CS473++. We strongly encourage posting questions on any course-related topic to Piazza rather than emailing the course staff. You can even post your questions anonymously. (However, we can only give you extra credit for helpful posts if you post them using your real name.)
For students familiar with the existing undergraduate CS curriculum: CS 374 includes about half of the material in CS 373 (which has now been retired) and about two-thirds of the material from CS 473 (which will be revised starting next semester), combined into a single four-credit 300-level course. The move from two required theory courses (373 and 473) to one (374) is part of a larger revision of the undergrad CS currculum. This particular change was motivated by several factors.
- Smaller CS core: The CS department is shrinking the core of required undergraduate courses, which is shared by all undergraduate computer science programs. (The CS department currently offers seven majors: CS Engineering, CS+Anthropology, CS+Astronomy, CS+Chemistry, CS+Linguistics, Math/CS, and Stat/CS. Several more CS+X majors are in development.)
- Earlier algorithms: The new course moves algorithms earlier in the curriculum, so that the material can be exploited in 400-level classes.
- More flexibility later: In particular, the earlier course frees the CS department to offer a broader range of 400-level elective theory courses.
- Computer engineers: The ECE department has wisely decided that all computer engineering majors need an algorithms course, but did not want to force students to take both CS 373 and CS 473.
Covering every important topic from CS 373 and CS 473 in a single course is simply impossible; we have had to make some difficult choices. The new CS 473 include all of the important topics that could not fit into CS 374, plus some others that were previously covered only in CS 573, our standard graduate algorithms class.
In light of the significant overlap between CS 573 and the revised CS 473, the fact that CS 473 is now an elective rather than a required undergraduate course, and the relatively small group of potential instructors, we have also decided to let the new CS 473 replace CS 573 as the standard algorithms course for graduate students, both within and outside computer science. Teaching the material appropriately to such a diverse audience will present a significant challenge. Thank you for agreeing to be guinea pigs.
Here is the transition timeline:
- Fall 2013
- CS 373
Old CS 473
CS 573- Spring 2014
- CS 373 (last offering)
CS 374 (first pilot, limited enrollment)
Old CS 473- Fall 2014
- CS 374 (second pilot, limited enrollment)
Old CS 473
CS 573 (last offering)- Spring 2015
- CS 374 (first offering at scale: 400 students)
Old CS 473 (last offering)
New CS 473 (first offering) — you are here- Every semester thereafter
- CS 374
New CS 473
Other 400- and 500-level theory courses in development