CS 2102

So Edwards is a nice guy, he really is. He makes some nerdy jokes in class and in his slides. I just feel like it would be so much better having him as a teacher in a smaller class setting rather than a giant lecture hall. His quiet charm is easy to miss when you're sitting in the back, surrounded by people surfing facebook. As a result, around half the students eventually end up skipping class (only to come in for the exams). I tried going to every class, but this was actually my most skipped class in my time at UVA. I just didn't absorb anything during lecture and learned everything by doing the homework. I actually didn't have a homework group (I'm more of a lone wolf when it comes to studying) so I learned by trudging through the homework problem by problem. Online resources (including wikipedia) were actually really good in helping me grasp the concepts. The book didn't help me much. As for the slides, they made a lot of sense AFTER reading through the wiki articles/other online notes on the topic.
So the material itself is the type where it seems super hard as you're trying to learn it, but looking back you think wow that was so easy how did I not get this sooner? The topic is actually rather fun and the problems are sort of like brain teasers. It's just a lot of work. I recommend giving yourself plenty of time to do the homework, at least a few days, especially if you want to do the homework on your own. It's a large chunk of your grade, and you will learn the most from doing the homework.
Overall a satisfying course and satisfying material. You just really have to take charge of teaching it to yourself.

The concepts covered in this class tend to be rather simple, especially if you have any background in logic or set theory.
If I could go back and give myself advice regarding this class, I would say go to lecture a little more and really nail down the steps to RSA encryption which tripped me up on a test.
Other than that, this class was not bad.

For some very weird reason, this professor makes everything simple more difficult. Very dry lecture with powerpoint slides that he reads directly off from. He does not provide his own previous tests, but rather Professor Knight's practice tests, which don't help you prepare for his tests. I am not sure if I would recommend this class.

The material is a little bit dry but the professor is awesome. He definitely knows his stuff and you will definitely learn more than discrete math in this course!

Professor Edwards works hard to make this class enjoyable. He often has random cartoons on the slides to lighten up the class. He can be dry at times, but he tries to engage the class with in-class exercises. I didn't hate the curriculum, but I wouldn't recommend it to a non-CS major. The class is pretty tough - 3 exams total and a problem set every week.

Professor Edwards is a really awesome guy and does a good job engaging the class. That being said I personally wasn't the biggest fan of the subject matter. I only took this class because it is a prereq and would not have taken it otherwise. There is just something about the subject matter that trips a lot of people up just because it is often arbitrary and counter intuitive. Also, being a math wiz does not guarantee you any sort of edge in this class, this is not normal math. Its proof based conceptual math. The weekly homework sets can be tough so make sure you get a good group (also, he takes the questions from the book and you can often find a similar problem worked somewhere in the chapter). If you gotta take it, it won't kill ya, but don't otherwise

This class was not fun. If you have taken proof-based math courses at U.Va. before such as MATH 2315, MATH 3351, or MATH 3354, this class will not teach you anything you haven't seen before. The class covers basic math proofs techniques (direct proof, contradiction, induction) about topics such as functions and integers. If you can place out of this course from Arts and Science math classes, I would recommend doing so. Taking MATH 3354 (Survey of Algebra) will give anyone a better grounding in Discrete Math without this guy's lectures and problem sets.

Overall a worthwhile class. I took it because it is required for CS majors, and I had heard bad things about it. Edwards isn't the most engaging lecturer (his voice is kinda quiet and he reads right from the slides), but he's super nice in person and wants people to enjoy his class.

I got the 3rd edition textbook by Epp, and most weeks I could get away with doing the assigned reading instead of going to lecture. However, I kind of regret not going to lecture as much because there are some classes where you learn something that is actually super mind-blowing and cool!

As far as work and grades go, there is one problem set a week and it is SO IMPORTANT that you get a good group for these. Office hours are super helpful, and its super manageable if you split the problems among 3-4 people. The tests are very similar to the problem sets, and he also gives past exams w/ solutions that are very very helpful.

Prof. Edwards is not the most inspiring lecturer in the world. He knows what he's talking about and is a chill guy (visit him in office hours for problem set questions), but during lecture...you gotta listen up no matter what, even if he's not helping much. If you can read the textbook on your own (I looked at the textbook a total of 3 times during the semester) and master the skills on your own, great. Don't come to lecture. But if you're not a genius, lecture helps you with honing the concepts and logic you need to master the problem sets with optimum results.

On the topic of problem sets...those things are the creation of Satan. Or Satan's little sister. Anyway, those suck a lot because they take a lot of time and effort. I liked to type them up for easy reference later in the semester. Tips: 1. Find a good group that does not slack off (or you will cry alone in a corner Wednesday nights) 2. Start early 3. Go to office hours after trying to do all the problems once with the group 4. Divide and conquer. I owe it all to my group for having a consistent schedule for working through the problem sets.

The tests are not easy. You need to know how to do the problem sets all by yourself and why things work the way they do to be able to apply that knowledge on the tests. I never had time to double check my work on tests - I had enough time to do the problems once and maybe go back to polish up one or two problems. That was it.

My least favorite course I've taken at UVA so far. Professor Edwards is a nice guy, but he is not a very good lecturer. He teaches off powerpoints, which I just hated so much. Problem sets I felt were difficult, and often much too long. The material didn't come naturally to me, so I just went to office hours to work through the problems with the help of the TAs. One good thing about this course is that there are many, many office hours and TAs that you can work with, so there's no absence of support for the students. Professor Edwards allows us to work on problem sets in groups, which I decided not to take advantage of. I believe this helped me understand the material better, but it was a mistake because some weeks the problem sets took too much time to be reasonable for a single person. Also, I decided to type up the problem set every week, partially so I could review what happened in each problem set as I typed them up and partially so it's easier for the TAs to grade. Probably took more time than it's worth. Exams, for the most part, were a straightforward application of what we learned in class. They were easier than the problem sets, but I felt they were too long for the time allotted, much like the problem sets.

I feel like I learned a lot in this class. It's really cool to be able to understand how logic and proofs work, and it's amazing to be able to know where to start when someone says "prove this", but all the cool math, I feel, is shrouded by the drudgery of the problem sets and the uninspiring lectures. Fun material, not a fun class.

Professor Edwards does get a bonus point though for his grading. I was expecting a B to a B+ in the class, but I barely got what I needed on the final to scrape by with an A-, and after a curve on the final, dropping two homework grades and the lowest quiz score (all of which were not guaranteed), and through some magic of rounding I ended up with an A in the course. It's obvious Professor Edwards will curve up so more students do better in the class to reflect the work that's expected of us.