Topics: Functions: decomposition, abstraction, specifications Big idea: Apply abstraction (black box) and decomposition (split into self-contained parts) to programming. Already know about functions, decomposition, and abstraction, so this lecture is review to me. The instructor is now teaching how to come up with code for say a quiz. They say …

Topics: Simple Algorithms: bisection search, Newton-Raphson This is basically binary search. Straightforward algorithm and review for me. I learned something new. Or something I probably learned before but forgot about. The square root of a number between 0 and 1 is going to be greater than itself. Compared different algorithms …

For problem 1, I follow the description’s equivalence formula of set theory. But for part (a) when it asks to write a formula Members(p, a, b) of set theory that means p = {a, b} I am lost. This must be something from the text book that was not …

Informally, a set is a bunch of objects, which are called the elements of the set. The elements of a set can be just about anything: numbers, points in space, or even other sets. The conventional way to write down a set is to list the elements inside curly-braces. This …

Topics: Simple Algorithms: approximation method, floats One thing I observed so far is that this course is not teaching a systematic way on how to come up with algorithms. By coming up with algos, I mean the process of taking a well-defined problem, its steps, and translating it into code …

I was able to do part A and B in less than 1 hour. Part C, however, I will have to watch the related lectures because I need to know the bisection search algorithm, which I don’t know off the top of my head. Part A and B were …

This lecture explains iteration in simple programs like guess-and-check, binaries, and fractions in Python. Loops can iterate over any sequence of values including a range for numbers or a string. Guess-and-check provides a simple algorithm for solving problems. When the set of potential solutions is enumerable, exhaustive enumeration is guaranteed …

Going over while and for loops. This is basic stuff for me. Watching video at 2x speed. Done watching, no new things learned. Onward to lecture 4.

This blog post might be really short as I don’t feel like repeating things that I already know. Will keep watching the lecture to see if anything interesting pops up. Watching lectures on 2x speed. Topics: Core Elements of Programs: strings, input/output, f-strings, operators, branching, indentation. I already …

Here are my notes and thoughts about this lecture. Topics: Introduction to Python: knowledge, machines, objects, types, variables, bindings, IDEs. Declarative vs. imperative knowledge. The former is statements of fact while the latter is a recipe or “how to”. In this course we will be dealing with mostly imperative knowledge …