EF105 Fall 2023: Computer Methods for Engineering Problem Solving

**EF105: Computer Methods for Engineering Problem Solving** (1 credit hour) -- This course provides an introduction to computer applications used in engineering problem solving and communications. Topics include working with data in spreadsheets, using a calculator, and an introduction to programming concepts and algorithms. **Course Sections:** [See Section-Info](/ef105-2023-08/sys.php?f=section-sched&order=name) ## Course Coordinator Dr. Andrey A. Puretskiy (apuretsk@utk.edu) Office: 260E Zeanah Engineering Complex ## Graduate Teaching Assistants [See Instructors](/ef105-2023-08/sys.php?f=faculty) ## Engineering Fundamentals Office Office: 260 Zeanah Engineering Complex, 865-974-9810, Cheryl Huskey ( chuskey1@utk.edu ) ## Why Should I Care about This Course? Engineers work with data. Lots of data. Regardless of discipline, whether it be electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, or any of the other [12 engineering degree majors][UT engineering degrees] offered at the University of Tennessee. Examples of data engineers may work with include: - voltage and current measurements of an electrical circuit - stress and strain measurements of a bridge joist - temperature and pH measurements of a chemical reaction - Data representation of a part for manufacturing, such as 3D printing As engineers, we will need to be able to understand these data, analyze them, and communicate these data and analysis to a wide variety of audiences. There are many tools that we can use to manage data, analyses it, and present it. Some examples are - pencil and paper: for simple data tasks simple tools can often provide the best solution! - calculator: beyond arithmetic, your calculator can be used to visualize data in graphs, and solve multiple equations at once - spreadsheets: when working with a lot of data that can be organized into rows and columns, spreadsheet software such as [Microsoft Excel](http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/excel?target=_blank), [Google Sheets](https://www.google.com/sheets/about/?target=_blank) or [LibreOffice Calc](https://www.libreoffice.org/discover/calc/?target=_blank) can quickly perform many types of analysis and visualization tasks. - computer programming: when data or analysis tasks are complex, or highly specific, there may not be a tool available that will do exactly what you need. In this case you may need to develop your own algorithm and code it in one of many programming environments. An understanding and familiarity of the different tools available to you for handling different data-related tasks will help you in your coursework here at UT, as well as in your future career. ## Learning Outcomes After completing this course, you should be able to - Identify engineering problems that can be solved via computer methods - Apply common engineering data calculations to given datasets - Create visualizations of datasets - Develop a written or graphical algorithm to solve a problem - Implement a problem-solving algorithm on a computer using spreadsheet software - Implement a problem-solving algorithm on a computer using a programming language - Manage and organize files and folders on a computer ## Learning Environment This is a lab-based course which means much of the time in class will be spent working through a given problem or question in small groups. - Before each class you will be responsible for working through Pre-recorded videos of skills tutorials and worked example problems to prepare for the lab. - During class time, you will work through the lab problem, which will be similar to the example problems, with the assistance of your peers, the GTA, and UGAs. - After class time, you will reflect on what you learned by working the lab and what you still are struggling with. ## Course Communications Class-wide announcements will be posted to the [course website]. Time-sensitive class-wide announcements will be sent out via email, but in general EF instructors try to limit the number of emails you all receive because we know you receive a lot from other sources! You may contact the Instructor or TAs at any time with questions. You can expect to receive an email reply within 24 hours Monday through Friday. In some cases this reply may be to indicate that we do not have an immediate answer to your question and will share the steps we are taking to find one. ## How to Be Successful in This Course This is a lab-based course, and success will come with regular practice of the skills and concepts. This is a 1 credit course which meets one a week for 1 hour and 15 minutes. You should expect to spend an additional 2 hours outside of class time to practice the skills and material. While we scope the amount of work to be appropriate for a 1-credit course, a challenge that many students face is that it is difficult to learn complex skills and concepts with only practicing once a week. Effective time management is critical to developing work habits that help you retain the material learned in this course so that you may apply it to other situations. ### What We Expect From You - Come to class, and be prepared for all classes. - Practice, experiment even when you are not sure, but save your work often. The material in this course is very practice-oriented, while there are some concepts to learn, there is also a strong focus on being able to effectively use engineering tools. This requires practice, as well as a desire to experiment with new concepts and skills. One of the great things about learning computer skills is it is usually easy to backtrack (`Ctrl + Z`), so embrace your curiosity and try things beyond the given exercises and practice material. Do save your work often, `Ctrl+Z` has its limits! - Be respectful of others There are a wide variety of experience levels in this course largely due to the fact that there is a wide variety of high school experience available across the state, nation, and world. Some of your peers may have had extensive experience with some or all of the topics and skills we will work on in class, while others will have had little or no experience. Be mindful of others, and if you see a peer struggling, offer help or encourage them to ask for clarification. - Actively contribute to the learning activities in class What this looks like may vary from student to student and from activity to activity. You may have to experiment to find out what works best for you. Some prefer to follow along with the examples on their own computers while others find it more helpful to take notes while watching an instructor work through an example. Either way, always ask questions when something is unclear. - Use your @vols.utk.edu email address for all communication with instructors and GTAs. - Abide by the UT Honor Code ### What You Can Expect From Us We pledge to: - Be prepared for all classes - Evaluate your work fairly and equally - Return feedback and graded work in a timely manner. We typically will have graded work returned within 7 days after the due date. If unforeseen events delay this, we will post an announcement on the website. - Be respectful of all students. - Create and facilitate meaningful learning activities. If you are not sure how a particular learning activity applies to you or engineering, please let us know! - Behave according to University codes of conduct ## Text, Resources, and Materials There are no required textbooks for this course, all required material will be made available on the [course website]. ## Required Equipment - You will need a graphing calculator such as the TI-83+ or 84+. - A laptop meeting the Tickle College of Engineering [minimum requirements](https://tickle.utk.edu/ithelp/computers/). Note that devices running ChromeOS (e.g. ChromeBooks), iOS (e.g. iPads) or Android (e.g. non-Apple tablets) unfortunately do *not* meet the minimum requirements. - The [Office 365 version of Excel] provided by the university. - [Access to MATLAB], also provided by the university. We recommend MATLAB Online for most people. [tickle min computer requirements]: https://tickle.utk.edu/ithelp/computers/ [Office 365 version of Excel]: /ef105-2023-08/sys.php?f=bolt/bolt-main&c=gen-0-software&p=excel [Access to MATLAB]: /ef105-2023-08/sys.php?f=bolt/bolt-main&c=gen-0-software&p=matlab ## Grading Please note that the cut-off points for letter grades are strict and no rounding-up will be used. For example: an 88.99 is a B+; an 89.0 is an A-.

Exams (40%) - two exam, each worth 20%. One after Module 1, one after Module 2
Lab Work (40%) - Lab deliverables each may include answering quiz questions, uploading files, or both.
Prep Work (10%) - prep questions are embedded throughout the learning material for each lab.
Engagement (10%) - attendance, individual reflections

The grade percentages can change, but everyone will recieve a minimum of a two week notice for changes.

The course grading is:

A-

B+

B-

C+

C-

D+

See [Course Procedures](/ef105-2023-08/gen/procedures.php) for information on requesting grade reviews of individual assignments. ### Late policy As much of the content and activities in this course builds on previous work, it is important to stay current with assigned work. All lab work is due the day after the lab in which it is assigned. Late submission policies vary by type of work: - Prep work: Answers submitted at least 12 hours *before* your scheduled lab section will earn a 10% bonus. Answers submitted after the deadline, but before the late deadline will weighted by a value between 75% and 65% based on how late they are submitted. Answers submitted after the late deadline will receive a zero. - Quizzes and auto-graded labs: Answers submitted after the deadline, but before the late deadline will weighted by a value between 75% and 65% based on how late they are submitted. Answers submitted after the late deadline will receive a zero. - Individual Reflection forms: There is no late penalty on these, however, please complete them at the end of class or shortly thereafter. Reflection forms are just short surveys and are meant to be "easy points". - Lab files: Dropbox files may be submitted for some time after class ends (typically, within 2-7 days). Because dropbox files must be graded by hand, processing late submissions is an additional burden for graders (please keep in mind that there are 780 students in this class). Official policy will be that dropbox files submitted after the deadline will not be graded; however, GTAs may decide to grade them with a late penalty if they have time and inclination to do so. This is entirely at their discretion, and if they decide not to grade late files, I will support that decision. ### Make-up exam policy All students are expected to take their exams at the regularly-scheduled time, in the classroom (or the SDS Testing Center, if the student secured the accommodation from SDS). If required by scheduling constraints, start times for SDS Testing Center exams may be adjusted. Other exceptions are very rare. Make-up exams will only be given in the event of: - Major emergency (e.g., car accident, serious illness involving physical incapacitation), with proper documentation. - Legal obligation (e.g., jury duty, military orders), with proper documentation. - Obligation to University (e.g., athletic competition or other university-sponsored event involving required travel), with proper documentation. Students are responsible for being aware of the University of Tennessee Academic Calendar. This includes being aware of start and end dates for the semesters and for fall break/spring break. Do not request exam rescheduling to accommodate your personal travel plans. ## Academic Integrity Each student is responsible for his/her personal integrity in academic life and for adhering to UT’s Honor Statement. The Honor Statement reads: “An essential feature of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville is a commitment to maintaining an atmosphere of intellectual integrity and academic honesty. As a student of the university, I pledge that I will neither knowingly give nor receive any inappropriate assistance in academic work, thus affirming my own personal commitment to honor and integrity.” We encourage students to work collaboratively to learn in our course. Appropriate means of collaboration may include meeting collectively to work on assignments. During collective meetings, all members are expected to participate in discussion and contribute to collective understand and dialogue. The following actions are specifically identified as inappropriate: - Direct copy (in part or in whole) of another class member's assignment or work to turn in as one's own work. - Direct copy (in part or in whole) of a solution provided by anyone outside of our class. This may include (but is not limited to) previous students, tutors, or solutions gathered from websites like Chegg. - Posting on a website, like Chegg, to ask for a solution to an assignment or exam in order copy the solution (in part or in whole) for submission. - Viewing solutions on a website, like Chegg, in order to submit solutions (in part or in whole) as one's own work for assignments or course exams. - Posting solutions or exam questions to social media, group chat, or other communication means to provide the questions or solutions for others in the course. - Collaboration in ANY WAY during a course exam. - Copying written work to submit as one's own work (in part or in whole) for written project reports, MATLAB script files, Excel Workbooks, etc. We take inappropriate or unethical work in this course very seriously. Inappropriate or unethical work is unfair to those students in the course who follow academic integrity guidelines. It also shows a lack of character in regards to future practice in the engineering profession. EF faculty and staff are dedicated to ensuring integrity of all work conducted throughout our courses and will pursue all means necessary, in partnership with the Tickle College of Engineering, the Dean of Students, and the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards to ensure an equitable learning environment. ## AI Use Policy: Permitted in this Course with Attribution In this course, students are encouraged to use Generative AI Tools like ChatGPT to support their work. To maintain academic integrity, students must disclose any AI-generated material they use and properly attribute it, including in-text citations, quotations, and references. A student should include the following statement in assignments to indicate use of a Generative AI Tool: “The author(s) would like to acknowledge the use of [Generative AI Tool Name], a language model developed by [Generative AI Tool Provider], in the preparation of this assignment. The [Generative AI Tool Name] was used in the following way(s) in this assignment [e.g., brainstorming, grammatical correction, citation, code generation, error detection, etc.].” ## Course Material Copyright The instructors of this class own the copyright to the syllabus, handouts, assignments, quizzes, and exams associated with the class. All presentations developed by the instructors, as well as the instructors' lectures, are also protected by copyright, whether these presentations are delivered live in-class, shared through Zoom or other videoconference platforms, or uploaded to a web site. Sharing any of this material without the written permission of the instructor is a violation of copyright law, and is therefore also a violation of the University’s policy on acceptable use of information technology resources (UT policy number IT0110). That policy states that students will not commit copyright infringement, “including file sharing of video, audio, or data without permission from the copyright owner” and that file sharing is a violation of the university’s student code of conduct. All such violations will be reported to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards. ## Disability Services: Any student who feels they may need an accommodation based on the impact of a disability should contact Student Disability Services in Dunford Hall, at 865-974-6087, or by video relay at, 865-622-6566, to coordinate reasonable academic accommodations. ## Wellness The Student Counseling Center is the university’s primary facility for personal counseling, psychotherapy, and psychological outreach and consultation services. The Center for Health Education and Wellness manages 974-HELP, the distressed student protocol, case management, the Sexual Assault Response Team, and the Threat Assessment Task Force. ## Course Outline See the [course website] for a schedule of labs, activities, and assessments. [UT engineering degrees]: https://tickle.utk.edu/degrees/ [course website]: https://efcms.engr.utk.edu/ef105-2023-08/ ## Campus Syllabus [Campus Syllabus](http://ef.engr.utk.edu/efp/files/campus-syllabus.pdf)