home > undergraduate > Concurrent Programming  > Concurrent Programming Homepage

Concurrent Programming (230.304) 6 points / Semester 1 Handbook Description The official Handbook entry Unit Aims The need to understand and work with the notion of concurrency is becoming increasingly important as the processing limits of sequential programs on sequential machines begin to be reached. Thus multiprocessor configurations are now commonplace in large-scale computing environments. However, these multiprocessor systems generally run sequential application programs: it is the operating system that embodies principles of concurrency. With the advent of low cost multiprocessor systems (eg Transputer) on the one hand and massively parallel systems (eg Ncube) on the other, the responsibility of extracting maximum utilization of these systems is increasingly falling upon the application developer. The focus of this unit will be the i understanding and designing of concurrent systems. Time permitting, consideration will also be given to massively parallel systems such as artificial neural networks. The generic attributes addressed in this unit are the following. The students will be able to apply knowledge of basic science and engineering in problem solving related to programming. The students' ability to communicate effectively, not only with engineers but also with the community at large is emphasized. The students will gain in-depth technical competence in software engineering issues related to concurrent programming. The students will learn to identify the problems in a task and formulate the solutions for those problems. The students will learn to function effectively as an individual and in multi-disciplinary and multi-cultural teams, with the capacity to be a leader. Teaching Staff Coordinator/Lecturer A/Prof. Mohammed Bennamoun Rm 1.18 Computer Science & Software Engineering e-mail: m.bennamoun@cs.uwa.edu.au Textbook Ben-Ari, M., Principles of Concurrent and Distributed Programming, Prentice-Hall 1990 Campione, M. and Walrath, K., The Java Tutorial, Addison-Wesley, 1996 Contact Hours You will be required to attend two lectures and one three-hour laboratory session each week. Laboratories will be partially supervised. Laboratories will start in week 3. Laboratory booking sheets will be provided in due course. Sessions will be held in Laboratory 2.7 and will involve mainly programming activities based on laboratory sheets for the first few sessions and will subsequently be devoted to project work. You will be using the Java programming language. Four tutorial sheets will be handed out over the semester. Four tutorial classes will be held (in Room 1.24) during the semester to discuss the tutorial sheets. The semester weeks these are to be held in and the times available will be provided separately. Type Time Day Location Lecture 2-2:45 Tue Woolnough LTh. Lecture 1-1:45 Wed Austin LTh. Lab 3-6 Mon CS-Lab 2.7 Lab 3-6 Wed CS-Lab 2.7 Assessment The assessment in this unit will be based on the generic attributes mentioned in the aims section. In particular the problem solving abilities, formulation and design of problem solutions will be assessed both in the programming project and the examination. The student's competence in concurrent programming as a part of the discipline of software engineering will be tested both in the programming project and the examination. The student's ability to work effectively in a team will be assessed in the programming project. The assessment scheme for CS304 this year consists of one programming project and a final 2hr examination held in June. Assessment % of final mark Assessment Dates Programming Project 40 Week 13 Examination 60 June Exam Period Unsatisfactory Progress Any student who does not demonstrate satisfactory progress in this unit, as defined in the FECM Policy on Assessment Practices and Procedures, may be refused admission to the final examinations. The final deadline for notification of unsatisfactory progress is the last day of Week 10. Penalties The School of Computer Science and Software Engineering has adopted a policy on minimum penalties for late items of assessment. This is the default policy of all units unless indicated otherwise, in writing, by the specific unit coordinator. This policy shall apply to all items of continuous assessment, whether submitted either physically or electronically. Immediately after the submission deadline for an item of continuous assessment, a penalty of 20 percent will be applied PER DAY or PART THEREOF. The minimum mark possible for late submission is zero. The percentage is based on the item´s total contribution to the unit´s assessment. For example, a project contributing 40% to the unit´s assessment will incur a penalty of 8 marks for each day late until it is submitted or a mark of zero results. A more detailed description is given in this School´s Policy on Late Submission. The Faculty does have an appeals procedure, the details of which can found at the Policy for Appeals. All work submitted for assessment must be the individual student's own work except where explicitly acknowledged. Any instance of plagiarism will be brought to the attention of the Department Disciplinary Board and dealt with under the Department's and Faculty's plagiarism policies. Plagiarism Plagiarism is broadly defined to be when any portion of the work presented for assessment, can be attributed to another party. The student making the submission should acknowledge what aspects of the presented work is not directly derived by them. For the purposes of plagiarism it is irrelevant that you have been given permission by someone to copy their work and present it as your own. You are directed to the School of Computer Science and Software Engineering Policy on Plagiarism and the Faculty of Engineering,Computing and Mathematics Policy on Plagiarism. Faculty Scaling Final assessment is subject to the Faculty Scaling Policy.     home > undergraduate > Concurrent Programming  > Concurrent Programming Homepage    This information is correct as at 28-Feb-2005, but is subject to change from time to time. In particular, The University reserves the right to change the content and/or method of presentation and/or the method of assessment of any unit of study, to withdraw any unit of study or programme, and/or to vary arrangements for any programme. Copyright© 2005 School of Computer Science, & Software Engineering The University of Western Australia CRICOS Provider Code: 00126G Last updated: 28-Feb-2005