FAQ

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Q: How do I enroll the course?

You can directly do it through the school's system. No need to get an enrollment code from us

Q: How do I submit my homework?

Submit to NTU COOL. If you write your homework by hand, please scan them or take photos, and the submission should be a PDF file. Please make sure your writing can be recognized by the TAs, otherwise you may get zero points.

Q: I always type my homework. Will I get better HW scores?

No. As long as you write things clearly by hand, you should get the same scores.

Q: What if I find an error in slides?

Latex sources of all slides publicly available at github; see the address here. You are welcome to file a pull request for improving our slides. For example, if you think one figure that I drew is ugly, you can create a more beautiful one.

Q: What's the formula to calculate your grade?

Depending on your performance, we decide the distribution of your grades. That is, how many get A+ and how many get F-. Then, we calculate raw scores, obtain a ranking of students, and assign their grades.

So there is no direct relationship between your raw score and your grade. It is possible that your raw score is 99, but you get F-.

Q: This course is taught in English. What if I write my homework/exam answers in Chinese?

You don't get any credit.

Q: May I use pencil for writing my exam answers?

Yes.

Q: May I use the 1st/2nd editions of the textbook?

Yes. But you are responsible to find HW questions and get any new materials covered in the edition we are using.

Q: Who will grade my HW?

TAs.

Q: If I have questions about the grading of my HW, whom should I contact?

TAs.

Q: Who will grade exams?

I will do it.

Q: Will materials before the previous exam be covered for the current one?

No, only materials after the previous exam are considered.

Q: For one exam question, you are asked to give a proof. Will I get partial credits if I don't finish the whole proof.

It depends. But in general not. A proof is a proof. Otherwise everybody can claim that he/she proves NP = P (or NP != P). You will learn this NP=P issue in this course, which may be the greatest unsolved computer science problem.

Q: May I bring the textbook to the exam?

Yes, but ONLY textbook and notes. You cannot bring any other books.

Q: With the above FAQ, the teacher still gets 10 mails asking what can/cannot bring in the exam. What will he think?

One or two are ok. But 10 will make him feel sad. Please try to check FAQ or the course web page before sending me a mail. Everyday I have too many mails.

Q: When will we discuss exam questions?

The week after the midterm exam (during the regular lecture time).

For the final exam, the discussion time will be posted on the course web page.

Q: How to ask questions about the grading of my exam?

We will run an online session for this. Through the provided links, those having questions will be queued in a waiting room. Then sequentially each one is admitted, shares the screen to show your answer, and discusses issues with me.

Q: In the lecture, the teacher mentions something not in the textbook. The same materials appear in the exam. Some argue that they missed the lecture as they were sick. Hence they hope to get credits of that exam question. What will the teacher think?

Well, shouldn't you borrow lecture notes from someone?

Q: My final grade is D+. May the teacher kindly change it to C-?

No. I have never done that.

Sending me a mail is useless, so don't waste your time.

Please contact Chih-Jen Lin for any question.