Mathematics for Computer Scientists
Course Information
- Convenor: Roland Backhouse
- Tutors:
- Module Code: G51MCS
- Duration: Autumn 2008, Semester 1
- Method and frequency of class: Two lectures per week:
- Tuesday, 09:00-10:00 in JC-EXCHGE-C.LT2+
- Thursday 11:00-12:00 in JC-EXCHGE-D.LT2+
- Tutorials: See the tutorials page. (First coursework available on 26th September. Tutorials starting after 6/10/08).
- Method of assessment: Coursework (25%) and unseen written Examination (75%)
- Literature:
- Coursework: One set of problems per week, in all 8 or 9 sets. Best 6 counts.
Literature
The book Program Construction: Calculating Implementations from Specifications [Bac03] by Roland Backhouse is the main reference for the course and is recommended reading.
The book A Logical Approach to Discrete Math [GS00] by David Gries, Fred B. Schneider provides further reading.
You can check prices and stock-level at the local branch of Blackwell's by following this link. The DLRC Library at the Jubilee Campus also has a number of copies of both books (although only the older 1993 edition of Gries and Schneider). Finally, University of Nottingham students have on-line access to a complete electronic version of [Bac03].
Lectures
Skeletons of the lectures are available below.
- Calculational Logic.pdf
- Disjunction and Conjunction.pdf
- Floor and Ceiling Functions.pdf
- Functions and Relations.pdf
- Laws of Arithmetic.pdf
- Leibniz. equals-for-equals.pdf
- leibniz-substitution.pdf
- Logic Puzzles.pdf
- Mathematics for Computing Science.pdf
- Operations on Sets
- Sets, Permutations and Combinations.pdf
- Sets, Permutations and Combinations post.pdf
- Quantifiers.pdf
The skeletons will be expanded in the lectures. Always remember to bring a printed copy of the skeletons with you and be prepared to take notes. Lecture attendance is compulsory! Occasionally, additional lecture notes and/or summary slides will be made available via this page. Please note that you should not expect these notes to be a complete or even self-contained record of all that is said and discussed during the lectures.
Tutorials
Each student is assigned to a tutorial group. This group meets once a week to discuss the coursework, except that there are no tutorials the weeks G51APS coursework is due. If you are enrolled on G51APS your tutorial group for the two modules will be the same. You are expected to take part in the tutorials on a regular basis. Tutorials start from week 3 of the semester (Monday 6 October 2008). For further details, including tutorial group assignments, and detailed coursework and tutorial schedules, see the tutorials page.
Coursework
The coursework counts for 25% of the overall mark for the module. A set of problems is to be solved weekly and handed in before the deadline, Friday 3pm each week, starting from 3 October 2008, except that no coursework is due the two weeks G51APS coursework is due. There are going to be 8 or 9 sets of problems: the best 6 count!. Thus you can miss two (or maybe three) deadlines without any ill effect, and failing to hand in one or two pieces of coursework due to e.g. short periods of illness are to be handled through this mechanism as opposed to the formal Extenuating Circumstances route. However! You should always log Extenuating Circumstances along with supporting evidence if you are ill as the duration and full impact of any illness obviously cannot be known from the outset.
Note! The first set of problems is special, in that its only purpose is to give us an idea about what you know. Thus, everyone who hands in complete (but not necessarily correct) solutions will get full marks for the first problem set.
The problem sets and the solutions will be made available via the tutorials page. Detailed schedules of coursework release and due dates, along with dates of the related tutorials, are also available there.
Examination
Some basic information about the exam:- The exam counts for 75% of the total mark.
- 1 compulsory question and 3 other (out of 5) questions have to be answered, each worth 25% of the overall mark.
- 90-minute examination.
Past examination papers can be found here (access restricted to Nottingham University students). Important! The syllabus for G51MCS changed in 2006-2007. Examination papers prior to this date are no longer relevant.
Here are model solutions to the 2007 examination paper , and the 2008 examination paper.Last updated 24 September 2008.