Introduction to Computer Science

This is an introductory class on Elementary Computer Science for broad audiences: bachelor students in computer science, students majoring in other fields but interested in computer science, high-school students, anybody with a background in basic math and the desire to understand the absolute basics of computer science.

The goal of the class is to introduce and relate basic principles of computer science for students to understand, early on, what computer science is, why things such as high-level programming languages and tools are done the way they are, and even how, on a basic yet representative and practically relevant level.

After taking the class, students are able to answer not just basic computer science questions but also questions about themselves such as which courses to take next and which books to follow up with, ideally realizing if they are interested in computer science more than expected, or even less than before.

After taking the class, students are able to answer not just basic computer science questions but also questions about themselves such as which courses to take next and which books to follow up with, ideally realizing if they are interested in computer science more than expected, or even less than before.

A background in basic math.

• There is a draft of a textbook on Elementary Computer Science that is currently being developed for the class. The draft includes references to the literature relevant here.

Computer science basics, principles of high-level programming languages and general overview of this issue.