1. CSCE 481 Seminar

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

3. 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

4. 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

5. 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

6. 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

7. 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

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

9. 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

10. Class Schedule See http://courses.cse.tamu.edu/keyser/csce481 – 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

11. 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!

12. 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