About this product

Product Identifiers

PublisherCRC Press LLC

ISBN-101439812624

ISBN-139781439812624

eBay Product ID (ePID)102967977

Product Key Features

Number of Pages390 Pages

Publication NameExplorations in Computing : an Introduction to Computer Science

LanguageEnglish

Publication Year2010

SubjectProgramming Languages / General, Programming / Games, Programming / Algorithms, Computer Science

TypeTextbook

AuthorJohn S. Conery

Subject AreaComputers

SeriesChapman and Hall/Crc Textbooks in Computing Ser.

FormatHardcover

Dimensions

Item Height0.9 in

Item Weight25.6 Oz

Item Length10.3 in

Item Width7.2 in

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceCollege Audience

LCCN2010-032399

ReviewsThis entry-level computer science textbook is intended for use in an introductory course for computer science majors or non-majors desiring an overview of the basic concepts and processes of computer programming. Each chapter contains illustrations and code examples as well as a tutorial project that walks the student step-by-step through a task-related programming activity. Access to online resources, including a lab manual and links to the latest version of the open source Ruby software, is provided. "SciTech Book News, February 2011, This entry-level computer science textbook is intended for use in an introductory course for computer science majors or non-majors desiring an overview of the basic concepts and processes of computer programming. ... Each chapter contains illustrations and code examples as well as a tutorial project that walks the student step-by-step through a task-related programming activity. Access to online resources, including a lab manual and links to the latest version of the open source Ruby software, is provided. --SciTech Book News, February 2011, This entry-level computer science textbook is intended for use in an introductory course for computer science majors or non-majors desiring an overview of the basic concepts and processes of computer programming. e Each chapter contains illustrations and code examples as well as a tutorial project that walks the student step-by-step through a task-related programming activity. Access to online resources, including a lab manual and links to the latest version of the open source Ruby software, is provided. e"SciTech Book News, February 2011, This entry-level computer science textbook is intended for use in an introductory course for computer science majors or non-majors desiring an overview of the basic concepts and processes of computer programming. â€¦ Each chapter contains illustrations and code examples as well as a tutorial project that walks the student step-by-step through a task-related programming activity. Access to online resources, including a lab manual and links to the latest version of the open source Ruby software, is provided. -SciTech Book News, February 2011, This entry-level computer science textbook is intended for use in an introductory course for computer science majors or non-majors desiring an overview of the basic concepts and processes of computer programming. 'e¦ Each chapter contains illustrations and code examples as well as a tutorial project that walks the student step-by-step through a task-related programming activity. Access to online resources, including a lab manual and links to the latest version of the open source Ruby software, is provided. 'e"SciTech Book News, February 2011

IllustratedYes

Table Of ContentIntroduction Computation The Limits of Computation Algorithms A Laboratory for Computational Experiments The Ruby Workbench Introducing Ruby and the RubyLabs environment for computational experiments Interactive Ruby Numbers Variables Methods RubyLabs The Sieve of Eratosthenes An algorithm for finding prime numbers The Sieve Algorithm The mod Operator Containers Iterators Boolean Values and the delete if Method Exploring the Algorithm The sieve Method A Better Sieve Experiments with the Sieve A Journey of a Thousand Miles Iteration as a strategy for solving computational problems Searching and Sorting The Linear Search Algorithm The Insertion Sort Algorithm Scalability Best Case, Worst Case Divide and Conquer A new strategy: breaking large problems into smaller subproblems Binary Search Binary Search Experiments Merge Sort Merge Sort Experiments Recursive Methods When Words Collide Organizing data for more efficient problem solving Word Lists Hash Tables The mod Function Again Collisions Hash Table Experiments Bit by Bit Binary codes and algorithms for text compression and error correction Binary Codes Codes for Characters Parity Bits Huffman Trees Huffman Codes The War of the Words An introduction to computer architecture and assembly language programming Hello, MARS The Temperature on MARS Corewar Self-Referential Code Clones Now for Something Completely Different An algorithm for generating random numbers Pseudorandom Numbers Numbers on Demand Games with Random Numbers Random Shuffles Tests of Randomness Ask Dr. Ruby A program that understands English (or does it?) Overview of ELIZA Sentence Patterns Building Responses from Parts of Sentences Substitutions An Algorithm for Having a Conversation Writing Scripts for ELIZA ELIZA and the Turing Test The Music of the Spheres Computer simulation and the N-body problem Running around in Circles The Force of Gravity Force Vectors N-Body Simulation of the Solar System The Traveling Salesman A genetic algorithm for a computationally demanding problem Maps and Tours Exhaustive Search Random Search Point Mutations The Genetic Algorithm Crossovers Appendix A: Answers to Selected Exercises Appendix B: Ruby Reference

SynopsisBased on the author's introductory course at the University of Oregon, Explorations in Computing: An Introduction to Computer Science focuses on the fundamental idea of computation and offers insight into how computation is used to solve a variety of interesting and important real-world problems. Taking an active learning approach, the text encourages students to explore computing ideas by running programs and testing them on different inputs. It also features illustrations by Phil Foglio, winner of the 2009 and 2010 Hugo Award for Best Graphic Novel. Classroom-Tested Material The first four chapters introduce key concepts, such as algorithms and scalability, and hone practical lab skills for creating and using objects. In the remaining chapters, the author covers "divide and conquer" as a problem solving strategy, the role of data structures, issues related to encoding data, computer architecture, random numbers, challenges for natural language processing, computer simulation, and genetic algorithms. Through a series of interactive projects in each chapter, students can experiment with one or more algorithms that illustrate the main topic. Requiring no prior experience with programming, these projects show students how algorithms provide computational solutions to real-world problems. Web Resource The book's website at www.cs.uoregon.edu/eic presents numerous ancillaries. The lab manual offers step-by-step instructions for installing Ruby and the RubyLabs gem with Windows XP, Mac OS X, and Linux. The manual includes tips for editing programs and running commands in a terminal emulator. The site also provides online documentation of all the modules in the RubyLabs gem. Once the gem is installed, the documentation can be read locally by a web browser. After working through the in-depth examples in this textbook, students will gain a better overall understanding of what computer science is about and how computer scientists think about problems.

LC Classification NumberQA76