IST 511: Information and Technology (3 credits) Fall 2008 Syllabus ____________________________________________________________ Instructor : Prof. Dongwon Lee (dongwon -at- psu.edu) Time : W 12:20P - 03:20P Location : 210 IST Office Hour : W 10:00A - 12:00P (313A IST) Overview -------- This is an introductory graduate course of IST to teach theoretical, computational, and practical issues involved in managing information and knowledge from IT perspective. Example topics include Computation and Algorithm, Social Network Analysis, Web Analysis and Search Engines, Databases, etc. This course is designed to focus on the "T" side of the T-I-P (Technology-Information-People) triangle of the IST. Therefore, all students should expect to do quite a bit of hands-on technical work such as the installation and configuration of programs, design and analysis in projects, and coding and debugging for implementation. The main objective of the class is to introduce students various IT techniques and tools so that they can understand and apply them to real applications and problems. In addition, students will learn how to read, critique, and evaluate others' research articles, and how to write one's own as well. Prerequisites ------------- - IST 501 Following skills are not required but will be helpful: - Some understanding of Relational Databases - Some understanding of at least one programming language (e.g., Java, C/C++, Perl, Python, PHP, Ruby) Textbook -------- There is a NO required textbook for this course. Instructor will draw materials from academic literature and the Web as needed. Instructor will provide slides as well. Format of Class --------------- Each week, a class (3 hours) consists of: Instructor's presentation, students' presentation, discussion, and project work. Therefore, it is necessary for students to do the required reading and actively participate in the class. Projects (3 team-based and 1 individual) ---------------------------------------- - #1: social network analysis - #2: web database design - #3: search engine build-up - #4: individual project on open topics Teams are randomly assigned and re-shuffled for each team project. Grading ------- - Class Participation: 5% - Critique and Homework Assignment: 15% - Project (4): 80% (20% each) - NO EXAM