Data Structures and Algorithms
University of Washington, Spring 2024
Husky Maps is a web app for mapping the world, searching for places, and navigating around Seattle. All these features are powered by data structures and algorithms, programming abstractions designed to represent data and automate processes. In your prior programming experience, you learned how to implement specifications by writing Java programs that used data structures to solve problems. In this course, you’ll learn how to answer the why question: Why did we write the specification that way in the first place?
There are many decisions to make when designing a software system, and many of these decisions have significant consequences on qualities of a system. In this course, we’ll focus on learning data structures as implementations of abstract data types. An abstract data type describes what you can do with a data type, but not how the data type is implemented; a data structure provides both a description of functionality and a specific implementation of functionality. Rather than think of problems as requiring custom algorithms that we invent from scratch each time, abstract data types help us think of problems as variations that can be addressed by adapting more general algorithm ideas.
Data Structures and Algorithms presents a selection of these ideas in a way intended to help you design, analyze, and evaluate software systems. Learning these ideas can enable fuller participation in the community of computing professionals. This 10-week course is organized around four 2-week case study projects and a final portfolio. By the end of the course, you’ll have retraced the history of invention for 4 abstract data types, 12 implementations of them, and 7 real-world problems that they address:
- Deque data structures for browsing history.
- Autocomplete data structures and algorithms for search suggestions and DNA indexing.
- Priority queue data structures for web accessibility analytics and shortest paths.
- Shortest paths and graph data structures for seam carving and navigation directions.
- Portfolio assembling all of your work throughout the quarter.
What will you learn?
Deques
Data Structures
- 3/25
- Welcome
- 3/27
PrjProject Setup by 3/29
- 3/28
- 3/29
PrjDeques code by 4/5, analysis by 4/12
- WksData Structures by 3/31
Sorting Algorithms
- 4/1
- 4/3
- ExcAsymptotic Analysis by 4/9, peer review by 4/14
- 4/4
- 4/5
- WksSorting Algorithms by 4/7
Autocomplete
Search Trees
- 4/8
- 4/10
- ExcSearch Trees by 4/16, peer review by 4/21
- 4/11
- 4/12
- PrjAutocomplete code by 4/19, analysis by 4/26
- WksSearch Trees by 4/14
- PrjAutocomplete code by 4/19, analysis by 4/26
Isomorphism
Priority Queues
Heaps and Hashing
- 4/22
- 4/24
- ExcHeaps and Hashing by 4/30, peer review by 5/5
- 4/25
- SecHeaps and Hashing
- 4/26
- Affordance Analysis
- PrjPriority Queues code by 5/3, analysis by 5/10
- WksHeaps and Hashing by 4/28
- PrjPriority Queues code by 5/3, analysis by 5/10
Graphs
- 4/29
- Graph Data Type
- 5/1
- Graph Traversals
- DesMidterm Interview by 5/7
- 5/2
- SecMidterm Prep
- 5/3
- Shortest Paths Trees
- WksGraphs by 5/12
Shortest Paths
Midterm Interviews
- 5/6
- Midterm Interviews
- 5/8
- Midterm Interviews
- 5/9
- SecGraphs
- 5/10
- Dynamic Programming
- PrjShortest Paths code by 5/17, analysis by 5/24
Graph Algorithms
- 5/13
- Minimum Spanning Trees
- 5/15
- Disjoint Sets
- ExcGraph Algorithms by 5/21, peer review by 5/26
- 5/16
- SecGraph Algorithms
- 5/17
- Design Documents
- WksGraph Algorithms by 5/19
Final Portfolio
Software Engineering
- 5/20
- System Design
- 5/22
- Iterative Design
- 5/23
- SecShortest Paths
- 5/24
- Code Strategies
- DesFinal Portfolio by 6/4
- WksSoftware Engineering by 5/26
- DesFinal Portfolio by 6/4
Conclusion
- 5/27
- Holiday
- 5/29
- TA Panel
- 5/30
- SecConclusion
- 5/31
- Next Steps
Why should we learn?
The education you receive in this course can help prepare you for programming jobs, but this isn’t the only purpose for computing education.1 Education is not only about yourself and your personal gain, but also about all of us and our capacity to live together as a community.
The University of Washington acknowledges the Coast Salish peoples of this land, the land which touches the shared waters of all tribes and bands within the Duwamish, Puyallup, Suquamish, Tulalip and Muckleshoot nations. Among the traditions of the Coast Salish peoples is a value for the connectedness between all living things and a recognition of the unique ways that each of us comes to know something.2
Modern education has the idea that we all need to know the same thing. At the end of the lesson, everyone will know the same thing. That’s why we have tests, that’s why we have quizzes, that’s why we have homework: to ensure we all know the same thing. And that’s powerful—that’s important—within a certain context.
But for native culture, the idea that each listener divines or finds their own answer, their own meaning, their own teaching from the story is equally powerful—that each person needs to be able to look at the world and define it for themselves within their culture and then also find a way to live in that world according to the teachings of their people in their culture.
Our course emphasizes the following values and policies.
- We are responsible for each others’ success
- Everyone has a right to feel like they belong in this course. We’ll need to act with compassion and caring to collaborate with each other. Although we will need more than just unexamined commitments to collaboration, listening, empathy, mindfulness, and caring,3 the following guidelines offer a starting point for ensuring compassion toward each other.4
- Listen with intention to understand first and form an opinion only after you fully understand.
- Take responsibility for the intended and unintended effects of your words and actions on others.
- Mindfully respond to others’ ideas by acknowledging the unique value of each contribution.
You should expect and demand to be treated by your classmates and teachers with respect. If any incident occurs that challenges this commitment to a supportive, diverse, inclusive, and equitable environment, please let the instructor know so the issue can be addressed. Should you feel uncomfortable bringing up an issue with the instructor directly, meet our advisors during quick questions or contact the College of Engineering.
- We recognize everyone has unique circumstances
- Do not hesitate to contact the instructor by private discussion post or appointment. The sooner we are made aware of your circumstances, the more we can help. Extenuating circumstances include work-school balance, familial responsibilities, religious observations, military duties, unexpected travel, or anything else beyond your control that may negatively impact your performance in the class.
- It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create inclusive and accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law. If you have already established accommodations with Disability Resources for Students (DRS), activate your accommodations via myDRS so we can discuss how they will be implemented in this course. If you have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations, contact DRS directly to set up an Access Plan.
- Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy. Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form.
- It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create inclusive and accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law. If you have already established accommodations with Disability Resources for Students (DRS), activate your accommodations via myDRS so we can discuss how they will be implemented in this course. If you have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations, contact DRS directly to set up an Access Plan.
- We believe everyone wants to learn
- Education is about shaping your identity as much as it is about learning things. In school, the consequences of making mistakes are relatively small. But the habits you form now—repeated over days, weeks, months, or years—determine who you will be in the future. Now is the best time to practice honest habits.
- We ask that you do not claim to be responsible for work that is not yours. When you receive substantial help from someone else, include a citation. Don’t post your solutions publicly. Most importantly, don’t deprive yourself or others of the learning opportunities that we’ve created in this course.
- Academic honesty reflects the trust (or the lack thereof) between students and teachers. We do our best to design the course in ways that ensure trust, but we know our systems are not perfect. If you submit work in violation of these policies but bring it to the attention of the instructor within 72 hours, you may resubmit your own work without further consequence. Rather than blame students, we want to fix or replace broken systems that compel students to lose trust.
- We ask that you do not claim to be responsible for work that is not yours. When you receive substantial help from someone else, include a citation. Don’t post your solutions publicly. Most importantly, don’t deprive yourself or others of the learning opportunities that we’ve created in this course.
How will you learn?
In a traditional classroom, you attend class while a teacher lectures until time is up. Then, you go home and do the important work of applying concepts toward practice problems or assignments on your own. Finally, you take an exam to show what you know.
Today, we know that there are more effective ways to learn science, engineering, and mathematics.5 Learning skills like software engineering and algorithm analysis requires deliberate practice: a learning cycle that starts with sustained motivation, then presents tasks that build on prior knowledge, and concludes with immediate, personalized feedback. Each module in the course will involve several different activities that are designed so that we can make the most of our class time together.
- On your own before class, prepare for learning by completing the pre-class preparation.
- In Canvas, read the weekly Lessons and complete the Pre-Class Quiz
- Lessons are designed to introduce all the concepts for the entire week’s classes.
- In your team during class and quiz section, collaborate on the in-class guided practice.
- In Canvas at the end of the week, turn in your completed Worksheets
- Class meetings are designed to deepen, complicate, and connect ideas across the course.
- On your own after class, complete take-home assessments to show what you learned.
- In Canvas, demonstrate your learning by explaining your work for each Exercise
- Your videos emphasize not only problem solving skills, but also communication skills.
- In Canvas, demonstrate your learning by assembling a Project
- Projects are designed to integrate and situate what you learned in real-world problems.
- For the midterm and final, apply your creativity to Design and implement software.
- In the midterm, complete TA-led interviews on efficient implementations for software.
- In the final, draw on your data structures and algorithms expertise to redesign software.
Communicating your ideas and explaining your problem solving process is important in this course. We ask students to record their own screenshared and voiced videos because they provide rich information about your solution process and authenticate your assessment. But we know that visual or voiceover presentations are not accessible or equitable for everyone. If for any reason a voiceover presentation won’t work for you, we would be happy to work with you to find a better way to communicate your ideas and explain your problem solving process. You do not need to disclose why you feel uncomfortable, but we were thinking about people with vision impairment, gender and voice dysphoria, limited access to resources, or complicated living situations when designing this policy.
Expect to spend 4 hours in class and 8 hours outside of class working on this course. Some weeks may require more or less time than other weeks. If you find the workload is significantly exceeding this expectation, talk to your TA.
- 8:30 AM
- 9:00 AM
- 9:30 AM
- 10:00 AM
- 10:30 AM
- 11:00 AM
- 11:30 AM
- 12:00 PM
- 12:30 PM
- 1:00 PM
- 1:30 PM
- 2:00 PM
- 2:30 PM
- 3:00 PM
- 3:30 PM
- 4:00 PM
- 4:30 PM
- 5:00 PM
- 5:30 PM
- 6:00 PM
- 6:30 PM
- 7:00 PM
- 7:30 PM
- 8:00 PM
Monday
- Office Hours12:30 PM–2:30 PMDEN 256
- Lecture2:30 PM–3:30 PMSMI 120
- Office Hours6:30 PM–8:30 PMZoom
Tuesday
- Office Hours3:30 PM–5:30 PMSAV 156
Wednesday
- Lecture2:30 PM–3:30 PMSMI 120
- Office Hours3:30 PM–5:30 PMSAV 158
Thursday
- Sections8:30 AM–4:30 PM
- Office Hours12:30 PM–2:30 PMSMI 107
- Office Hours4:30 PM–6:30 PMSAV 156
Friday
- Office Hours12:30 PM–2:30 PMDEN 256
- Lecture2:30 PM–3:30 PMSMI 120
How is this course graded?
Grading in this course encourages learning through deliberate practice by emphasizing revision and resubmission of work. Most of the coursework is designed around feedback loops where you try something, get feedback, then try again. Grades are based on what you eventually learn through this process. Only the requirements listed under a Canvas module count toward your final grade.
- 1.0 or greater
- Completion of all requirements in the Deques module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Autocomplete module.
- 2.0 or greater
- Completion of all requirements in the Deques module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Autocomplete module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Priority Queues module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Autocomplete module.
- 3.0 or greater
- Completion of all requirements in the Deques module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Autocomplete module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Priority Queues module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Shortest Paths module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Autocomplete module.
- 4.0
- Completion of all requirements in the Deques module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Autocomplete module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Priority Queues module.
- Completion of all requirements in the Shortest Paths module.
- Highest marks across all parts of the Portfolio.
- Completion of all requirements in the Autocomplete module.
Evaluating Approaches to Teaching Data Structures and Algorithms
You are being asked to participate in a research study to find out more about how pedagogical and curricular approaches affect the student experience in an undergraduate Data Structures and Algorithms course. You have been asked to participate in this study because you are a student in a class that is being studied or used as a control. The purpose of this study is to create knowledge that has the potential to improve the educational experience for students at the University of Washington and beyond.
- What will you be asked to do?
- If you agree to be in this study, your data from this class including surveys/evaluations, coursework, course forum discussion, and online learning management system engagement will be included in the analysis. Your participation involves only agreeing to let us use your data in our analysis. You will not be asked to do anything beyond normal educational practice.
- What will happen to the information you provide?
- Data from participants will be retained only for research purposes and stored using codes that provide a degree of confidentiality. Your instructor will not know whether you are participating in this study until after final grades have been posted.
- What can you do if you want more information?
- Talk to the study team. Kevin Lin is the lead researcher at the University of Washington for this study and can be contacted at kevinl@cs.uw.edu.
- Talk to someone else. If you want to talk with someone who is not part of the study team about the study, your rights as a research subject, or to report problems or complaints about the study, contact the UW Human Subjects Division at hsdinfo@uw.edu or 206-543-0098.
- What are my options for participation?
- If you consent to participate in this study and are at least 18 years old, no action is needed.
- Participation in research is voluntary. You may withdraw at any time without penalty.
- If you decide to withdraw from the research, complete the online opt-out form.
Mark Guzdial. 2021. Computer science was always supposed to be taught to everyone, and it wasn’t about getting a job. ↩
Roger Fernandes. 2012. Roger Fernandes: Artist/Storyteller/Educator. ↩
Brian Arao and Kristi Clemens. 2013. “From Safe Spaces to Brave Spaces: A New Way to Frame Dialogue Around Diversity and Social Justice” in The Art of Effective Facilitation. ↩
Asao B. Inoue. 2019. “Sample Charter for Compassion” in Labor-Based Grading Contracts: Building Equity and Inclusion in the Compassionate Writing Classroom. ↩
Scott Freeman, Sarah L. Eddy, Miles McDonough, Michelle K. Smith, Nnadozie Okoroafor, Hannah Jordt, and Mary Pat Wenderoth. 2014. Active learning increases student performance in science, engineering, and mathematics. ↩