CS 780 Discrete-State Models

CSCI 780-02, Spring 2008

Syllabus

Where and When

Class: 14.00-15.20, Tuesday,Thursday, Mc Glothlin Street Hall, R002
Office hours: 15.00-17.00, Monday, Wednesday and other hours by appointment.

Instructor

Peter Kemper
006 McGlothlin-Street Hall (my room is in between Dr. Kearns office in 005 and that of 007)
221-3462
kemper [At] CS [dot] WM [dot] EDU

Overview:

Covers a variety of modeling formalisms (automata, state charts, Petri nets, process algebras) with possible extensions towards deterministic and stochastic notions of time; corresponding analysis techniques (simulation, state space exploration, model checking, reduction, analysis of stochastic processes) for applications including formal verification, reliability, dependability, performability of systems in computer systems and networks.

Prerequisites:

No prerequisites are formally required. Of course it is beneficial to have experience from CS 436/536 Simulation, CS 616 Stochastic Models in Computer Science.

Required Book:

No particular book, material will be made available in class.

Course Structure:

Class will meet twice a week. Some course material will be presented by the instructor, some will be presented by the students. Each class will consist of a lecture on the day's book or paper, followed by a directed discussion on the material. Students will also receive feedback on their teaching from the instructor and their classmates. Students must turn in a summary of every paper on the day that the paper is presented. Students will be expected to work on a project in one of the areas we will cover.

Attendance:

It is expected that students attend all classes.

Students Who Need Accommodation:

Please see me after class or send email to set up a brief meeting.

Information Dissemination:

I will maintain a set of web pages beneath

http://www.cs.wm.edu/~kemper/cs780_08/

in support of the course. They should be considered official components of the course, and you should check them on a daily basis.