CST 370 - Week 1

 Hey everyone,

This week, we learned several important topics that form the foundation of computer science and programming. We started with GitHub and practiced using manual commands like git init, git add, git commit, and git push to manage our code. This helped us understand version control and how to keep track of changes when working on projects, especially when collaborating with others.

We were also introduced to algorithms and learned what they are—step-by-step methods for solving problems. One example we focused on was Euclid’s Algorithm for finding the greatest common divisor (GCD) of two numbers. It uses a simple but powerful idea: repeatedly replace the numbers with GCD(b, a % b) until the second number becomes zero. We also practiced writing pseudocode, which helped us plan out algorithms in plain language before coding. We also had a homework assignment to help us further understand GitHub commands.

Later in the week, we learned about graphs, both weighted and unweighted. These are useful for representing connections between things, like cities on a map or people in a network. We also went over common data structures including lists, stacks, queues, and trees. Each one works differently and is useful in different types of problems. Overall, this week gave me a better understanding of how to think like a programmer and organize data and logic clearly.

That is it for this week. I am excited for more coding and algorithms!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

CST 334 - Week 6

 Hey everyone!      This week we submitted our research collab project. It was quite interesting and fun. I learned a lot and our team bonded more as well. We also learned many new things through our lectures and labs.       Concurrency is a critical concept in computer systems, enabling multiple processes to execute simultaneously. However, with great power comes great complexity.       A semaphore is a synchronization primitive that helps manage access to shared resources in a concurrent environment. Semaphores can be thought of as counters that control the number of processes allowed to access a resource. They come in two main types :             - Counting Semaphores : These can have values greater than one and are often used to manage a   pool of resources, such as threads or connections.           - Binary Semaphores : These function like locks and c...
Read more

CST 334 - Week 4

Hey everyone!       This week, I learned about how operating systems manage memory, which is one of their most important jobs. One topic was free space management , where the system keeps track of memory or storage that isn’t being used. Two common methods are bitmaps (using bits to mark if memory is free or taken) and linked lists (connecting free memory blocks together). Each method has its pros and cons, like how much space they use or how fast they work.      I also studied paging , which splits memory into small chunks called pages. These pages are mapped to physical memory, keeping processes separate and organized. However, this mapping can slow things down because the computer has to translate addresses often. To make it faster, Translation Lookaside Buffers (TLBs) store recent translations in a small, quick cache. I also learned about advanced page tables , which are smarter ways of organizing these mappings to save memory.    ...
Read more

CST 363 - Week 5

 Hey everyone! This week, I learned about something interesting called slow indexes. I found a helpful website called "Use the Index Luke," which talks about this topic. It got me thinking about how indexes work in databases. Indexes are tools that help databases find and retrieve data faster, similar to a table of contents in a book. They allow the database to quickly locate the information needed without searching through the entire table. However, not all indexes work well. The author of the "Use the Index Luke" page explains what a slow index is. Here are some key points: 1. Bad Design: A slow index can happen if it's not designed well. For example, if an index is created on columns that aren’t frequently searched or if it includes too many columns, it can slow down the system instead of speeding it up. 2. Maintenance Issues: Indexes need to be maintained, especially when data is added, changed, or deleted. A slow index might take too long to update, which c...
Read more