CS 3600
Introduction to Artificial Intelligence

Prof. Mark Riedl (riedl@cc.gatech.edu)
Office hours: MF: 4:00-5:00, CCB 253

Overview

Grading

Schedule

Handouts

Resources

Statement of Academic Honesty

You may collaborate as much as you want on the homework assignments; during exams you may not so much as daydream about working with someone else; and on the programming projects, your submitted solutions must reflect your own work.

For the projects, do not copy from others or let others copy your work; however, you may think of the TAs as your close collaborators. Feel free to go to them with any problems that you are having. That's why they are there.

For any solution, you must cite all of the resources you relied on for coming up with your answers. This includes web pages, publications, people, and so on, other than the textbook, instructor, and TAs. You need to abide by the academic honor code of Georgia Tech.

Readings and Lectures

Lectures are meant to summarize the readings and stress the important points. You are expected to come to class having already critically read any assigned material. Your active participation in class is crucial in making the course successful. I complete ly expect to be interrupted throughout a lecture with questions and maybe even your deep insights into the material.

Grading

Your final grade is divided into four components: homework assignments, projects, a midterm and a final exam.

  • Homework. We will post homeworks on a regular basis. We will not collect or grade your solutions; however, solving these problems is important because they ensure that you have understood the material and are prepared for the exams. If you can answer these questions, you should have a good chance of doing well on the exams.
  • Projects. There will be five projects. As noted above, your solutions should reflect your own work.
  • Midterm. There will be a written, closed-book midterm. The exam will be in class.
  • Final Exam. There will be a written, closed-book final exam at the scheduled time.
  • Extra Credit. From time to time there will be opportunities for extra credit. Most often this occurs in the form of participating in experiments being conducted by AI research groups and reporting on the experiment. I will announce extra credit opportunities if and when they arise.

Due Dates

All graded assignments are due by the time and date indicated. I will not accept late assignments or make up exams. Please do not push me on this. You will get zero credit for any late assignment. The only exceptions will require: a note from an appropriate authority and immediate notification of the problem when it arises. Naturally, your excuse must be acceptable.

Numbers

  • Homework - 0%
  • Projects - 35%
  • Midterm - 30%
  • Final - 35%
  • Class participation - 5%

Although class participation is not explictly graded, I will use your class participation to determine whether your grade can be lifted in case you are right on the edge of two grades. Participation means attending classes, participating in class discussi ons, asking relevant questions, volunteering to provide answers to questions, and providing constructive criticism and creative suggestions that improve the course.

Extra credit policy

You may receive extra credit for participating in research experiments and studies. You will receive 2 points on your final course grade per study. You may receive extra credit on a maximum of 2 studies (for a grand total of 4 extra points on your final grade). The following conditions must be met:

  1. The study must be conducted by AI faculty or students.
  2. You must interview the person running the study immediately after your participation is complete to learn the purpose of the study. Specifically, the experimenter is trying to test an AI system or trying to learn more about humans for the purpose of designing an AI system. You want to find this out in as much detail as you can about what the experimenter is trying to achieve, why he or she is researching the topic, and how he or she plans to go about solving the problem.
  3. You must write a 1 page paper, describing the purpose of the study, what problem the experimenter is trying to solve with AI, why the experimenter is interested in the problem, and what AI techniques the experimenter is using or intends to use. You do not need to describe the experiment itself unless it is relevant to the purpose or AI techniques. The purpose of this activity is for you to learn more about the AI research being conducted at Georgia Tech.
  4. Email your paper to me.