Course Grade

Problem sets (0%): There will be six problem sets. Please note the following:

  • No grades: The problem sets are to help you practice problems and will not be graded. However, solving problem sets will be useful: you may see similar questions in exams and quizzes.
  • Collaboration encouraged: You are strongly encouraged to collaborate with other students on solving the problem sets. This is perhaps one of the best ways to learn and discuss computer networking concepts.
  • Discussions during office hours and over Piazza: The TAs will discuss solutions with you in their office hours, or over Piazza. Feel free to ask any questions regarding problem sets.
  • Solutions: We will release the solutions to all the problem sets within a week of releasing the problem set. The idea here is to give you enough time to try and work out the solutions (hopefully in collaboration with other students) and then check your solutions against those in the problem sets.

In-class surprise quizzes (20%): There will be several in-class surprise quizzes. Please note the following:

  • No announcement: The whole point of having surprise quizzes is to have you review the material on a regular basis. Thus, the quizzes can happen any day and at any point during the lecture.
  • Unknown number of quizzes: There may be a quiz every lecture, or there may be no quiz at all. All quizzes will contribute equally to this component of your grade.
  • Closed book: All quizzes are closed-book and closed-notes.
  • If anyone is found cheating during a quiz, both the copy-ers and the copy-ees will get a straight F grade -- yes, its your responsibility to ensure that nobody can see your solutions. See the academic integrity section below.

Prelim exam (30%): There will be one prelim in the course. Please note the following:

  • The prelim is on 03/28. Please let us know as soon as possible if you have a conflict.
  • The prelim will cover material from lectures, quizzes and problem sets until 03/15. So, nothing in the prelim will be based on material covered after 03/15.
  • The prelim is closed-book and closed-notes.
  • If anyone is found cheating in the prelim, both the copy-ers and the copy-ees will get a straight F grade -- yes, its your responsibility to ensure that nobody can see your solutions. See the academic integrity section below.

Final exam (45%): Please note the following:

  • The dates for the final will be announced soon.
  • The final will cover material from lectures, quizzes and problem sets.
  • The final is closed-book and closed-notes.
  • If anyone is found cheating in the final, both the copy-ers and the copy-ees will get a straight F grade -- yes, its your responsibility to ensure that nobody can see your solutions. See the academic integrity section below.

Course evaluations (5%): If you fill out the course evaluations, you get the entire 5% marks.

Make up project: TBA soon.

Academic Integrity

As with all other classes at Cornell, you are expected to maintain a high level of ethical standards and integrity in this course. This means that all work you submit must be the result of your own individual effort. Any violations of the academic integrity code will be penalized according to the Cornell Academic Integrity Policy, and may result in failure in the course, suspension, or expulsion from the university.

Here is a simple tip to avoid any problems: do NOT cheat. You know it when you are cheating! It so happens that when you are cheating, we know it too!