Algorithms | BS in Applied Computer Science | University of Colorado Boulder

Course Details

*Note: This course description is only applicable for the Computer Science Post-Baccalaureate program. Additionally, students must always refer to course syllabus for the most up to date information.

Credits: 4.0
Prerequisites: CSPB or CSCI 2270 - Computer Science 2: Data Structures with minimum grade C- and CSPB or CSCI 2824 - Discrete Structures with minimum grade C-.
Minimum Passing Grade: C-
Textbook: Introduction to Algorithms, 3rd Edition (The MIT Press) 3rd Edition, by Thomas H. Cormen, Charles E. Leiserson, Ronald L. Rivest, and Clifford Stein. A supplemental textbook is also recommended, "Grokking Algorithms: An illustrated guide for programmers and other curious people, 1st Edition" by Aditya Bhargava.

Brief Description of Course Content

Covers the fundamentals of algorithms and various algorithmic strategies, including time and space complexity, sorting algorithms, recurrence relations, divide and conquer algorithms, greedy algorithms, dynamic programming, linear programming, graph algorithms, problems in P and NP, and approximation algorithms.

Specific Goals

Specific Outcomes of Instruction

Understanding properties of algorithms.
Proving these properties mathematically.
Proving rigorous time and space complexity bounds on the performance.
Understand the relative merits or demerits of an algorithm, in practice.
Use algorithms to solve core problems that may arise inside applications.
Learn key tricks (motifs) underlying the design of new algorithms for emerging applications.

Brief List of Topics to be Covered

Introduction to Algorithms: Complexity analysis
Divide and Conquer Algorithms
Sorting and Order Statistics
Advanced Data Structures: heaps, balanced trees and hash-functions
Dynamic Programming
Greedy Algorithms
Graph Algorithms: Search, Minimum Spanning Trees, Shortest Paths, Network Flows
Introduction to Linear and Integer Programming
Basics of Computational Complexity: P, NP, reductions and open problems

Mathematical Concepts Used

Recursion, logarithmic and exponential functions, induction, graph theory

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CSPB 3104 - Algorithms

Course Details

Brief Description of Course Content

Specific Goals