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CS B551: Elements of Artificial Intelligence

Staff

Professor

Kris Hauser

Office: Informatics East, 257 (connector building)

Phone: 856-7496

Email: hauserk at indiana.edu

Office hours: Tuesday 10-11am, Wednesday 1-2pm

Associate instructors:

Mark Wilson

Office: TBA

Email: mw54 at indiana.edu

Office hours: Monday 1-2pm, Thursday 9-11am

Prerequisites

This course is aimed at Masters students, beginning PhD students, and high-level undergraduates in computer science, as well as students in related fields who have a strong computing background. The course is intended for students with limited exposure to AI; if you have a strong background, please contact the instructor.

Experience with computer programming, data structures, and algorithms will be assumed (CS C343 equivalent). Programming projects shall be written in Python. Python has a reputation for being extremely easy to learn; those with a strong programming background can develop competency in Python in hours or days. Please contact the instructor prior to the first programming assignment if you expect difficulty.

Textbook

Russell & Norvig's Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach, Third edition, Prentice Hall, 2009.

Meeting times

Classes meet on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4:00pm to 5:15pm in Ballantine Hall, room 217.

Exams

There will be a final exam on TBA.  You are allowed to bring one page of notes, front and back.

Policies

Everyone is responsible for reading the departmental statement on academic integrity before starting the first assignment.

Homeworks, including programming projects, are to be completed individually. You may discuss the material with other students, but all written work must be your own.

Homework assignments are due by the end of class on the due date unless otherwise specified. Extensions are granted only in extenuating circumstances at the discretion of the instructor. Requests for extensions require advance notice (except for emergencies).

Email policy

Questions can be directed by email to either the instructor or RA. Please begin the subject line with "B551". Email will be responded to within 24 hours, unless otherwise noted. Please allow sufficient time for responses before assignment deadlines.

Grading policy

The final grade will be comprised of homework (70%) and final exam (30%) scores.  There will be 8 homework assignments. In the overall homework score, the grade of the lowest scoring assignment will be dropped.

Optional Final Project

Students that intend to continue coursework or research in AI are highly encouraged to pursue a final project. The project is optional. Projects may be done in a number of ways, such as applying AI techniques to real-world problems, writing a research survey, and reproducing results from recent AI papers. More information will be provided in-class.

 

Students who opt to complete a final project will produce an original technical report as well as a 10 minute in-class presentation near the end of the semester. The final project grade will substitute for 3 homework assignments.