CSCE 481 Seminar

People Hank Walker – Department Head John Keyser – Associate Department Head Mahima Agumbe Suresh – Teaching Assistant

What is This Class About? Looking forward: after graduation – Lectures on jobs, job environment, company reps, grad school, academia, etc. Understanding the bigger picture – Assignments deal with research, life-long learning – Lectures and assignments focus on the impact of computing in the world Improving your writing – W class

Outcomes addressed An understanding of professional responsibility Ability to communicate effectively Understanding of computing in a global and societal context Recognition of the need for and ability to engage in life-long learning Knowledge of contemporary issues

Grading Three components – Pass all of them and get an A/S – Fail any one and get an F/U Seminar reports Short Written Assignments Longer Written Assignment

Seminar Reports This is a seminar class (duh!) – Attendance at the seminar is critical Must attend 13 classes, not including today – We will have at least 16 more – These should count for valid absences, also! Pick up a form each day at beginning of class – Will remove it after a short time – be on time! Turn it in at the end of class

Short Writing Assignments 6 of these Each is 1-2 pages in length Score 0-10, >=7 is pass – Grading rubric is in syllabus Today’s handout covers 3 assignments Can revise submissions, but don’t wait too long

Large Writing Assignment 4-6 pages At least one revision required Details will come later in the semester

Aggie Honor Code Do your own work Don’t fill out seminar reports for others Avoid accidental plagiarism – Don’t copy without citation, clear quotes – Be sure not to just copy, even with citations May not be honor code violation, but not acceptable

Class Schedule See – will update as speakers are scheduledhttp://courses.cse.tamu.edu/keyser/csce481 Plan to meet most days through October, but not afterward Early weeks: talks from Career Center Later weeks: – Company speakers – Panels – Some talks by instructors about writing, academia, grad school

Assignment Details Put cover page on all assignments Turn in hard copy at beginning of class Late penalty: 1 point per day (3 points maximum) – Cumulative for revisions Revisions: due within 1 week of return of prior paper – Can submit multiple revisions!

Culture Assignments 3 of the written reports Attend a research talk – MANY to choose from – But, don’t wait until the last minute! Write up a 1-page discussion of the research topic (not the speaker/talk) – Include citations to papers