Description. This course surveys the most important algorithms and data structures in use on computers today. Particular emphasis is given to algorithms for sorting, searching, graphs, and strings. The course concentrates on developing implementations, understanding their performance characteristics, and estimating their potential effectiveness in applications.
Prerequisites. COS 126 or ISC 231–234 or approval by the COS placement officer.
Lectures. Lectures meet at 11–12:20pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays over Zoom. Attendance is required.
Precepts. Precepts meet once per week and cover details pertinent to programming assignments, quizzes, and exams. Come prepared to participate in the discussion, not just ask questions. This includes reading the assignment specification before the corresponding precept.
Course staff.
 Kevin Wayne Faculty Instructor |
 Maia Ginsburg Faculty Lead Preceptor |
 Dan Leyzberg Faculty Lead Preceptor |
 Zak Kincaid Faculty Preceptor |
 Anat Kleiman Graduate Student Preceptor |
 Deniz Oktay Graduate Student Preceptor |
 Victor Ongkowijaya Graduate Student Preceptor |
 Chris Sciavolino Graduate Student Preceptor |
The staff is complemented by a team of Undergraduate Course Assistants who assist in precepts and office hours (Chloe Qiu and Justin Sherman) and grading (Alex Dipasupil, Alex Valtchanov, Anna Lyubarskaja, Cathy Teng, Connor Hainje, Cynthia Yao, Daphne Barretto, Erin Vuong, Felipe Doria, Howard Yen, Jake Intrater, Joy Quan, Karen Li, Katherine Elmlinger, Kevin Huang, Natalie O'Leary, Rachel Sylwester, Sam Liang, Scott Aravena, Sophie Li, Trivian Menezes, and Yoni Goldberg).
Office hours. You are welcome to attend the office hours of any staff member. Office hours are listed on the Help page.
Schedule. Here is the schedule for lectures and precepts.
| TIME | LOCATION | PERSON | FACILITATOR | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| L01 | T Th 11–12:20pm |
Zoom | Kevin Wayne |
|
| P02 | Th 3–4:20pm |
Zoom | Dan Leyzberg |
Deniz Oktay |
| P03 | F 11–12:20pm |
Zoom | Maia Ginsburg |
Justin Sherman |
| P04 | F 11–12:20pm |
Zoom | Anat Kleiman |
Dan Leyzberg |
| P05 | F 11–12:20pm |
Zoom | Zak Kincaid |
Chloe Qiu |
| P06 | F 1:30–2:50pm |
Zoom | Deniz Oktay |
Maia Ginsburg |
| P07 | F 1:30–2:50pm |
Zoom | Chris Sciavolino |
Victor Ongkowijaya |
| P08 | F 3–4:20pm |
Zoom | Victor Ongkowijaya |
Chris Sciavolino |
| P10 | Th 4:30–5:50pm |
Zoom | Dan Leyzberg |
Anat Kleiman |
Programming assignments. The programming assignments involve applying the material from lecture to solve problems in science, engineering, and commerce.
Quizzes. The quizzes consist of two or three short questions per lecture, to ensure that you are keeping up with the material.
Exams. The midterm exam is Monday, October 19. The final exam is Thursday, December 10 at 1:30pm ET.
iClickers. To make the lectures more interactive, we will be using iClicker Reef (iOS, Android, or Web app). Create an iClicker Reef account; use your Princeton email address for the registration; select Princeton as the institution; select COS 226 as the course.
Course grades. Your grade for the course will be based on the following components: programming assignments (45%), quizzes (10%), midterm exam (15%), final exam (25%), and participation (5%). Participation includes using iClickers in lecture and making positive contributions in precept.
Participation. Participation is fundamental to engaged learning. Students are expected to attend each scheduled class on time and ready to participate fully. Blanket waivers will be granted only for exceptional circumstances (such as living in a distant time zone, inadequate internet connectivity, or an unworkable home environment), as documented by your residential college.
Regrades. If you believe that your work was misgraded, write a short note describing the potential mistake; attach it to the graded work; and email it to your preceptor within two weeks of when the work was returned.
Course website. This course website includes links to course content, including lecture slides, precept lessons, programming assignments, quizzes, and old exams.
Canvas. We will post Zoom links and Zoom recording in Canvas.
Textbook. Algorithms, 4th edition by Robert Sedgewick and Kevin Wayne. Addison-Wesley Professional, 2011, ISBN 0-321-57351-X. The assigned readings are required.
Booksite. The booksite contains many useful resources while programming.
Studio-produced lecture videos. You can access studio-produced lecture videos via CUvids.
Discussion forum. The best way to ask a short question about the course materials is via Ed Discussion, an online discussion forum where you can ask (and answer) questions.
Programming environment. We recommend developing Java programs for this course on your personal laptop or desktop. Here are instructions for setting up a custom IntelliJ-based programming environment under Mac OS X, Windows, and Linux.
Lab TAs. Undergraduate lab TAs are available to answer general computing questions via Zoom. They can assist you in debugging, provided you have first made a reasonable effort to identify the bug and isolate the problem. For non-debugging questions, use Ed Discussion or office hours.