Module Review: 2015/2016 Semester I

Note: Please note that there might be differences between modules in semester 1 and semester 2

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My Module Reviews

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CS3103 - 3D Modeling and Animation (4 MC) (No Exam*)
Heavy emphasis on lab and hands-on rather than theory. On the notion of learning vs. grade, this module focused on learning. This module was a continuation of CS2105 and touched on many topics discussed on CS2105, so be prepared to refresh your memory. This was the first time the new curriculum of CS3103 is conducted, so many things might change in the future. Focused a lot on the different protocol being used currently. While no exam was registered on the module, there was a final test on Week 13.

Workload: weekly pre-lab quiz (graded) x10 (tentatives as some weeks have the quiz not counted towards grade), weekly lab (graded) x10, 1 written assignment, 1 programming assignment, 1 programming project - with presentation on Week 13, 1 final test.

CS4226 - Internet Architecture (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam - Cheat-sheet allowed)
The first time this module was conducted (again, many things might change in the future). It's also another module which focused more on learning new things rather than getting your grades. The teacher said that if CS3103 focuses on depth (of network), this module focuses on breadth. We touches on many parts of network other than protocols, such as algorithms and statistics behind making a reliable network.

Workload: 1 written assignment, 1 programming assignment, 1 mid-term exam, 1 final exam. Both exams allow 1 two-sided A4 paper size cheatsheet.

CS4345 - General-Purpose Computation on GPU (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)
An interesting module. This mostly touched on parallel programming and executing them in GPU. The programming assignments are not very difficult since the skeleton codes covered most of the tedious things to be coded. This was an interesting module to me since I have not taken any parallel programming module. Be minded that if you are not used to parallel programming, this module requires a mindset change in writing your algorithms.

Workload: 4 programming assignments, 1 mid-term exam, 1 final exam

Total MC - Sem 7     : 12
Total MC - Sem 6     : 20
Total MC - Sem 5     : 20
Total MC - Sem 4     : 12 (ATAP, i.e. industrial attachment)
Total MC - Sem 3     : 20
Total MC - Sem 2     : 26

Total MC - Sem 1     : 20

Total MC - Overall    : 130

Module Review: 2014/2015 Semester II

Note: Please note that there might be differences between modules in semester 1 and semester 2

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My Module Reviews

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CS3242 - 3D Modeling and Animation (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)

A more advanced course on 3D graphics. The course involves learning many advanced techniques. The programming assignments are also about those advanced techniques. Luckily, the exam is not that hard. Most of the things taught in lecture are for knowledge purpose. A very good course for those who would like to do graphic programming.

Workload: 2 programming assignments, 2 Maya (3D stuffs) assignments and 1 final exam (open book).

CS3284 - Media Technology Project II (4 MC) (No Exam)

A continuation to CS3283. It will be the same project. The goal of this module, though, is formal introduction to software engineering workflow. It will focus on making robust code, secure code, unit testing, integration testing, stress testing as well as security testing of your software. It is a very good learning experience for those who have not done this kind of full course of software development (the furthest I have been before the module was integration testing).
Workload: 3 progress reports regarding the software with each adding on to the previous reports and 1 final presentation.

CS3247 - Game Development (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)

To be honest, I hated the first half of the semester. I learnt all of them on my own during my weekend in the first 2 years of university, so technically they are not necessary to be taught as we should be able to figure out on our own. And most of us inside the class have some sort of game development experience, usually as a hobby. More of the time could have been used for developing the game project. The second half of the semester was more interesting since we learnt many things about the theory part of the game, like how the physics simulation is done, network gaming, etc. Be warned, though; the course assignments are not exactly fixed as they changed along the semester for my batch.

Workload: 3 assignments, many deliverables (game idea, mid-term game report, STePS publicity (SoC project exhibition)), a game, a final presentation about the game and 1 final exam.

ST2334 - Probability and Statistics (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam - Cheat-sheet allowed)

A deep look into the math behind Statistic that we see in A-level. Many calculus involved. While the content is very hard, the exam is manageable.

Workload: 1 assignment and 1 final exam (closed book with cheat-sheet, 1 two-sided A4 paper).

GEK1519 - Science of Music (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)

A very interesting module about science of music (as the course title suggests). A good module if you have a passion for music as it taught you what happens behind sounds. Be prepared for some Physics (wave and such).

Workload: 1 writing assignment on a musical concert, 1 music composition assignment, 1 mid-term exam (open book), 1 final exam (open book) that is held before school ends.

Total MC - Sem 6     : 20
Total MC - Sem 5     : 20
Total MC - Sem 4     : 12 (ATAP, i.e. industrial attachment)
Total MC - Sem 3     : 20
Total MC - Sem 2     : 26

Total MC - Sem 1     : 20

Total MC - Overall    : 118

Module Review: 2014/2015 Semester I

Note: Please note that there might be differences between modules in semester 1 and semester 2

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My Module Reviews

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CS3241 - Computer Graphics (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)

A very good module to learn about graphics in computer - how pictures and 3D model are rendered, ways to manipulate them, etc. The Prof. is very fun and friendly, especially that he likes to play games and we watch many videos on games and animated films to see the different quality of graphics. The programming assignments help me to familiarize some graphic concepts, which is awesome since that is the area of my interest.

Workload: graded weekly tutorial attendance, required to present answers on tutorial for once or twice (depending on luck) throughout the semester, 5 programming assignments, 1 mid-term exam (open book) and 1 final exam (open book).

CS3283 - Media Technology Project I (4 MC) (No Exam)

This module really depends on your project. It is a software engineering project. My team is doing a game from scratch with no scope of project. As such, we had some difficulty in constraining the scope to fit both the aim of the project as well as the requirement of the module. Also, it was difficult to apply software engineering practices in the game. Other than that, the module would be a good exposure for you to understand how software is built for clients (yes, you need to meet the project client).
Workload: 3 progress reports regarding the software with each adding on to the previous reports and 1 final presentation.

PC1431 - Physics IE (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam)

Classical Physics for engineers. Most of the people in the class would be engineering freshman. Bell curve will save you a lot, but you do need to spend time reading physics and trying the questions. Many contents are in A-level syllabus, either deeper or more rigorous. Quite manageable.

Workload: 8 weekly online assignments, 2 labs - graded based on project and viva (on-lab face-toface Q&A session), 1 mid-term exam (closed book, MCQ only) and 1 final exam.

SSA2220 - Global Economic Dimensions of Singapore (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam)

Interesting history of Singapore as well as her economy. Also deals a lot with economic policy in Singapore. Requires some news reading on new policies. I flunked my final exam, since I am not that good with essay writing exam. Individual and group presentation is quite easy, need to think a little bit but it is very manageable.

Workload: 1 individual presentation, 1 group presentation and 1 final exam (closed book).

GEM2901 - Reporting Statistics in the Media (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam)

My advice would be to the attend lectures. It was 8 am lecture no webcast - tough choice. I skipped one too many and in the end quite difficult to understand the content of the module. The lecture notes are not sufficient in terms of clear explanation. The two group projects are kind of similar and you are encouraged to do both of them together. Group projects need some knowledge from the lectures, but otherwise doable.

Workload: 2 group projects and 1 final exam (closed book).

Total MC - Sem 5     : 20
Total MC - Sem 4     : 12 (ATAP, i.e. industrial attachment)
Total MC - Sem 3     : 20
Total MC - Sem 2     : 26

Total MC - Sem 1     : 20

Total MC - Overall    : 98

Module Review: 2013/2014 Semester I

Note: Please note that there might be differences between modules in semester 1 and semester 2

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My Module Reviews

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CS2101 - Effective Communication for Computing Professionals (4 MC) [Twinning module with CS2103T] (No Exam; 1 Final Writing assignment in class and 1 Final Group Discussion)

Usual communication module. I must say some materials were very interesting and really help me to realize how to be a better speaker. It could have more relevance to Software Engineering module by having more real life experience, though, like how to present your software, because most of the presentations we did were standard presentation with guidelines on what to present, which were quite different than pitching videos you see around. You will be assigned to a group (assignment depends on the teacher - in general, you will be mixed to other nationalities and genders, some teachers mix students according to programming expertise as well in addition to nationalities) which would last for one semester and the same group applies to CS2103T. This is one part of module twinning. The other part is that your group's presentation will be on your group's software developed in CS2103T.

Workload: 2 major presentations, some graded blog writing and commenting on others' blog writing, report writing, making the developer guide of the software you make in CS2103T, many graded impromptu short presentations after most lessons, one final writing assignment (closed book) and one final graded private group discussion.

CS2103T - Software Engineering (4 MC) [Twinning module with CS2101] (Open Book Exam)

A very good module to introduce you to software engineering, and awesome prof. It opens your mind to what software engineers have to go through in making a software. The tutorials are quite tiresome since you need to reflect each week's lesson to your team's software. The module needs consistent programming effort to ensure you could finish the software without sleepless night nearing the deadline. Experienced team members are good to have in this module (much depends on luck in your CS2101 group assignment). The module also have participation points which come from in-lecture questions and SMS questions.
Workload: One software (on some variation of to-do application) by end of semester with many interim deadlines during the semester, graded weekly tutorials and in-lecture questions (you will get full mark for your final score from these as long as your total score is above 80% than maximum points) and one final exam (kind of a recreation of how you design your software and how you do some things in making your software, e.g. unit tests and patterns).

CS2105 - Introduction to Computer Networks (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam - Cheat-sheet allowed)

Interesting introduction to how the Internet and network system works, though very basic and won't get your very far unless you take the next modules in Networking. There were 3 programming assignments. The first one was quite easy, but the other 2 were very abstract since you are asked to simulate some real Internet system. On top of that, they are kind of built on top of last year's (semester I) assignments, so they could only get harder. Most of the materials taught could be read from the book and there were not much participation points from tutorials.

Workload: 3 programming assignments, one mid term test and one final exam.

CS2106 - Introduction to Operating Systems (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam)

Bear in mind I took this module when it was taught by a guest lecturer (Bic Lubomir), so the module might change greatly in the next semester I. To start off, I must say the lecturer is very slack. He said in his first lecture that he doesn't really like live lecture and all his lectures are already in the webcast and he does not mind if you don't come for lectures. So yeah, fun module. The materials taught were from his book. Tutorials were also from his book. He made his e-book available for us, so it was nice of him. I must say the things that I learnt, though, was interesting since it helped me to understand how OS like Windows and Linux works. The programming assignments were kind of hard but at the same time interesting since I learnt that those stuffs on Windows are not that simple to be error-free (thanks, Microsoft). There were 2 programming assignments. Tutorials were required to be submitted online by every Friday to be marked, although correctness of the answers were not marked.

Workload: graded weekly tutorials (13 of them), 2 quizzes (one near mid semester and the other near the end of semester), 2 programming assignments and one final exam.

CS3230 - Design and Analysis of Algorithms (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)

A hardcore algorithm module. CS2020 helped me to understand many stuffs (not sure about CS2010, although I believe the materials taught are more or less the same). One of the profs who was the module coordinator just started teaching the module again, so the workload and materials were dynamically changed along the semester. Hardcore stuffs, though I think it sparked my interest in understanding algorithms more. There were programming assignments on algorithms and graded homework on the materials taught. Tutorials have participation points which require you to answer the tutorial questions on the board. The bell curve is quite tough since most people get full mark or near it for all assignments and homework. The final exam was very difficult for me since the questions are of you-know-or-you-don't kind of questions, and I belong to you-don't.

Workload: 3 programming assignments, 3 graded homework, tutorial participation points and one final exam.

Total MC - Sem 3     : 20
Total MC - Sem 2     : 26

Total MC - Sem 1     : 20

Total MC - Overall    : 66

Module Review: 2012/2013 Semester II

Note: Please note that there might be differences between modules in semester 1 and semester 2

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My Module Reviews

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CS2020 - Data Structures and Algorithm Accelerated (6 MC) (Closed Book Exam - Cheat-sheet allowed)

A very interesting module. This is an accelerated module, so the pacing of the materials is also quite fast. If you don't think you can take it, don't. If you think you can, take it. It's worth the difficulty. You don't learn some things that your peers are learning, but you learn something they don't, too. Also, since the class is full of the smart kids, you will be challenged to be better. The teacher and tutors are very good, too. The language used is Java. I freaked out the first few weeks because of the sudden assignments and coming from CS1010 (most of the students there came from CS1101S so I made a lot of new friends), I don't know some stuff which is taught in CS1101S on some Computer Science must-know.

Workload: One coding quiz, two quizzes, one final exam, and regular take-home problem sets (count it as one problem set per week which consists of differing number of work and difficulty for the week).

CS2100 - Computer Organisation (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam - Cheat-sheet allowed)

This is an amazing module. The materials is quite unrelated to programming, but giving basic ideas of how computer works to computing student (not as deep as electrical engineering knowledge, but you could understand some conversations by electrical engineers in your batch on circuit). Basic circuitry was foundation only, to understand how the computers are built from those circuits and make them good enough to handle the tasks you give to the processors. Really, not as deep as electrical engineering but should astound you on how amazing the computer is. The other amazing fact about this module is that despite the difficulty of the term tests, the bell curve is very competitive.

Workload: weekly labs (second half of the semester), 4 assignments, two term tests, one final exam.

MA1521 - Calculus for Computing (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam - Cheat-sheet allowed)

Just another calculus, though when compared to JC level math, this is more in-depth because you are taught the things behind the formula as well. The teacher was known as the one who likes to give mind-challenging question (though my final was quite OK compared to his usual questions). Nothing much could be said. In simple term, this is just another "practice hard" math. But if you look more than just score, this module teaches the foundation of calculus which is not as hard as the module for Engineering students (as the lecturer claimed, this is "Calculus for Computing", not "in Computing", and computing uses calculus arguably more rarely than engineering).

Workload: 3 assignments (due one week after each assignment announcement), one mid term test and one final exam.

IS1103 - Computing and Society (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)

A module on ethicality in computing. Due to the materials on ethicality, this module will touches on the philosophy of ethics as well. Discussion-based class (which participation was said to be graded). Some topics included piracy, hacking, and virus.

Workload: maintain blog (at least 3 posts), one project (either a social innovation or case study) and one final exam (essays). Class participation is expected.

LSM1302 - Genes and Society (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam)

A very technical module. Compare to LSM1301 (look on my previous review), this is a much harder module. Not only the materials were deeper, there was humanity concept as well that is being taught (though it was not really tested in the final exam). I must commend the lecturer, though, for he is a fun guy which could make everyone in the room suddenly laughing so hard when they were just looking blindly on the screen due to the materials being very dull. The final exam, though, is quite a killer. Many of the questions  (all MCQ) were the type A, B, C, A&B, A&B&C, and their variations.

Workload: three major assignments (one of them being making a brochure) and one final exam.

ACC1002X - Financial Accounting (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam - Cheat-sheet allowed)

A very hard and technical module. I half-regretted taking this module. Firstly, the bell curve is super crazy. Secondly, you must work consistently to understand everything. Thirdly, the lecturer for the second half of the semester was not very clear in communicating the materials. Fourthly, most of the materials are US-based accounting (so some discrepancy from Singapore's way of doing stuff). Luckily, my tutor was very knowledgeable and good at teaching.

Workload: Continuous group project per week (starts after recess week, only one presentation needed but still need to answer some questions weekly in the group), one mid term test, one final exam.

Total MC - Sem 2     : 26

Total MC - Sem 1     : 20

Total MC - Overall    : 46

Module Review: 2012/2013 Semester I

I am going to put up the modules I took in the blog, so that people looking to study in NUS School of Computing (SoC) or going to take the same module as me can look at my review. There is a dedicated site for that though, Module Review. I am using the posts to track the module I have taken as well. So, here goes.

Note: Please note that there might be differences between modules in semester 1 and semester 2

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My Module Reviews

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CS1010 - Programming Methodology (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)

A basic for programming. This is the first programming module for SoC Students in NUS¹. The language used in the module is C, and students are required to be familiar with Unix environment. I had a basic in programming before taking the module, so it was fairly easy for me (though it requires a lot of logic for the problems presented). The exams are comparably easy compared to the take-home labs' problems.
Workload: five take-home labs (each having three problems), two practical exams, one written midterm exam and one written final exam.
- For those with some experience: This will be a breeze. You just need to practice more and make sure no flaw AT ALL in your logic. Especially if the markers guess that you have enough knowledge, they want you to make the program efficient as well, although the course has been stressed to be for basic programming skill rather than efficiency in programs.
- For those without experience: BEWARE! You should start looking at some tutorial, because I feel although the module is meant for you, the very basic of programming itself is quite abstract in reality. I know that what was taught was really basic of programming, but you might question 'WHY' or 'HOW'. I find the module quite confusing for ones with no experience at all. I suggest if you have the time then you should familiarise yourself with the flow programming (such as header, body, functions and so on). An easy alternative would be just take it and don't question it.

¹with the exception of those who are exempted from the modules. Exemption is by test before school term begins, usually taken by Polytechnic graduate and A-level graduate who took Computing in A-level, though it is unrestricted and anyone who is confident with their programming skill can take the test.

CS1231 - Discrete Structures (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)

The module structure for semester I and II are different, thus this only applies to semester I.
A very abstract module. Learning the very basis of mathematics in the module, mainly proofing arguments in mathematics, numbers, trees and graphs. Very difficult for me due to the abstractness of the topics. Added with the easier exam compared to the practice, the bell curve is very stiff and some difficult questions are the main determinant of your grade. This also forms the very basis of computing - as the teachers said - and many of the topics are going to be used in later modules for algorithms.
Workload: one group project (making videos of proofing some mathematical ideas), one midterm exam and one final exam.

MA1101R - Linear Algebra I (4 MC) (Closed Book Exam - Cheat-sheet allowed)
A calculation module. The concepts are hard to grasp, but once you get it, you can solve the questions. Deals with matrices, part geometry. Computing students take the subject together with students majoring in Mathematics. The homeworks are very much based on fundamental concept, while the exams are  very much calculative, thus self extra practice is expected. The subject is used on many computing applications,  such as search engine and digital imaging.
Workload: one lab quiz (using MATLAB as helper), one midterm exam and one final exam.

BSP1004X - Legal Environment of Business (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)

A business law module. This would be a very logical module, dealing mainly with business problems when facing the law. Some general laws are touched as well. An interesting module, though very content heavy. Exam focuses on ability to analyze and write out the problems in question, possible solutions/remedies and mitigations on the problems.
Workload: one group project (answering questions and analyzing an article), class participation and one final exam.

LSM1301 - General Biology (4 MC) (Open Book Exam)
As the name suggests, the module is a basic biology module. Very content heavy on cells, DNA, ecosystem, plants, animals and so on. Many parts of the content are similar to Singapore O-level Biology (I took the exam in 2009), though more in depth. Very interesting module, indeed, but many students who previously took Biology enroll for grade, so expect a very stiff bell curve.
Workload: one quiz, one museum visit report, five lab reports, one online assessment and one 60-MCQ final exam.

Total MC - Sem 1     : 20
Total MC - Overall    : 20