Yet another week has passed! The weather is getting colder and so I have more time to spend indoors. This week I will dedicate to this course alone! You may be asking, why all the attention? Well, it is time for me to get back to "square one" and I am not referring to the shopping mall in Mississauga. No, I mean back to the drawing board. The logic with logarithms, floors, ceilings, and recursive functions haven't sunk in as well as I hoped it would. So I'm going back over the lectures we had since the first test. Many people say "better late then never" and I guess you would put me in that boat. The second assignment and test are already around the corner, so what better time to than now? I feel as if I need a to build a strong foundation first, before proceeding to the big hurdles. I have gone through most of the tutorial problems and annotated lecture slides. All that is left for me is the some of the course notes, and to wrap-up some seemingly vague concepts. By going back on the material, I hope to do much better on the second assignment in comparison to the first. Hopefully our professor's shifting grading scale really helps me out in the end!
As for the second assignment, I have yet to start on it. I have read through the assignment page and don't fret, my chronic procrastination has not taken hold yet. I have a Calculus midterm the same day I have my second test for this course, so I have dedicated the weekend to Calculus. I will make sure that I do not get any more behind and fight the urges to be lazy. My next tutorial is tomorrow and I'm not happy with our section's TA. We used to have a different TA for the first week and she was much more elaborate and clear. I heard that she didn't mind if people from other sections went to her tutorials, so I will ask her if I could join her section time. Hopefully I do make a lot of progress and get back up to speed with everyone else in the course soon enough. Also with the extra time devoted to this course, I will try to make use of our professor's office hours. The assignment only contains two questions, but seem harder than the previous assignment. The more time the better, and so I have dedicated quite a bit of time for this assignment. Wish me luck!
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Week Six: Half Way There
The sixth week of the term has passed, and boy, has this term gone by quickly! We are about half way through the course! Just like last week, we have explored the run-times of more divide and conquer algorithms. This week we worked with Merge Sort. I've always liked Merge Sort; very helpful and efficient. However, finding the Big-Oh complexities of it seems to be another story. I wasn't all to clear with the algorithms we did last week, but I'm getting there. The ways in which log, ceilings, and floors interact with each other are somewhat confusing. I just need sometime to digest some of what we've done to get a full grasp on it. The Master Theorem was a bit rushed near the end of Friday's lecture, and so I hope to get some more elaborations for tomorrows tutorial and possibly the lecture on Wednesday. Needlessly to say, I couldn't make much progress with the first question in the Tutorial Exercise for this week; the Master Theorem seems like gobbledygook to say the least! My second question's incomplete solution is based off what we did in lecture with the whole "unwinding" business. I am making progress, but at a snails pace. I just have to grind it out and get as far as I can for tomorrow's quiz. The rest will be in my TA's hands.
We also got our first tests backed marked, and I was not expecting what I received. Stupid mistakes on my part cost me a few valuable marks! I lost a mark for not stating I was going to use the Induction Hypothesis; very embarrassing! I didn't know that there would be so much focus on the structure of our proofs. I do have a gripe about the marking though. I understand that the TA was rushed in the marking, but I think there is a chance of me getting back marks if it were remarked. I got deducted three marks on a question and the only reason was one red underline under my Induction Hypothesis. I think the marking could have been a little more lenient, and I'll be sure to discuss a possible remark with our professor. I did look at the marking scheme used to mark our test, so I may be able to salvage a mark or hopefully two. Assignment two is out, and I will attempt to not repeat what I did with the first assignment. There are two questions, so I will put as much time as possible into getting a solution for them. I will try my best to fight off the urges of my chronic procrastination and do better in this second half!
We also got our first tests backed marked, and I was not expecting what I received. Stupid mistakes on my part cost me a few valuable marks! I lost a mark for not stating I was going to use the Induction Hypothesis; very embarrassing! I didn't know that there would be so much focus on the structure of our proofs. I do have a gripe about the marking though. I understand that the TA was rushed in the marking, but I think there is a chance of me getting back marks if it were remarked. I got deducted three marks on a question and the only reason was one red underline under my Induction Hypothesis. I think the marking could have been a little more lenient, and I'll be sure to discuss a possible remark with our professor. I did look at the marking scheme used to mark our test, so I may be able to salvage a mark or hopefully two. Assignment two is out, and I will attempt to not repeat what I did with the first assignment. There are two questions, so I will put as much time as possible into getting a solution for them. I will try my best to fight off the urges of my chronic procrastination and do better in this second half!
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Test One: A Breath of Fresh Air
Because I rambled on in my first SLOG entry, I will try to keep this entry shorter. This past week we had our first test in CSC236. Before the test, I was really tense. After not doing so well on the first assignment, I tried my best to prepare for this test. Having the Thanksgiving long weekend was a double-sided sword. The extra day provided us an extra day to study, but at the same time we lost a valuable tutorial. The test was made up of questions we have all see before, which had me sighing a big breadth of fresh air.
The first question was from a previous tutorial, that I had looked over, and I was able to the proof quite easily. The second question was a tangent to the full binary tree questions, and I was able to complete the proof although I had some difficulty on specifics. After I completed, the first two questions I knew there would either a Well-Ordering or Structural Induction question. As I had predicted, there was a Structural Induction problem, much like the ones done in lecture. I was somewhat lost; it was the most recent type of proof we had done and we did not have tutorial time to practice what was preached in lecture. I managed to get the base case done and the basic structure, but that was the most I could do. I will wrap up my second SLOG entry by saying I was really happy with this test, and I hope that the next one will also follow a similar format.
The first question was from a previous tutorial, that I had looked over, and I was able to the proof quite easily. The second question was a tangent to the full binary tree questions, and I was able to complete the proof although I had some difficulty on specifics. After I completed, the first two questions I knew there would either a Well-Ordering or Structural Induction question. As I had predicted, there was a Structural Induction problem, much like the ones done in lecture. I was somewhat lost; it was the most recent type of proof we had done and we did not have tutorial time to practice what was preached in lecture. I managed to get the base case done and the basic structure, but that was the most I could do. I will wrap up my second SLOG entry by saying I was really happy with this test, and I hope that the next one will also follow a similar format.
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Assignment One: Buzzer Beater Shot
As you all know, Assignment One was due on Friday. After doing well on both quizzes, I was confident going into this assignment. I was pumped to ace this assignment and wanted to get an early start on it. However, university life is not so simple. Working on the rest of my courses, the time I had to do the assignment was slipping from my grasp. Now I'm not making excuses for myself. I admit, there were times where I had the time to start on the assignment, but I failed to capitalize on the opportunities. If you are like me, you suffer from chronic procrastination. Aware of this, I attempted to finish the assignment a day before the deadline.
The first two questions were simple enough. The first question was a tangent to the examples with the binary search trees. I followed a somewhat similar style to the other proofs, and I hope that will be suffice for the question. The second question was reminiscent of the days in CSC165. After looking through some of the examples done in lecture and tutorial, I was able to speed past the opposition. After the first two questions, I was ready to run through the rest of the assignment and score a a hundred points on this assignment. I was going in for the slam dunk, but my overconfidence only led me to slam right into a brick wall. The third question was like reading the hieroglyphs; I could not grasp the concept at all! I was rereading the question over and over again. Needlessly to say, I had no idea how to get past this difficulty. After many trials, the question seemed familiar to me, but I didn't know where it was from. My instincts told me to fly rather than fight. The final question was easier for me to comprehend, but finding a solution was something I did not see happening anytime soon. The momentum I had came to an abrupt stop, and I decided to work on the rest the following day.
I entered the fourth quarter; the final day for the assignment. My confidence had drastically fallen from its former glory. The Friday lecture had come and our helpful professor gave us some last minute advice. We were told to look at the first lecture for ideas. After going home, I remembered why this question was so familiar. One word started to flash in my mind: Bijection! Bijection? Bijection! This one word had the effects of a energy drink! I was ready! I had the pieces to complete the question, but they was no perfect piece. Like on laundry day, there was a sock missing. In this case, the sock was a the formula given to us. I had no idea where to use it, or even develop another formula for the n+3 problem. I left my idea in the pieces and noticed the time. The clock was ticking down, and I still had to complete the fourth question! The adrenaline was pumping through my veins. I looked at the final question and it was seemed much more difficult then the first time my eyes had lay upon it. I constantly had to look at the time, as I was paranoid of missing the deadline. My paranoia overwhelmed me! The mythical "I do better when I finish the assignment in one night" did not knock on my door! I was searching for the "light bulb moment", but it never came. I felt like I was deserted island, with no civilization in sight. The only thing I was missing was a volleyball named Wilson. Disappointed, I submitted my incomplete in MarkUs. That feeling of being so close, but running out of time was awful.
So did I learn my lesson from procrastination? Maybe. Chronic procrastination isn't a simple fix, and is a routine very hard to get out of. Hopefully, I pull up my socks for the next assignment and work on it slow and steady. There is no time for me to dwell on assignment, as the midterm is just around the corner. I just need to take everything one step at a time. I'll seek help earlier on (visiting office hours) and not leave myself so stressed in the end. Also, it would be helpful if I had maybe asked a question on Piazza. I had shot the ball in the final moments of the game to beat the buzzer beater, but I hit one off the rim. So close; but not close enough.
The first two questions were simple enough. The first question was a tangent to the examples with the binary search trees. I followed a somewhat similar style to the other proofs, and I hope that will be suffice for the question. The second question was reminiscent of the days in CSC165. After looking through some of the examples done in lecture and tutorial, I was able to speed past the opposition. After the first two questions, I was ready to run through the rest of the assignment and score a a hundred points on this assignment. I was going in for the slam dunk, but my overconfidence only led me to slam right into a brick wall. The third question was like reading the hieroglyphs; I could not grasp the concept at all! I was rereading the question over and over again. Needlessly to say, I had no idea how to get past this difficulty. After many trials, the question seemed familiar to me, but I didn't know where it was from. My instincts told me to fly rather than fight. The final question was easier for me to comprehend, but finding a solution was something I did not see happening anytime soon. The momentum I had came to an abrupt stop, and I decided to work on the rest the following day.
I entered the fourth quarter; the final day for the assignment. My confidence had drastically fallen from its former glory. The Friday lecture had come and our helpful professor gave us some last minute advice. We were told to look at the first lecture for ideas. After going home, I remembered why this question was so familiar. One word started to flash in my mind: Bijection! Bijection? Bijection! This one word had the effects of a energy drink! I was ready! I had the pieces to complete the question, but they was no perfect piece. Like on laundry day, there was a sock missing. In this case, the sock was a the formula given to us. I had no idea where to use it, or even develop another formula for the n+3 problem. I left my idea in the pieces and noticed the time. The clock was ticking down, and I still had to complete the fourth question! The adrenaline was pumping through my veins. I looked at the final question and it was seemed much more difficult then the first time my eyes had lay upon it. I constantly had to look at the time, as I was paranoid of missing the deadline. My paranoia overwhelmed me! The mythical "I do better when I finish the assignment in one night" did not knock on my door! I was searching for the "light bulb moment", but it never came. I felt like I was deserted island, with no civilization in sight. The only thing I was missing was a volleyball named Wilson. Disappointed, I submitted my incomplete in MarkUs. That feeling of being so close, but running out of time was awful.
So did I learn my lesson from procrastination? Maybe. Chronic procrastination isn't a simple fix, and is a routine very hard to get out of. Hopefully, I pull up my socks for the next assignment and work on it slow and steady. There is no time for me to dwell on assignment, as the midterm is just around the corner. I just need to take everything one step at a time. I'll seek help earlier on (visiting office hours) and not leave myself so stressed in the end. Also, it would be helpful if I had maybe asked a question on Piazza. I had shot the ball in the final moments of the game to beat the buzzer beater, but I hit one off the rim. So close; but not close enough.
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