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 Overview

Fall 2009 students work together using pair programming

Fall 2009 students pair programming in Scratch.

Our new Mac lab

Our labs are held in the Apple Orchard, which is not only the newest lab on campus with the fastest machines, but also has the most natural light!

    CS10, The Beauty and Joy of Computing, is an exciting new course offered by the UC Berkeley EECS Dept. Computing has changed the world in profound ways. It has opened up wonderful new ways for people to connect, design, research, play, create, and express themselves. However, just using a computer is only a small part of the picture. The real transformative and empowering experience comes when one learns how to program the computer, to translate ideas into code. This course will teach students how to do exactly that, using BYOB and Snap! (based on Scratch), one of the friendliest programming languages ever invented. It's purely graphical, which means programming involves simply dragging blocks around, and building bigger blocks out of smaller blocks.

   But this course is far more than just learning to program. We'll focus on some of the "Big Ideas" of computing, such as abstraction, design, recursion, concurrency, simulations, and the limits of computation. We'll show some beautiful applications of computing that have changed the world, talk about the history of computing, and where it will go in the future. Throughout the course, relevance will be emphasized: relevance to the student and to society. As an example, the final project will be completely of the students' choosing, on a topic most interesting to them. The overarching theme is to expose students to the beauty and joy of computing. This course is designed for computing non-majors, although interested majors are certainly welcome to take the class as well! We are especially excited about bringing computing (through this course) to traditionally under-represented groups in computing, i.e., women and ethnic minorities.

   Some context: in the Fall of 2009, we piloted a 2-unit version of this course as the freshman/sophomore seminar CS39N: The Beauty and Joy of Computing to 20 students. It was such a success that we decided to move ahead to make this course our new computing course for non-majors, replacing the venerable CS3L and CS3S . Since then, this has been one of the most popular courses in EECS. Don't believe us? See for yourself! We're continuing to grow the course as word spreads to more students. We're continually replacing the weakest parts of the curriculum and hope you'll enjoy!

   We will be using Pair Programming, described best by Laurie Williams, a computer science professor at North Carolina State University: "Two programmers working side-by-side, collaborating on the same design, algorithm, code or test. One programmer, the driver, has control of the keyboard/mouse and actively implements the program. The other programmer, the observer, continuously observes the work of the driver to identify tactical (syntactic, spelling, etc.) defects and also thinks strategically about the direction of the work. On demand, the two programmers can brainstorm any challenging problem. Because the two programmers periodically switch roles, they work together as equals to develop software."

18 student testimonials about CS10!

 

News

2012-08-23 CS10 makes The Daily Cal, again!
Check out CS10 featured in the Daily Cal.
2012-08-23 Welcome to CS10, everyone!
We'll be using Piazza for all staff-student communication from now on.

 Webcasts

Webcasts of our lectures are freely available online!

 Calendar

Semester Schedule

Reading assignments in blue are required, green are required-but-challenging (so understand the "big idea" concepts, rather than the technical details), and reading assignments in red are optional but recommended.
Week Days in 2013 Readings (Sa/Su) Lecture 1 (M) Lab 1 (M / Tu / W) Lecture 2 (W) Lab 2 (W / Th / Fri) Discussion (F) HW, Exams & Projects
1 01-21 to 01-25 Why Software is Eating the World
Prof. Harvey's Intro to Abstraction
Is Abstraction the Key to Computing?
No Class Abstraction
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Broadcast, Animations, Music
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Welcome and Course Overview None
2 01-28 to 02-01 Designing Games with a Purpose (GWAP)
Justices Split on Violent Games
Animating a Blockbuster
More readings on video games
Kinect's Future
a Game Controller in Everything
3D Graphics
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Loops and Variables
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Video Games
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Random, If, & Input
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Anatomy of a Computer & the Power of Binary (Slides) Homework 0
due 2/1
3 02-04 to 02-08 Program or Be Programmed (Video: Author Speech)
BtB Chapter 1
Scratch: Programming for All (CACM)
Functions
Sp12 HD video with Qs
BYOB
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Programming Paradigms
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Lists I
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Functions Review Notes Homework 1
due 2/8
4 02-11 to 02-15 How Algorithms Shape Our World
BtB Chapter 2
Computing as Social Science
Guest Lecturer TA Michael Ball Algorithms part I
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Lists II
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Algorithms part II,
Orders of Growth

Sp12 HD video with Qs
Algorithms
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Lists and Functions Notes Code Quest Practice Homework 2
due 2/15
5 02-18 to 02-22

No Reading (QUEST)

Quest Review: Tuesday 2/19 6-8PM
No Class, Holiday Quest (in-class exam) Stats Algorithm Complexity
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Algorithms Notes Pass Back Quest and discuss Homework #3  
6 02-25 to 03-01 How Moore's Law Works
Free Lunch is Over
Spending Moore's dividend (CACM)
Recursion Part I
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Recursion I
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Concurrency
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Concurrency
Watch a TA do the lab here
Project introduction and concurrency Video Homework 3
due 3/1
7 03-04 to 03-08 BtB Chapter 3
• BtB Chapter 4 pt 1 and pt 2
Living in a Digital World
Computing as a Social Science
Recursion Part II
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Recursion II
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Guest Lecturer Gerald Friedland
Social Implications I
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Project Work Recursion Video Midterm Project Proposal Submit here
due 3/8
8 03-11 to 03-15 • BtB Chapter 5 pt 1, pt 2, and pt 3
BtB Chapter 6 (27-37)
Data Explosion Creates Revolution
Living in a digital world
Social Implications II
Fa11 SD video
Recursion III
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Social Implications III
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Project Work
Recursion Revisited Video Midterm Project Progress Report
Submit here due 3/15 
9 03-18 to 03-22

No Required Reading (MIDTERM)

7 years, 7 lives changed by Twitter
Midterm Review: 3/17 12-3PM in 10 Evans
Guest Lecturer Reza Lotun
Twitter
Sp12 HD video with Qs
With-BYOB Midterm in lab Guest Lecturer Tao Ye
Pandora
Project Work Social Implications of Computing Midterm Project
due 3/25 @ 11:59pm
( BYOB Project tips )

Midterm Exam
3/20 8-10PM
Sibley Auditorium, Bechtel Engineering Center

10 03-25 to 03-29

No Reading (Spring Break)

Spring Break  
11 04-01 to 04-05 What is IBM's Watson?
Computers Solve Checkers -- It's a Draw
Brian Harvey's AI notes
The First Church of Robotics
The Thinking Machine (Video)
Lambda + HOFs I
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Lambda + HOFs I
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Guest Lecturer Anna Rafferty
Artificial Intelligence
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Simulations (Shark & Fish)
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Artificial Intelligence and Blog Post Introduction video  
12 04-08 to 04-12 The Great Robot Race (Video)
Lambda + HOFs II
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Lambda + HOFs II
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Distributed Computing
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Distributed Computing
Watch a TA do the lab here.
HOF + Lambda video Blog Entry
due 4/12
13 04-15 to 04-19 Computer Pioneer Alan Turing
Halting Problem Poem
Guest Lecturer Luke Segars, Google
Data Divide
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Applications that Changed the World / Project Work
Watch a TA do the lab here.
Limits of Computing
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Project Work Guest TA Yaniv "Rabbit" Assaf:
HOF + Lambda Revisited
Blog Entry Comments
due 4/19
Final Project Final Proposal Form Submit here due 4/19
14 04-22 to 04-26 Why is Quantum Different?
Quantum Leap
Twenty Top Predictions for life 100 years from now
DNA Storage
Apple's 1987 Knowledge Navigator (Video)
Microsoft's view of productivity in 2019 (Video)
The Future of Augmented Reality
Apple's Siri

Guest Lecturer Eric Paulos
HCI
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Project Work Future of Computing
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Project Work Open Topic Final Project Progress Report
Submit here due 4/26
15 04-29 to 05-03 BtB Chapter 7
BtB Chapter 8 
BtB: Conclusion
Guest Lecturer Prof Kathy Yelick
Saving the World with Computing (CS + X)
Sp12 HD video with Qs
Project Work Summary and Farewell
Sp12 HD video with Qs
With-BYOB Final Exam in Lab

Beyond Blocks Session 1 (6-8PM Thursday 5/2) in 306 Soda
Slides
Final Thoughts Final Project due 5/3
(BYOB Project tips)
16 05-06 to 05-10   RRR Week RRR Week

Beyond Blocks Session 2 (6-8PM Tuesday 5/7) in 306 Soda
Slides
RRR Week RRR Week

Beyond Blocks Session 3 (6-8PM Thursday 5/9) in 306 Soda
Slides
RRR Week  
17 05-13 to 05-17 Final Exam Review Sunday 5/12 Noon-3pm 10 Evans Recording from past semester   Paper Final Exam
Tue 5/14 7-10PM
2050 VLSB
       

Weekly Schedule

Hour Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday
8:00am         Discussion Section 3
(Aijia)
320 Soda Hall
9:00am   Lab Section 5
(Michael)
200 Sutardja Dai  
Lab Section 2
(Pierce)
200 Sutardja Dai
Lab Section 5
(Michael)
200 Sutardja Dai  
Lab Section 2
(Pierce)
200 Sutardja Dai
 Discussion Section 1
(Dan)
320 Soda Hall
10:00am   OH (Dan Arm)
411 Soda
11:00am Lecture
2050 VLSB 
Lab Section 6
(Max)
200 Sutardja Dai
Lecture
2050 VLSB
Lab Section 6
(Max)
200 Sutardja Dai
Discussion Section 2
(Pierce)
320 Soda Hall
OH (Dan Garcia)
777 Soda
12:00pm Lab Section 1
(Aijia)
200 Sutardja Dai

  Lab Section 1
(Aijia)
200 Sutardja Dai

Discussion Section 4
(Michael)
320 Soda Hall
OH (Pierce Vollucci)
651 Soda
1:00pm OH (Max Dougherty)
611 Soda
Lab Section 7
(Max)
200 Sutardja Dai
Lab Section 7
(Max)
200 Sutardja Dai
Discussion Section 5
(Michael)
320 Soda Hall
OH (Max Dougherty)
411 Soda
2:00pm   OH (Michael Ball)
411 Soda
Discussion Section 6
(Max)
320 Soda Hall
OH (Michael Ball)
411 Soda
3:00pm   Lab Section 8
(Dan)
200 Sutardja Dai
    Lab Section 8
(Dan)
200 Sutardja Dai
  Discussion Section 7
(Max)
320 Soda Hall
4:00pm   OH (Aijia)
751 Soda
  OH (Aijia)
411 Soda
Discussion Section 8
(Aijia)
320 Soda Hall
5:00pm Lab Section 3
(Aijia)
200 Sutardja Dai
 

Lab Section 3
(Aijia)
200 Sutardja Dai


6:00pm


7:00pm Lab Section 4
(Michael)
200 Sutardja Dai

Lab Section 4
(Michael)
200 Sutardja Dai

 
8:00pm

 

 Staff

 

Instructor and Teaching Assistants (Office Hours on Weekly Schedule above)


Sr. Lecturer SOE Dan Garcia (bio)
ddgarcia@cs.berkeley.edu
777 Soda, (510) 517-4041

Head TA Pierce Vollucci (bio)
cs10-ta@inst.eecs.berkeley.edu

TA Aijia Yan (bio)
aijiay@berkeley.edu
 
resources/images/Fa12/DanArmendariz.jpg
TA Dan Armendariz (bio)
danallan@eecs.berkeley.edu

TA Max Dougherty (bio)
mdougherty@berkeley.edu

TA Michael Ball (bio)
cs10-th@inst.eecs.berkeley.edu
 

Readers


Head Reader (TAiT) Ian Birnam ( bio )
ibirnam@berkeley.edu

Jessica Hudiono ( bio )
cs10-rc@inst.eecs.berkeley.edu

(TAiT) Lauren Mock ( bio )
cs10-rc@inst.eecs.berkeley.edu

Peter Sujan ( bio )
cs10-rc@inst.eecs.berkeley.edu
 
 

Lab Assistants


Aleks Kamko ( bio )

Andrew Schmitt ( bio )

Audrey Chou ( bio )

Brian Terry ( bio )
 

David Mai ( bio )

Elizabeth Prader ( bio )

Felicia Lee ( bio )

Frank Lu ( bio )
 

Jaclyn Burge ( bio )

Jeffrey Snowiss ( bio )

Jesse Halim ( bio )

Jessica Ko ( bio )
 

Jihui Jin ( bio )

Jimmy Lee ( bio )

(TAiT) Joanna Abot ( bio )

Jocelyn Takahashi ( bio )
 

(TAiT) Josh Perline ( bio )

Katie Cheu ( bio )

(TAiT) Kelvin Mak ( bio )

(TAiT) Kou Takahama ( bio )
 

(TAiT) Michael Ross ( bio )

Michelle Ung ( bio )

Nabeel Saleem ( bio )

(TAiT) Nick Wissman ( bio )
 

Patrick Wu ( bio )

Ryan Lim ( bio )

Sumer Mohammed ( bio )

Yvonne Ho ( bio )
 

BJC / EdX Development

resources/images/Fa12/DanArmendariz.jpg
Dan Armendariz (bio)

Aatash Parikh (bio)

Samir Makhani (bio)

Aleks Kamko (bio)

Jaclyn Burge (bio)
 
 

 Grading

For the most part, we would prefer to teach this course without grades. What a wonderful concept, learning for learning sake! However, even though we can't change the "system" overnight, we can create grading policies that support learning as much as possible. The various course activities will contribute to your grade as follows:

Activity Course Points Percentage of Total Grade
Weekly Quizzes and Homework 60 15%
Blog 60 15%
Midterm Project 60 15%
Final Project 60 15%
Quest 20 5%
Midterm 60 15%
Final Exam 80 20%

How We'll Calculate Your Grade

Your letter grade will be determined by total course points, as shown in the table below. Incomplete grades will be granted only for dire medical or personal emergencies that cause you to miss the final exam, and only if your work up to that point is satisfactory.

Points Grade
390-400 A+
370-389 A  
360-369 A- 
350-359 B+
330-349 B  
320-329 B- 
310-319 C+
290-309 C  
280-289 C- 
240-279 D  
< 240 F  

 Resources

    λ   CS10 Family
    λ   Codepath
    λ   BYOB : Build Your Own Blocks
    λ   Scratch Forums
    λ   Blown to Bits
    λ   Debugging Rules!
    λ   UC Berkeley
    λ   College of Engineering
    λ   Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Sciences
    λ   Webcast archive of 2010Fa lectures
    λ   Solutions to Lab Exercises



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