2018 Summer - 301 - Organization of Programming Languages

2018 Summer - 301 - Organization of Programming Languages - Syllabus

This class is taught by Jay McCarthy. Call him Jay. Email him at first-name DOT last-name AT gmail DOT com.

We meet in Olsen 103 at MWR 0800-1020.

Jay’s office hours are MW 1300-1400 in Olsen 221.

There is a mailing list hosted at Google Groups. Use it to ask non-revealing questions and receive answers, as well as general course announcements. You are responsible for reading the content of this mailing list.

1 Important Course Details

Description. Analytical approach to the study of programming languages. Description of the salient features of the imperative, functional, logical, and object-oriented programming paradigms in a suitable metalanguage such as Scheme. Topics include iteration, recursion, higher-order functions, types, inheritance, unification, message passing, orders of evaluation, and scope rules. Elementary syntactic and semantic descriptions. Implementation of simple interpreters.

Readings. (SEwPR) For the majority of the course, we will use the Semantics Engineering with PLT Redex by Matthias Felleisen, Robert Bruce Findler, and Matthew Flatt. (Wilson) Eventually we will look at Paul Wilson’s survey of Garbage Collection methods. (PLLC) Finally, we will look at the notes for Programming Languages and Lambda Calculi, by Matthias Felleisen and Matthew Flatt. It is available online.

Policy. We do not allow electronic devices, such as laptops, phones, and tablets, to be used during class, without an explicit accomodation exception. I will first ask you to put it away and then I will ask you to leave.

2 Lectures, Assignments, and Exercises

Day	Date		Topic	Notes
1	Mon	05/21a	Semantics via Syntax	SEwPR 1 Links: 1.pdf
2	Mon	05/21b	Analyzing Syntactic Semantics	SEwPR 2 Links: 2.pdf
3	Wed	05/23a	The Lambda Calculus	SEwPR 3 Exercise: basics Links: 3.pdf
4	Wed	05/23b	ISWIM: Syntax, Semantics, Pragmatics	SEwPR 4.1-4.5 Links: 4.pdf
5	Thu	05/24a	ISWIM: Consistency (CR)	SEwPR 4.5-4.7 Links: 5.pdf
6	Thu	05/24b	ISWIM: The Machine (SR)	SEwPR 5.1-5.3 Exercise: iswim Links: 6.pdf 6.rkt
	Mon	05/28	No class
7	Wed	05/30a	Machine: CC & SCC	SEwPR 6.1-6.2 Links: 7.pdf
8	Wed	05/30b	Machine: CK	SEwPR 6.3 Links: 8.pdf
9	Thu	05/31a	Machine: CEK	SEwPR 6.4 Exercise: machine Links: 9.pdf
10	Thu	05/31b	Garbage Collection	Wilson 1-2.3 Links: 10.pdf
11	Mon	06/04a	Garbage Collection	Wilson 2.4-9 Links: 11.pdf 11.rkt
12	Mon	06/04b	Garbage Collection	Wilson 2.4-9 Exercise: gc Links: 12.pdf
13	Wed	06/06	Midterm Review	Due: Project 1: Presentation
14	Thu	06/07	Midterm
15	Mon	06/11a	Tail Calls and More Space Savings	SEwPR 7 Links: 15.pdf
16	Mon	06/11b	Control: Simple	SEwPR 8.1-8.2 Links: 16.pdf
17	Wed	06/13a	Control: Full	SEwPR 8.3-8.4 Exercise: control Links: 17.rkt
18	Wed	06/13b	First-Class Continuation Programming	Links: 18.rkt
19	Thu	06/14a	State: State ISWIM	SEwPR 9.1-9.3 Links: 19.pdf
20	Thu	06/14b	State: Machine & GC	SEwPR 9.4-9.6 Links: 20.pdf
21	Mon	06/18a	Types: Typed ISWIM	SEwPR 10 Exercise: state Links: 21.pdf
22	Mon	06/18b	Types: Extensions	PLLC 13 Links: 22.pdf
23	Wed	06/20a	Types: Polymorphism	PLLC 14 Links: 23.pdf
24	Wed	06/20b	Type Checker Implementation	Links: 24.rkt
25	Thu	06/21a	Types: Type Inference	PLLC 15 Exercise: ty1 Links: 25.pdf
26	Thu	06/21b	Types: Recursive Types	PLLC 16 Links: 26.pdf
27	Mon	06/25a	Types: Data Abstraction	PLLC 17 Links: 27.pdf
28	Mon	06/25b	Types: Subtyping	PLLC 18 Exercise: ty2
29	Wed	06/27	Final Review	Due: Project 2: Presentation
Final	Thu	06/28	Final	We will meet at 0800-1020.
	Mon	07/02	No class

3 Work in this Course

If you do a little work for this course every day, including reading the textbook and doing the exercises, you will find the exams and papers easy to write. If you just search for answers in course material as you try to complete work, you will not do well.

I highly recommend that you read this article about grading. I also recommend you read this article about the stress that you may experience in a computer science program. Please try to make healthy productive choices in your life. I would love the opportunity to help you in any ways I can.

3.1 Exercises

In the Lectures, Assignments, and Exercises table above, a number of exercises are referenced. You are not required to do each of them, but I highly recommend that you complete some of them. It is extremely difficult to do them all and I am intentionally vague on details, so you will maximize your learning rather than just satisfy an assignment spec. Required work (such as exams, papers, and presentations) may reference material from class, from the reading, or from these exercises. If you do not do the exercises, then, for example, there will be exam questions which will be unintelligible and nigh impossible for you to answer successfully. If you would like to discuss your solution to them, please meet me in my office. I will not review solutions via email, but I will answer clarifying questions.

3.2 Paper

Consult the paper details for details about the content of the paper. This class may not actually have a paper project.

I will not pre-grade your paper through email, but I can try to discuss it with you, although it is most effective to discuss it with you in my office.

You hand in your paper by putting them on the lectern at the start of class on the day they are due. No papers will be accepted at any other time, for any reason. No papers will be acceped electronically. If you cannot turn in your work personally, you may have a friend do it.

Your turn-in must clearly have your name on it and indicate which option you chose.

Your turn-in must be prepared electronically. I recommend using LaTeX. You must use 0.5" margins, the font Times New Roman at 11pt, and single-spacing. Each page must be numbered in the footer. You must print with black ink (color may be used in diagrams, but not in the text) on white paper. If your printer is low on ink or toner, find another one rather than giving me something that is faded. I recommend using only mild formatting. You should not include long quotes, code samples, or large diagrams. You should reference sources using the BibTeX alpha style.

Your turn-in must be stapled together. It is your responsible to ensure this is the case.

You may not turn in more than five pieces of paper. You probably want to turn in exactly five pieces of paper. This means ten "pages" of content, although since references count it may be more like nine.

Work that is incorrectly formatted will be returned ungraded and I will consider it as though you never turned it in.

Your paper will receive a grade from the closed interval between 0 and 1. I will evaluate your paper based on the veracity of its content, its logical structure, as well as its grammar, style, and form.

3.3 Presentation

Consult the presentation details for details about the content of the presentation. This class may not actually have a presentation project.

I will not pre-grade your presentation through email, but I can try to discuss it with you, although it is most effective to discuss it with you in my office.

You must record yourself for fifteen minutes and email me a link to the video. I highly recommend that you upload it as an unlisted YouTube video and send me that link. It is the most convenient for everyone. You must send this link to me before 5pm on the listed due date. No presentations will be accepted at any other time, for any reason. In extenuating circumstances, we can arrange an in-person presentation.

Your email must have the subject: [CS301] Presentation turn-in. If it does not have this subject, it will not be graded and I will treat it as though you did not turn it in.

Your email must include a written list of the exercises you did, with an annotation for which ones you are presenting about. This list should not just include the names on the syllabus, but the particular options for each exercise you choose.

I highly recommend that you use your operating system’s screen-recording capability and use a simple presentation mechanism, like a digital whiteboard. If you are presenting code, it makes sense to present from within your editor and show the code working. In any case, remember: the most important part of your presentation is the words you say.

Your presentation should be designed like you are teaching a class or having a conversation about something you deeply understand with a friend. You should not use a script or have any substantial notes. If you need notes, then write down ten (10) words that will help prompt you and keep you on track.

It is possible to get extra-credit if you go above and beyond the expectations and impress me. When you turn it in, clearly state that you think you have done this so I can evaluate what you believe is extra-credit-worthy.

Your presentation will receive a grade from the closed interval between 0 and 1.25. I will evaluate your presentation based on the veracity of its content, its logical structure, as well as its style and form.

3.4 Exams

Exams must be taken in person, at the scheduled time.

Exams must be completed without any notes, books, or resources of any kind.

You must use 8.5" by 11" College Ruled paper without frill and write using a black pen. You are responsible for my ability to read and understand your writing and diagrams.

Your exams must clearly have your name on it.

You may not hand in more than five pieces of paper and individual answers must not use more than a single piece of paper (front and back.) These pages must be stapled together, which you are responsible for. I recommend pre-stapling your paper before the exam.

Exams that are incorrectly formatted will be returned ungraded and I will consider it as though you never turned it in.

Your exams will receive a grade from the closed interval between 0 and 1.25. I will evaluate your exam based on the veracity of its content and the logical structure of your answers.

In your exam, you will be provided four groups of two questions. You can answer one question from each group. After you answer one question from each group, you may answer a single other question (i.e. answering two questions for one group.) If you provide answers for more than five questions or two for more than one group, then I will return your exam ungraded as though you never turned it in. Each question will be equally weighted at 0.25.

Nearly all exam questions are best answered using all of the available space. If you can’t write more than a paragraph, then you probably don’t really understand the question well enough to answer it correctly.

3.5 Class Numeric Grade

This function takes your turn-ins and combines them into a numeric grade:

> (define (combine proj1 midterm proj2 final)
(+ (* 0.2 proj1) (* 0.2 midterm)
(* 0.3 proj2) (* 0.3 final)))

Examples:

> (combine 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0)
0.0
> (combine 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5)
0.5
> (combine 0.0 0.0 1.0 1.0)
0.6
> (combine 0.0 0.0 1.0 1.25)
0.675
> (combine 0.0 1.25 0.0 1.25)
0.625
> (combine 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0)
1.0
> (combine 1.0 1.25 1.0 1.25)
1.125

This function is designed to allow you to perform poorly at the beginning of the course, but still recover and end with a good grade.

3.6 Course Letter Grade

The following function to converts your numeric grade into a letter grade:

> (define (convert-to-letter ng)
    (cond
      [(> ng 0.93) "A"]
      [(> ng 0.9) "A-"]
      [(> ng 0.86) "B+"]
      [(> ng 0.83) "B"]
      [(> ng 0.8) "B-"]
      [(> ng 0.76) "C+"]
      [(> ng 0.73) "C"]
      [(> ng 0.7) "C-"]
      [(> ng 0.66) "D+"]
      [(> ng 0.6) "D"]
      [else "F"]))

Examples:

> (convert-to-letter 1)
"A"
> (convert-to-letter 0.94)
"A"
> (convert-to-letter 0.899999)
"B+"
> (convert-to-letter 0.81)
"B-"
> (convert-to-letter 0.74)
"C"
> (convert-to-letter 0.6999999)
"D+"
> (convert-to-letter 0.62)
"D"
> (convert-to-letter 0.57)
"F"

3.7 Graduate Student Option

If you are taking the class as a graduate class, then you must do two projects between the midterm and final—a presentation and a paper. In addition, your work will be graded to a higher standard than the other students.

4 Help

My job is to help you.

One of the best ways for me to help you is to teach you how to help yourself. The main way I will put this idea into practice is that I will not answer your question until you have shown that you’ve read the relevant part of the textbook and have a concrete question or point of confusion about it.

If you need a "shallow" amount of help, then look at the Google Group. First, see if I have already answered your question. Then, send your own email.

Only send me personal email if you need to talk about something private, such as your grades. Anything else is best discussed in public, so others can benefit. If you do send personal email, put [CS301] as a prefix in the subject.

If you need a "deep" amount of help, please come to my office or call me (801-361-0732) and we’ll talk and try to resolve whatever ails you.

5 Fine Print

In this course, all work is to be each student’s own. Students should therefore be familiar with the University’s rules on academic dishonesty, which can be found in the Bulletin of Undergraduate Studies and in the Schedule of Classes. In particular, plagiarism will not be tolerated! Any student caught plagiarizing another’s work will automatically receive a grade of F for the course. If you are unsure as to what constitutes plagiarism, it is your responsibility to check with the instructor. Other forms of dishonesty will result in similar actions. You may collaborate with your classmates on the design and results of the programs you will write in this course, but each student must implement these programs alone. Submission of shared student code is not permissible, and will result in a grade of F for the course. Help files are typically provided for each programming assignment, and students are encouraged to cut and paste useful code from these help files into their assignment submissions, but all other code must be the specific work of each student.

You are not allowed to post solution code to problem sets assigned in this class in public places (e.g. Github). This includes your own solutions as well as solutions that may be provided by the instructors.

This policy is a courtesy to future students, who — to the fullest extent possible — should have the opportunity to struggle with the problems in the same way that you do.

Non-compliance will be pursued rigorously per UMass Lowell’s academic integrity policy.

1	Important Course Details
2	Lectures, Assignments, and Exercises
3	Work in this Course
4	Help
5	Fine Print