COMP 141: Programming Languages

Course Description

Topics in evaluation, design, and development of programming languages. Topics include type systems, variables and scope, functions, parameter passing, data hiding and abstractions, recursion, memory allocation, grammars and parsing, compilers architecture, programming paradigms, and comparison of programming languages and environments.

Prerequisites: Completion of Fundamental Skills and COMP 053 with a "C-" or better.
When enrolling in this course, you should be relatively proficient in using at least the following object‐oriented programming languages: C++ and Java. It is recommended to use C++, Java or Python for course projects. In addition to being a competent programmer, you should have a working understanding of the following specific topics:

Website: Syllabus, Canvas LMS

Credits: 4 units

Course Catalog: https://catalog.pacific.edu/search/?search=comp+141&caturl=%2F

Administration

Instructor: Sepehr Amir-Mohammadian
Email:
Lecture: MWF 09:30AM - 10:45AM, through video conferencing
All live class presentations and discussions during this course may be recorded. As a student in this class, please note that your participation in live class discussions may therefore also be recorded. By participating in a live class discussion you are giving your consent to this recording. Access to these recordings will be limited to faculty and the students enrolled in the class and to assist enrolled students who cannot attend the live session.
Office hours: MW 11:00AM - 01:00PM, through video conferencing
Video conferencing links are provided in Canvas.
Students need to request alternate meeting times outside of scheduled office hours through email.

Teaching Assistant: Abhinav Bhatta
Email: a_bhatta@u.pacific.edu

Learning Objectives

The vision for this course is: What do I, as a computer scientist, need to understand about the fundamental concepts in programming languages and what are the different features by which I can realize whether a given programming language is appropriate in a given project?

There are two main themes in this course:

You will have many different opportunities to gain this knowledge through:

After taking this course, you should be able to:

University of the Pacific Core Competencies: This course reflects the following university-wide core competenceies in the undergraduate program:

Outcomes for COMP program: The assessment plan for this course comprises the following outcomes identified by ABET:

Collection of Work for Assessment: Student work may be retained to assess how course learning objectives are being met and for accreditation purposes.

Course Material

We will use the following textbooks along with additional resources that are referred through the semester.

The slides, assignments, supplementary material, etc. will be provided through Canvas LMS.

Major topics that will be covered in the course are:

Grading and Attendance Policy

Grades for the course are assigned on the scale below:

A	A-	B+	B	B-	C+	C	C-	D+	D	F
[93,100]	[90,93)	[87,90)	[83,87)	[80,83)	[77,80)	[73,77)	[70,73)	[67,70)	[60,67)	[0,60)

Final grades will be assigned based on several performance factors. These factors and their quantitative contribution to the final grade are as follows:

Attendance: Class attendance and participation is highly recommended. There will be numerous activities in class, and these activities may not be made up outside of class. Participation requires that you are properly prepared for classroom discussions and activities, and have completed all reading assignments before the relevant class. Students missing a class are responsible for making up the material discussed in that class on their own. Students are responsible for being aware of any announcements made during their absence.

Exams

Two exams will be conducted during the semester, a midterm and a final. The schedule will be announced in class and content and format will be discussed prior to the exams. Make up exams will only be scheduled in emergency situations.

Assignment Guidelines

Release and Submission

Solutions: Solutions to homework assignments, class activities, sample exam questions, and midterm exam may be submitted electronically via Canvas, or in class on pencil-and-paper when appropriate.

Late submission policy: Deliverables for homework assignments and course projects will be accepted up to three days late, with a 5% per day penalty.
All assignments will be considered individual efforts unless otherwise specified, and will be treated as such under the Academic Honesty Policy.

Academic Honesty

The Honor Code at the University of the Pacific calls upon each student to exhibit a high degree of maturity, responsibility, and personal integrity. Students are expected to:

Violations will be referred to and investigated by the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards. If a student is found responsible, it will be documented as part of her or his permanent academic record. A student may receive a range of penalties, including failure of an assignment, failure of the course, suspension, or dismissal from the University. The Academic Honesty Policy is located in Tiger Lore and online.

Course-specific Honor Code Policy: Engineering is generally a cooperative endeavor and collaborative learning can be a valuable experience for all involved. However, proper assessment (i.e., grading) requires that work be done by individuals. To balance these two requirements, the following policy will apply:

Marginal cases will be resolved by oral examination of the student(s) involved. If they each understand the material in the assignment, it will be considered honest collaboration. If they do not, then it will be considered academic dishonesty.

In many cases, it may be possible to identify reusable source code from textbooks, web sites or other resources that can help you with assignments. You are permitted to use such references provided that:

You are responsible for understanding the theory behind all algorithms or source code used, regardless of their source.

Accommodations for Students with Disabilities

If you are a student with a disability who requires accommodations, please contact the Director of the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) for information on how to obtain an Accommodations Request Letter.

3-Step Accommodation Process:

To ensure timeliness of services, it is preferable that you obtain the accommodation letter(s) from the Office of SSD during the first week of class. After the instructor receives the accommodation letter, please schedule a meeting with the instructor during office hours or some other mutually convenient time to arrange the accommodation(s).

The Office of Services for Students with Disabilities is located in the McCaffrey Center, Rm. 137.

Nondiscrimination Policy

The University of the Pacific does not discriminate in the administration of any of its educational programs, admissions, scholarships, loans, athletics, or other University activities or programs on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin, handicap, sexual orientation or preference, sex or age.