Monash University Handbook 2010 Undergraduate, Postgraduate - Unit

Synopsis

All sciences are increasingly relying on computational support and the growth of many branches of science has only become possible due to the availability of efficient computational methods. The common basis of such methods are; numerical methods and high performance computing. Topics for this unit include: Numerical Methods, High Performance and Parallel Computing, Optimisation and Operations Research Bioinformatics, Simulation, Visualisation and Modelling.

Objectives

At the completion of this unit students will:

• understand the place of computational methods in the chosen field of specialisation and their relation to non-computational approaches;
• compare and contrast alternative computational approaches in this domain;
• critically evaluate the limits and capabilities of these methods;
• be able to select, design and test computer programs in the domain;
• where appropriate, be able to use the standard computational packages in the chosen domain effectively for practical problem solving.

Assessment

Assignment and Examination, relative weight depending on topic composition. When no exam is given students will be expected to demonstrate their knowledge by solving practical problems and maybe required to give an oral report. This variability is designed to give flexibility to the lecturer to decided the most appropriate form of examination for a given choice of topics.

Chief examiner(s)

Associate Professor Jon McCormack

Contact hours

2 hrs lectures/wk

Prerequisites

Completion of the Bachelor of Computer Science or equivalent to the entry requirements for the Honours program. Students must also have enrolment approval from the Honours Coordinator.

Additional information on this unit is available from the faculty at:

http://www.infotech.monash.edu.au/units/fit4012