CPSC 629: Analysis of Algorithms
Course Information
Spring 1999

Class Meeting: Tuesday, Thursday 2:20-3:35pm, HRBB 113

Instructor: Nancy Amato
office: 414B Harvey R. Bright Bldg
office hours: Tuesdays and Thursdays 3:35-4:15pm, or by appointment
email: amato@cs.tamu.edu
url: http://www.cs.tamu.edu/faculty/amato
office phone: 862-2275
home phone: 693-1855 (please don't call after midnight or before 9am)

Course homepage: http://www.cs.tamu.edu/faculty/amato/Courses/629

Reading Material:
The required textbook for the course is Introduction to Algorithms, Thomas H. Cormen, Charles E. Leiserson, and Ronald L. Rivest, The MIT Press/McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1990. Referred to as [CLR].
In addition, the following text is a recommended reference text (covering material we will cover towards the end of the semester) Computers and Intractability: A Guide to the Theory of NP-Completeness, Michael R. Garey and David S. Johnson, W.H. Freeman and Company, 1979. Referred to as [GJ].

Prerequisite:
CPSC 311 (undergraduate Analysis of Algorithms) or equivalent, or instructor's approval.
You are expected to be familiar with the material in Chapters 1-13 and 23-26 of [CLR], excluding sections 4.4, 6.5, 13.4, 23.5, 25.3-25.5, and 26.3-26.4. These topics are basic mathematical analysis techniques, sorting, simple search structures, and basic graph algorithms.

Course Description and Goals:
This course is designed to teach you, at the graduate level, algorithm design and analysis paradigms, advanced data structures and their use in efficient algorithms, graph algorithms, the theory of NP-completeness, and some specialized topics (to be determined based on student input). At the end of the semester you should:

• be familiar with the algorithms and algorithmic techniques covered,
• be able to argue correctness and analyze the running time of a given algorithm,
• be able to design new algorithms for new situations, using as building blocks the algorithms and techniques learned,
• be able to prove a problem is NP-complete using reduction.

Course Content and Tentative Schedule:
The course will cover the following topics; relevant chapters of [CLR] are indicated in parentheses.

• Algorithm Design and Analysis Paradigms
  • dynamic programming [CLR, ch. 16]
  • greedy algorithms [CLR, ch. 17]
  • amortized analysis [CLR, ch. 18]
• Advanced Data Structures
  • B-trees [CLR, ch. 19]
  • binomial heaps [CLR, ch. 20]
  • Fibonacci heaps [CLR, ch. 21]
  • union-find data structures [CLR, ch. 22]
• Graph Algorithms
  • strongly connected components [CLR, ch. 23]
  • shortest paths [CLR, ch. 25, 26]
  • max flow [CLR, ch. 27]
• Intractability
  • NP-completeness [CLR, ch. 36, also GJ, ch. 1-3]
  • Approximation Algorithms [CLR, ch. 37, also GJ, ch. 6]
• Other Topics (as time permits)
  • Computational Geometry [CLR, ch. 35]
  • Number-Theoretic Algorithms [CLR, ch. 33]

Grading: The course will be graded on the curve. Grades will be based on the following components:

• 20% assignments (problem sets, quizzes, etc.). Announced in class and posted on the webpage.
• 20% project - a theoretical and experimental comparison of two algorithms. More information on webpage.
• 10% culture - reports on the Distinguished Lecturer Series. More information on webpage.
• 25% exam 1 (in class, Thursday, March 11 - tentative)
• 25% exam 2 (1:00-3:00pm, Wednesday, May 12 - final exam slot)

Collaboration: Discussion of concepts with others and consulting written sources is encouraged, but all assignments must be done on your own, unless otherwise instructed. If you use any source other than the text, reference it/him/her, whether it be a person, a book, a solution set, a web page or whatever. You MUST write up the solutions in your own words. Copying is strictly forbidden.

University Regulations, Section 42, define scholastic dishonesty to include acquiring answers from any unauthorized source, working with another person when not specifically permitted, observing the work of other students during any exam, providing answers when not specifically authorized to do so, informing any person of the contents of an exam prior to the exam, and failing to credit sources used. Disciplinary actions range from grade penalty to expulsion.

Computer use and accounts: You will need to be familiar with and have access to a web browser since many handouts for the course will be made available only on the web. In addition, email will be widely used for announcements regarding the course -- you must read your email regularly.

For the project, you will need to to have an account on the CS UNIX machines (if for no other reason that to use the turnin program). All students registered for this course are entitled to have a CS UNIX account - if you do not already have one you can sign up for one at the SSO office on the second floor of the Bright building.