Frequently Asked Questions

Projects

Yes and No. Each assignment includes a project-like question that provides structured hands-on experience. This approach:

  • Ensures all students work on similar problems
  • Provides better guidance and support
  • Helps you understand concepts through practical application
  • No separate final project required

Example: Activity Classifier 1. Build a classifier for activities (walking, running, etc.) 2. Start with publicly available datasets 3. Collect your own data using smartphones 4. Train and evaluate your personalized classifier 5. Optional: Deploy the classifier on your smartphone

Prerequisites

While there are no formal prerequisites, you should have:

  • Python Programming (ES242 equivalent)
  • Data Structures & Algorithms
  • Probability & Statistics
  • Linear Algebra
  • Basic Calculus

A mandatory exam to ensure you have the necessary background knowledge to succeed in the course.

  • Review your undergraduate course materials
  • Study the preparation materials on the homepage
  • Focus on Python, linear algebra, and probability concepts

You will not be allowed to enroll in the course. The instructor determines the cutoff score (not revealed beforehand).

Classroom Policies

No. Laptops are not permitted in class for any reason.

Quizzes

  • Quiz score = 0%
  • The “best 3 out of 4” policy accommodates missed quizzes
  • No makeup quizzes for any reason

No. All quizzes and exams are closed book. No notes permitted.

4-5 working days after the quiz.

  • 2 quizzes during mid-semester period
  • 2 quizzes during end-semester period
  • Mix of MCQs and subjective questions

Assignments

No extensions are granted for any reason.

  1. First: Ask on Slack #assignments channel
  2. If no response in 2 days: Email the instructor

No. All assignments must be completed in Python only.

Viva Voce Process: 1. TAs compare submitted code with live code 2. No changes allowed during viva (warnings issued) 3. Code demonstration and Q&A session

Grade Breakdown: - Code functionality: 50% - Assignment understanding: 25% - Code quality: 12.5% - Theory concepts: 12.5%

Question Distribution: - 75% assignment-specific - 25% theory concepts

Group assignments. All team members receive the same grade.

Attendance

See the detailed attendance policy in the grading section.

Audit Policy

Lecture Attendance: Free to attend all lectures

Limitations: - No assignment grading (limited TA capacity) - Cannot formally join assignment teams - No official course credit

Computational Resources

Google Cloud Credits are typically provided for the course.

  • Sufficient for all assignments
  • Updates posted when credits are available
  • Instructions provided for setup and usage