Our upcoming readings for this week are: Sections 3.5, 3.6, 4.1, and 4.2. This will start you in on greedy algorithms. We’ll start working on greedy algorithms via a graph example, bridging the graphs and greedy algorithms sections.
NOTE: We’re still figuring out whether we’ll separately post handouts and notes for each section or use one combined post. For now, here are handouts and notes similar to those both sections will use tomorrow. (If we split up by section, we’ll find a way for you to disentangle them easily!)
Welcome to CPSC 320!
Our overall course goal is to learn about a common and important set of problem types, algorithmic solution approaches, and analysis techniques, and to gain the tools and experience necessary to judge how a new problem might fit one of these categories, how to approach solving the problem, and how to analyze and adjust your solution.
A few administrative notes for today, much longer than our usual since it’s the start of the term:
- Sign up for our Piazza discussion board at https://piazza.com/ubc.ca/winterterm12017/cpsc320/ and read the welcome post there that has other important material!
- Get your @ugrad.cs.ubc.ca account set up. See the announcement on the Piazza board for more details.
- Come to your registered tutorial next week (the week of Monday 11 Sep). There will be a graded quiz focused on stable marriage and algorithm/data structures design and analysis review!
- Do the pre-class reading for 2017/01/06, which is Kleinberg and Tardos Section 1.1. (Do get the textbook ASAP or be prepared to thoroughly study other resources on your own! Previous terms’ students have suggested that the international edition is equivalent but cheaper, although we cannot guarantee that’s true!)
- Review CPSC 221/EECE 320, especially asymptotic analysis and very high-level data structure info (binary trees, self-balancing binary trees, heaps, hash tables, etc.).
Next, here are today’s handouts:
- Stable Marriage Problem Worksheet (sample solution to be posted later)
- How to Solve a 320 Problem
- Gale-Shapley Algorithm
- Canadian Resident Matching Service’s Match Algorithm page
Finally, if you wish to read ahead, we expect to read at least these sections in this order (changes may happen but probably not drastic ones):
- The rest of Chapter 1 (and, for every chapter we read, the chapter intro)
- Chapter 2 (largely review), with emphasis on 2.3
- Chapter 3
- Sections 4.1-4.7 of Chapter 4 (a bit of which is likely review)
- Sections 5.1-5.4 of Chapter 5, plus the Master Theorem on Wikipedia
- Sections 6.1-6.6 and 6.8 (which is likely review) of Chapter 6
- Sections 8.1-8.5, maybe 8.6, 8.7, 8.8, and 8.10 of Chapter 8. Note that 8.10 is useful to read early and reread as you work through this chapter.