Syllabus - ENGIN 112, Fall 2008

Information at a Glance

Course Information

Instructors

• Prof. Maciej Ciesielski (lectures)
  Email: ciesiel@ecs.umass.edu
  Office: Knowles 309B
  Office hours: Mo 4:00-5:00 + TBA
• Prof. Stephen Frasier (discussions)
  Email: frasier@ecs.umass.edu
  Office: Knowles 113A
  Office hours: TBA
• Prof. Patrick Kelly (discussions)
  Email: kelly@ecs.umass.edu
  Office: Marcus 215B
  Office hours: Tu 4:00 - 5:00, Fr 2:30 - 3:30.

Prof. Ciesielski	Prof. Frasier	Prof. Kelly

Teaching Assistants

• Graduate Teaching Assistants
  • Dusung Kim dukim@ecs.umass.edu
  • Spandana Remarsu remarsu@ecs.umass.edu
  • Michael Todd mgtodd@gmail.com
  • Shruti Vyas vyas.shruti@gmail.com

Dusung	Spandana	Mike	Shruti

• Undergraduate Teaching Assistants
  • Mandy Liem mandyliem@gmail.com
  • Andrew Boissonnault aboisson@student.umass.edu
  • Benjamin Oven boven@student.umass.edu

Mandy	Andrew	Ben

Office Hours

Office hours by teaching assistants are held in Marcus M5, room G. Office hours by instructors are held in their offices. The weekly schedule of all office hours is:

Course Web Site

• Course info, lecture notes, assignments, etc.: http://www.ecs.umass.edu/ece/engin112
• Grades: https://spark.oit.umass.edu
• Blog: http://blogs.umass.edu/engin112

Required Text

• M. Morris Mano and Michael D. Ciletti, Digital Design (4th Ed.), Prentice Hall, 2006. (ISBN 0131989243)

  The textbook is available from several sources:

  • The Jeffry Amherst Bookshop and College Store, 26 South Prospect St., tel. 256-3870. This store is carrying the required text at a discounted price; by purchasing your textbook locall you will help local economy.
  • UMass Textbook Annex, tel.545-3570.

Course Overview

This course covers theoretical and practical topics of the operation of digital electronic circuits, a ubiquitous and critically important foundation for the ECE discipline. Binary data representation, Boolean algebra, combinational and sequential logic, and abstraction of standard design components are introduced to discuss the design and analysis of digital circuit designs. A discussion and software lab component reemphasize these concepts with examples and practical applications.

Course Goals

After taking this course, you will be able to design and analyze digital electronic circuits. In the process, you will learn how Boolean algebra forms the theoretical foundation on which these circuits are built. You will learn how information can be represented in a digital system and what common logic functions are used to process it. You will learn how memory components expand the functionality the behavior of digital circuits. You will learn to use software tools that will aid you in the process of design and analysis of these circuits. Most importantly, you will see how circuits can be aggregated into larger components that allow more complex designs. You will experience the convergence of these goals at the end of the semester when we discuss the functionality of a simple microprocessor.

Class Meetings

There are three types of class meetings that will be held for ENGIN 112:

• Lectures will be held three times a week by Professor Ciesielski. The main goal of the lectures is to present and discuss the main content that is covered in this course. It is expected that you have worked through the assigned reading and are familiar with the topic of the lecture. Lectures are not intended and cannot be a replacement for reading assignments.
• Discussion sessions are held weekly by Professors Frasier and Kelly. The goal of the discussion session is to reemphasize the topics covered in the lecture and illustrate the concepts using examples. The discussion sessions are held in smaller groups (20-30 students) to encourage questions and discussion. You are expected to have studied the topics covered in lecture and to prepare questions that might have arisen.
• Lab sessions are held weekly by an undergraduate TA. The goal of the lab is to apply the concepts learned in the lecture to practical problems using the Quartus II software. Quartus II is an important software tool that will be used in later courses in the ECE curriculum. In preparation for some lab sessions, you are expected to have become proficient in solving problems “on paper” in order to focus on implementation aspects. Attendance is not required for the lab session, but strongly encouraged.

The different components of ENGIN 112 are designed to provide ample opportunity for you to clarify reading assignments, ask questions, and practice your skills. You are encouraged to seek any additional help you need from the instructors and TA’s during their office hours.

Grading

Your final grade will be derived from your performance in three areas:

• Homework is one of the most important methods of evaluation as it lets you track your continued progress in the course. Homework is assigned weekly (see schedule). Each homework assignment is graded with an A-grade and a B-grade. The A-grade reflects the fraction of problems where a full solution was attempted. The B-grade reflects the score achieved for a selected set of problems. The total grade for a homework is (A+B)/2.
• Lab reports are due for each of the four lab assignments and evaluate the correctness and understandability of your solution as well as your ability to clearly communicate in writing. Attendance (required for the first lab session of each assignment) is part of the lab grade.
• Exams are the most heavily weighted method of evaluation. Two midterm exams and one final exam will be given. The exams are closed-book, closed-notes and evaluate how well you retained and understood the course content as well as how well you can apply the course concepts to new problems. For each exam, an in-class review and a question and answer discussion session will be held to provide time for resolving issues regarding the content and procedure of the exam.

The final grade will be norm-referenced (i.e., graded “on a curve”) with the following weighting:

• Exam I – 20%
• Exam II – 20%
• Final Exam – 30%
• Homework – 20%
• Laboratory – 10%

You are encouraged to track your scores on WebCT to ensure that you have received the appropriate credit for each of your assignments and exams. No extra credit or “make-up” assignments will be given (with exception to the cases stated in the examination policy below).

Course Policy

Attendance and Punctuality

You are expected to attend the all of the lectures as well as the laboratory/discussion sections for which you are enrolled. You are expected to come to lectures, examinations, discussion sections, and laboratory sections on time; arriving late and/or leaving early is disrespectful and disrupts the entire class.

Homework and Laboratory Assignments

Homework problems are critically important for understanding and reinforcing the course material. Homework assignments, consisting primarily of problems from the Mano text, will be assigned weekly and posted on the web site along with the due dates. Lab assignments and due dates for lab reports will also be posted on the web site. Homework assignments and lab reports will be due at the lecture room before class starts on the posted due dates. Late homework and lab reports will not be accepted. Lab reports must be created with a typesetting software (hand-drawn figures and circuits are permissible if done cleanly). The work you turn in must be your own.

Examinations

There will be two midterm exams. Examinations can be made up only in the case of excused absences, as defined in the UMass Code of Student Conduct (http://www.umass.edu/dean_students/code_conduct/) and if instructors are notified in a timely fashion (in advance). An unexcused absence at an exam will constitute a failure of the exam. Cheating will not be tolerated, and will be handled in accordance with the UMass policy on Academic Honesty http://www.umass.edu/dean_students/code_conduct/acad_honest.htm).