Makeup Lectures on Oct. 19, 2015
  • Data Mining for Business & Marketing & Text Data Mining & Swarm Intelligence (Wed, Nov 18, 2015)
  • Revolutionizing Medicine with Technology & Impact of Drones on our Society & Steganography: Hiding Data in Plain Sight (Mon, Nov 23, 2015)
  • THANKSGIVING BREAK (Nov 25-29, 2015)
  • Smartshirts-The new direction of "wearables" & Steganography: Hiding Data in Plain Sight & Bitcoins & Cryptocurrency (Mon/Wed, Nov 30/Dec 2, 2015)
  • Public/Private-Key Methods in Encrypting Messages & Technology in Sports (Wed, Dec 2, 2015)
  • Final Project Presentations (Wed, Dec 9, 2015)
  • ** Some of the art works and introductory materials were inspired and borrowed from Prof. Leonard McMillan's earlier lectures on "Fluency in Information Technology". Line

    COURSE READING MATERIALS

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    References & Materials Used in Lectures:

  • List of Reference Papers & Supplementary Materials
  • Self-Driving Cars
  • Google Cars
  • G-Sync vs. Freesync
  • Introduction to Python
  • Applications of Swarm Intelligence in Business

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    ASSIGNMENTS AND PROJECTS

    Line The class grade of each student is determined by
  • Homework (30%)
  • Class Presentation (20%)
  • Course Project (40%)
  • Class Participation (10%)
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    POINTERS TO WEBSITES ON COMPUTING:

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    SELECTED INDUSTRY

  • Boston Dynamics Inc.
  • Dreamworks Animation
  • GamaNetwork
  • Havok
  • IBM Smarter Planet
  • Immersion Corporation
  • Massive Software
  • MAYA (Alias|Wavefront)
  • MSC.Working Knowledge
  • NVIDIA PHYSX
  • Pixar Animation Studios
  • Rhythm & Hues Studios
  • SensAble Technology
  • Walt Disney Animation Studio
  • Weta Digital
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    For more information, contact Ming C. Lin, lin@cs.unc.edu.
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