Dr. David Albrecht
David.Albrecht@infotech.monash.edu.au, (03) 9905 5526. Room 113, Blg 75.
Digital Systems Honours Coordinator:
Nandita Bhattacharjee
nandita@csse.monash.edu.au, (03) 9905 3293. Room 189, Blg 75.
Computer Science and Digital Systems are two of the degree disciplines offered by the Clayton School of Information Technology, which is part of the Faculty of Information Technology. This is the largest computing education organisation in Australia, with more than 3000 students and 100 academic and 30 support staff. The Clayton School of Information Technology is the largest school in the faculty. It is one of Australia's premier computer science research institutions, and has a strong research profile in disciplines such as distributed systems and software engineering, artificial intelligence and machine learning, optimisation and constraint solving, audiovisual information processing and digital communication, computing education, electronic media art, digital systems hardware and architecture, and theory.
If you are interested in learning about research at the leading edge of computer science and digital systems, then Computer Science or Digital Systems Honours is for you. Courses are given by members of the school and visiting experts about their current areas of research, and a substantial individual project allows you to undertake your own research under the supervision of an expert in the area.
Apart from the excitement of being involved in research, an honours degree in Computer Science opens many career opportunities. Students with honours are particularly sought after by employers, and can choose from more interesting research and development positions because of their extra skills and proven abilities. An Honours degree also naturally leads on to postgraduate study which is vital for an academic career or a career in industrial research.
Due to the individual nature of the tuition, few places can be offered. Selection into the Honours programme is therefore quite competitive and the Honours year itself can be quite demanding. However, the intellectual rewards and the opportunity to actively participate in research more than make up for the demands.
If you have more questions about the Computer Science and Digital Systems Honours programme, please contact the School, look at the information available on-line or speak to the Honours co-ordinators (see cover page for contact details).
The School Ethernet LAN links a large number of Sun and Silicon Graphics Unix workstations and compute servers with major file servers sharing hundreds of Gigabytes of disk space. The Honours laboratory includes 15 dual-boot Windows NT and Linux Pentium-II PCs. In addition, a cluster of 62 networked Pentium processors is available for parallel computation. There is access to laser printers for written assignments. All computing facilities are linked to the university-wide Ethernet and world-wide InterNet. Machines may be accessed by the School's dial-in-facilities.
Coursework units are chosen in the first week of semester. The units offered in Computer Science and Digital Systems vary from year to year, as they depend on the current research interests of the staff.
As well as coursework, the Clayton School of Information Technology holds seminars regularly throughout the year (typically once a week), and there will be a number of workshops. Honours students are expected to attend these as part of the Research Method unit. The seminars are given by leading local, interstate and international computer scientists. Each Honours student must undertake the following:
Instead of choosing two units from the list above, students may complete one FIT4XXX unit from the list above and a six-point unit chosen from an approved list of units published by the faculty.
As you can see from the title these units cover rather broad topic areas. They are in fact flexible "framework" units in which you can specialise in different directions. Each of these framework units is worth 6 points for which you must elect one or two modules within the unit (some modules are worth 3 points, other ones six points).
More detailed descriptions of the FIT40XX units is given below. The modules within them are described in the detailed introduction brochure for 2006 Honours students a copy of which is available from the school's web pages.
Modules typically comprise 36 or 24 hours of lectures over 12 weeks and include some practical work. Some modules are taught for a whole semester, while others are taught during only one half of a semester. Modules start dates are Week 1, Semester 1; Week 8, Semester 1; Week 1, Semester 2; Week 8 Semester 2.
The number of lecture hours is not necessarily the same for all 3 point modules or for all 6 point modules. The variation of lecture hours is balanced by, e.g., more/less reading or more/less assignments, so that the overall workload of a six point unit will be independent of the module selection.
Assessment for each module may be based on assignments, an examination, or both, and will be clearly specified by the lecturer at the start of the module.
Modern computer systems contain parallelism in both hardware and software. This unit covers parallelism in both general purpose and application specific computer architectures and the programming paradigms that allow parallelism to be exploited in software.
The unit examines both shared memory and message passing paradigms in both hardware and software; concurrency, multithreading and synchronicity; parallel, clustered and distributed supercomputing models and languages. Students will program in these paradigms.
This subject covers the products, processes, techniques and tools for system validation & verifications including acceptance tests. Commercial Testing Tools from Rational, Mercury Interactive and others will be used to apply in practice knowledge learnt about software testing from a theoritical perspective. Inspection and testing methodologies, analysis of artifacts, robustness, performance analysis configuration management, quality assurance plan and standards including ISO9000/AS39000, compliance, assessment, certification issues are covered. It shows how to predict, analyse and control defects in complex software systems. It introduces verification methods such as inductive methods for safety properties. It covers operational semantics for sequential and concurrent programs based on Hoare logic - assertion mechanisms - precondition, postcondition and invariants with a view to systematic test planning and validation.
Methods from Artificial Intelligence (AI) form the basis for many advanced information systems. These techniques address problems that are difficult to solve or not efficiently solvable with conventional techniques. Building on the undergraduate curriculum this unit introduces the student to advanced AI methods and their applications in information systems. Within the framework of this unit, the student can choose between a variety of modules in the broad area of Intelligent Information Systems. Most modules relate directly to the school's research strengths and are taught by active researchers in the respective fields. Research fields covered include:
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
Algorithms are the most fundamental area for all aspects of computer science and software engineering. Discrete structures, such as those treated in graph theory, set theory, combinatorics and symbolic logic form the mathematical underpinning of the study of algorithms. As well-designed algorithms and data structures are essential for the good performance of an information system, an in-depth understanding of the theoretical properties of algorithms is essential for any computer scientist. As importantly, the theoretical investigation of algorithms leads to a deeper understanding of problem structures and classes of problems and the knowledge of a large variety of algorithm types enables the designer to approach a new problem from different angles.
Within the framework of this unit, the student can choose between a variety of specialisation modules in Algorithms and Discrete Structures. Most modules relate directly to the school's research strengths and are taught by active researchers in the respective fields. Research fields covered include:
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
This unit covers topics in programming languages and systems. Topics for this unit include:
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
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.
Under the umbrella of this unit, the student can specialize in a particular areas of computational science by choosing from different modules including:
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
The core of the Honours programme is an individual project designed to take about 500 hours for the average student. Projects include written and verbal presentations.
A Research Project may be concerned with theory, program development, hardware development, evaluating and improving on a new technique, analysing performance - in fact anything associated with computing which involves a reasonable amount of intellectual and practical effort. The student is expected to read the relevant literature and carefully analyse the problem posed, to formulate a solution or proposals for a solution, and where appropriate, to implement and prove, evaluate or test the validity of their results and proposals. The project solution will usually require creative and original thinking. Typically, a project is designed for a problem in some area associated with a research programme being carried out by a member of staff. The Research Project involves substantial mentoring by a staff member, and is designed to teach research skills. These skills are particularly important if the student wishes to undertake a post-graduate research degree.
The project is chosen at the start of Semester 1, with selection forms due at the end of Week 1, however students are encouraged to talk to prospective supervisors before the start of semester. It is usually selected from a list suggested by the school but may be of the student's own devising, subject to approval. Unfortunately, students may not always be able to do the project of their choice, either due to the popularity of a project or because of constraints on available supervision. Typically, students are given a list of about 50 Research Projects to choose from. These will be available on-line at http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/hons/2006/2006resProjs.html from about mid November, 2005. (2005 research projects offered can be found at http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/hons/2005/2005resProjs.html.)
This subject introduces the student to independent research. Most projects are software-oriented, although some projects may be purely theoretical and others may involve hardware work.
A research project covers the whole process from initial problem analysis in a current research topic of computer science, literature study and evaluation of existing research and proposal of a research plan to carrying out the proposed research and presenting it in written and oral form. Where appropriate it includes the development of software (or hardware), from analysis through design to implementation and testing and documentation.
The project is conducted by the student in close cooperation with one or several staff members. The staff member will initially lead the project, help to formulate the initial research question and guide the student throughout the project. The staff member will arrange meetings with the student (typically weekly) in which intermediate results are reported and analysed and further directions for the project are decided on. The student is expected to read the relevant literature and carefully analyse the problem posed, to formulate a solution or proposals for a solution, and where appropriate, to implement and prove, evaluate or test the validity of their results and proposals.
The research project is complemented by formal research training in FIT4005 IT Research Methods unit and a number of workshops which are designed to improve the oral and written presentation skills and to teach the skills required for a critical analysis of current research.
Coursework units are chosen in the first week of semester. The units offered in Computer Science vary from year to year, as they depend on the current research interests of the staff.
As well as coursework, the Clayton School of Information Technology holds seminars regularly throughout the year (typically once a week). Honours students are expected to attend these as part of the Communication and Research Skills unit. The seminars are given by leading local, interstate and international computer scientists.
The units offered in 2006 will be detailed on the Web before the start of the 2006 academic year. A total of 24 coursework points must be taken.
You must select 4 units (each counting 6 points) from the following list:
Coursework units are chosen in the first week of semester. The units offered in Digital Systems vary from year to year, as they depend on the current research interests of the staff.
As well as coursework, the Clayton School of Information Technology holds seminars regularly throughout the year (typically once a week). Honours students are expected to attend these as part of the Communication and Research Skills unit. The seminars are given by leading local, interstate and international computer scientists.
The units offered in 2006 will be detailed on the Web before the start of the 2006 academic year. A total of 24 coursework points must be taken.
You must select 4 units (each counting 6 points) from the following list:
Students may also enrol in any of following units:
As you can see from the title these units cover rather broad topic areas. They are in fact flexible ``framework'' units in which you can specialise in different directions. Each of these framework units is worth 6 points for which you must elect one or two modules within the unit (some modules are worth 3 points, other ones six points).
Modules typically comprise 36 or 24 hours of lectures over 12 weeks and include some practical work. Some modules are taught for a whole semester, while others are taught during only one half of a semester. Modules start dates are Week 1, Semester 1; Week 8, Semester 1; Week 1, Semester 2; Week 8 Semester 2.
The number of lecture hours is not necessarily the same for all 3 point modules or for all 6 point modules. The variation of lecture hours is balanced by, e.g., more/less reading or more/less assignments, so that the overall workload of a six point unit will be independent of the module selection.
Assessment for each module may be based on assignments, an examination, or both, and will be clearly specified by the lecturer at the start of the module.
Note that the framework units as such have no further prerequisites if you have been admitted to the Honours programme. However, individual modules that you wish to count towards these units may have additional prerequisites.
Methods from Artificial Intelligence (AI) form the basis for many advanced information systems. These techniques address problems that are difficult to solve or not efficiently solvable with conventional techniques. Building on the undergraduate curriculum this unit introduces the student to advanced AI methods and their applications in information systems. Within the framework of this unit, the student can choose between a variety of modules in the broad area of Intelligent Information Systems. Most modules relate directly to the school's research strengths and are taught by active researchers in the respective fields. Research fields covered include:
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
Software engineering is concerned with all aspects of effectively building reliable software systems that satisfy the requirement. It addresses the entire software life cycle including requirement analysis and specification, design, construction, testing, and operation and maintenance.
The modules in the framework of this unit cover advanced issue in software engineering, particularly the use of formal methods, ie.
Algorithms are the most fundamental area for all aspects of computer science and software engineering. Discrete structures, such as those treated in graph theory, set theory, combinatorics and symbolic logic form the mathematical underpinning of the study of algorithms. As well-designed algorithms and data structures are essential for the good performance of an information system, an in-depth understanding of the theoretical properties of algorithms is essential for any computer scientist. As importantly, the theoretical investigation of algorithms leads to a deeper understanding of problem structures and classes of problems and the knowledge of a large variety of algorithm types enables the designer to approach a new problem from different angles.
Within the framework of this unit, the student can choose between a variety of specialisation modules in Algorithms and Discrete Structures. Most modules relate directly to the school's research strengths and are taught by active researchers in the respective fields. Research fields covered include:
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
Advanced working knowledge of programming languages is central to most activities in computer science. As students can expect to use many different languages and types of languages in their professional work, they should acquire knowledge of more than a single paradigm.
Modules in the framework of this unit
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
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.
Under the umbrella of this unit, the student can specialize in a particular areas of computational science by choosing from different modules including:
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
With the rapid growth of the internet and increasing use of company-internal networks, network-oriented computing has become a central field in the discipline. Within the framework of this unit, the student can choose between several modules which cover different advanced areas of network computing. Most of these modules relate directly to the school's research strength and are taught by active researchers in the respective fields. Topics covered include:
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
This unit covers advanced topics in computer graphics and visual interfaces. Within the framework of this unit, the student can choose between a variety of modules relating to these sub-fields. The topics relate directly to the school's research strength and are taught by active researchers in the respective fields. The fields covered include:
Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
This unit covers topics in hardware architecture ranging from the gate level to processors and full computer architecture. Topics include
Within the framework of this unit, students can select individual modules to specialise in a particular domain, such as VLSI design or parallel architectures. Some of these topics may not be offered in every year.
This unit allows the student to study additional material and/or related fields pertaining to the topic of his/her chosen research project. Its contents is therefore individually defined. Please note that this is a 0 point unit, so you cannot count it towards fulfilling your degree requirements. However, the unit will appear on your transcripts so that your additional studies are documented.
This unit covers advanced current research topics in computer, new emerging trends and research directions that are not covered in any other honours unit. Enrollment requires individual approval and it may not be offered in every year.
For details of other units refer to Coursework units offered in Computer Science Honours
The core of the Honours programme is an individual project designed to take about 500 hours for the average student. Projects include written and verbal presentations.
A Research Project may be concerned with theory, program development, hardware development, evaluating and improving on a new technique, analysing performance - in fact anything associated with computing which involves a reasonable amount of intellectual and practical effort. The student is expected to read the relevant literature and carefully analyse the problem posed, to formulate a solution or proposals for a solution, and where appropriate, to implement and prove, evaluate or test the validity of their results and proposals. The project solution will usually require creative and original thinking. Typically, a project is designed for a problem in some area associated with a research programme being carried out by a member of staff. The Research Project involves substantial mentoring by a staff member, and is designed to teach research skills. These skills are particularly important if the student wishes to undertake a post-graduate research degree.
The project is chosen at the start of Semester 1, with selection forms due at the end of Week 1, however students are encouraged to talk to prospective supervisors before the start of semester. It is usually selected from a list suggested by the school but may be of the student's own devising, subject to approval. Unfortunately, students may not always be able to do the project of their choice, either due to the popularity of a project or because of constraints on available supervision. Typically, students are given a list of about 50 Research Projects to choose from. These will be available on-line at http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/hons/2006/2006resProjs.html from about mid November, 2005. (2005 research projects offered can be found at http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/hons/2005/2005resProjs.html.)
As part of the project assessment, six weeks into Semester 1, each student must submit a written project proposal around 5-10 pages to outline the project. The main purpose of the proposal is to ensure that the student has a clear understanding of the project and that a plan for completing it has been worked out together with the supervisor; it also forms a component of the CSE417 assessment. At the end of Semester 1, each student must give an approximately 10 minute presentation which describes their project, what they have done so far, and the remainder of the work to be done. The interim presentation is a hurdle requirement. At the beginning of second semester a separate literature review (about 20 pages) is submitted; this is assessed separately for CSE417. After the end of second semester, the final report is due and each student will be given approximately 15 minutes to present their results. The final presentations is assessed for CSE417, plus examiners take the seminar presentation and fielding of questions into account when assessing a project. The final report and, if relevant, a demonstration of the project provide the basis of the project assessment. The report is examined by at least two staff members, one of whom is usually the supervisor.
This subject introduces the student to independent research. Most projects are software-oriented, although some projects may be purely theoretical and others may involve hardware work.
A research project covers the whole process from initial problem analysis in a current research topic of computer science, literature study and evaluation of existing research and proposal of a research plan to carrying out the proposed research and presenting it in written and oral form. Where appropriate it includes the development of software (or hardware), from analysis through design to implementation and testing and documentation.
The project is conducted by the student in close cooperation with one or several staff members. The staff member will initially lead the project, help to formulate the initial research question and guide the student throughout the project. The staff member will arrange meetings with the student (typically weekly) in which intermediate results are reported and analysed and further directions for the project are decided on. The student is expected to read the relevant literature and carefully analyse the problem posed, to formulate a solution or proposals for a solution, and where appropriate, to implement and prove, evaluate or test the validity of their results and proposals.
The formal research skills training comprises weekly lectures as well as supervised literature study. Individual consultation is offered additionally for the improvement of presentation skills. Students also attend and evaluate regular school research seminars.
The research project is complemented by formal research training which is designed to improve the oral and written presentation skills and to teach the skills required for a critical analysis of current research. This component comprises lectures and seminars on presentation structuring, writing and editing, literature study, research methods, argument analysis and analysis of experiments and design and delivery of oral presentations.
After the final presentations, the staff meet and each project is discussed individually. The project grade is based on the marks assigned by the two examiners. The final grades are determined at an examiners meeting after all components of the assessment have been marked. An external reviewer is present to ensure that honours marking is consistent throughout Australian Computer Science courses.
Preliminary List of Other Coursework Units Offered in 2006 for Digital Systems Honours
CSE4882 - Digital communications technologies
Local area networks; metropolitan area networks; satellite network;
ISDN; modem techniques; digital networks.
CSE4892 - Information security
Physical security; network security; software security;
contingency planning; legal issues; management issues; audit and
review; security applications.
CSE4884 - Network design and management
Network strategy development; network design principals; Telecom
services; network performance; network topologies; network
implementation; case studies.
CSE4891 - Public telecommunications networks
The basic components of the telephone network; principles of
exchange operation; long-distance communication; SPC exchanges;
digital telephony; digital networks; ISDN.
CSE5301 - Neuro-fuzzy computing
Theoretical background of fuzzy set, fuzzy logic and neural
networks,applications in control, signal processing, image
processing and communication networks. Topics include: fuzzy
sets, fuzzy arithmetic and relations; fuzzy logic, membership
functions; fuzzy inference and fuzzy systems; fuzzy logic
controllers and predictors; fuzzy system applications in image
processing, pattern recognition, communication networks and other
areas; artificial neural network concepts; the perceptron and
linear neural networks; multi-layer feedforward neural networks;
self-organising systems, competitive learning, self-organising
feature maps and recurrent neural networks.
CSE5302 - Digital video coding and compression
Fundamental concepts, theory and techniques of digital video
signal coding and compression, waveform characterization and
representation; humanvisual systems and vision modelling;
transform coding, performance evaluation; motion compensated video
coding techniques; hybrid coding algorithms sub-band and wavelet
transform coding; vector quantization; run-length coding;
variable-length coding techniques including Huffman, Sannon-Fano
and Comma codes; fractal image/video compression; hierarchical
coding; filtering in video systems; introduction to industrial
coding/compression standards for image/video signals;
implementations and applications of digital video coding
systems.
CSE5303 - Advanced digital signal processing
The subject covers principle concepts, theory and advanced
techniques of digital signal processing and analysis, including
fast algorithms for digital signal processing; quantization
effects in digital signal processing and implementation issues;
applications of cross- and auto-correlations; modulation,
deconvolution and system identification; power spectrum
estimation; multirate DSP; adaptive filters; Kalman filters;
applications of digital signal processors.
CSE5805 - Advanced network design
Network performance modelling and analysis. Queueing models
(M/M/1, M/M/k, M/M/k/k, M/G/1), networks of queues. Multi-access
systems. Routing techniques (shortest path, Bellman-Ford,
Frank-Wolfe, adaptive routing, flooding). Flow control and
fairness. Network topology design, fractal traffic modelling.
Mobile network design.
CSE5808 - Quality of service in digital communications
Coverage of the definition, standard recommendation and common
algorithms in the areas of quality of service and traffic
management in ATM/IP based networks. The topics to be covered
include: Quality of service concepts and parameters in ATM
networks; Traffic characterisation and management;Standard
recommendations ITU and IETF; Traffic classes and management;
Usage parameter control (UPC), Traffic shaping and policing;
Connection admission control (CAC) functions; Congestion avoidance
and control; QoS models and implementations on IP and Internet;
Virtual queues, queue scheduling, DiffServ and IntServ; RSVP, RIP
and layer 4 QoS capability; Neuro-fuzzy algorithms for QoS
guarantee.
CSE5312 - Advanced digital design
Hierarchical structure of digital devices: from gates to
processors. TheVHDL hardware description language and its
application in synthesis and simulation of the digital
devices. Behavioural, structural and data-flow specification of
the design. Top-down and bottom-up design methodology. The
microarchitectural and register-transfer representation
levels. Structure of the Mentor Graphics CAD package. Tools for
design specification, verification and technology mapping.
Selected algorithms for digital design: Multipliers. Random Number
Generators. The family of CORDIC algorithms for vector rotations,
and elementary functions. FPGA and ASIC.
CSE5803 - Advanced internet protocols and application
In-depth coverage of the fundamental protocols to operate the
Internet and intranets, and a selection of major applications,
including implementations of protocols and systems. Topics covered
include: Advanced Internet Addressing, subnetting, supernetting;
TCP Performance and Enhancements, Multicasting - IGMP, DVMRP,
MOSPF, etc.; Messaging systems- SMTP, POP3, etc.; World Wide Web
systems, Real Time Protocols - RTP, RSVP, etc.; Security issues -
VPNs, Firewall systems, Secure socket systems; Quality of Service
issues; IP mobility issues; Management - SNMP, SNMP2, etc.,
Directories - DNS, X.500, LDAP, Remote File activities - FTP, NFS,
xNFS. Advanced routing issues - BGP4, OSPF, etc.
The final grade (H1, H2A, H2B, H3 or fail) for the Honours course is computed by combining the project marks and coursework marks weighted in accordance with their point value.
The name of the Dux of the year is inscribed on the Honour's board in the Clayton School of Information Technology. Also, in the past prizes have been awarded to the student with the best project and another to the student with the best coursework marks.
The Clayton School of Information Technology may offer scholarships, for students undertaking their Honours year in 2006 in one of the the following degrees:
In order to be eligible for the Computer Science Honours year students should have fulfilled the requirements for the Bachelor of Computer Science (year 1 to 3) with at least a distinction average in their third year core units (including either CSE 3301 or 3302) and at least 12 other points of studies in relevant computer science units at level three or above. External applicants should have fulfilled the equivalent of these requirements. Students who undertake a major in computer science in either the Bachelor of Science or the Bachelor of Economics are eligible to apply for entry to the honours program in computer science.
In order to be eligible for the Digital Systems Honours year students should have fulfilled the requirements for the Bachelor of Digital Systems (year 1 to 3) with at least a credit average in their third year core units (CSE3120 Project, CSE3101 Digital Design III, CSE3132 Digital Signal Processing, CSE3141 Real Time System Design) and 6 other points of studies in a third year elective unit. External applicants should have fulfilled the equivalent of these requirements.
Applications for entry to the honours program are available from the Faculty of Information Technology office at your intended home campus or from the Clayton School of Information Technology - email enquiries@csse.monash.edu.au.
Application forms for Bachelor of Science students majoring in Computer Science, are available from the Faculty of Science Office, Clayton Campus.
Closing date for applications are listed below. Note - you must apply for Honours before you know your final results.
Closing date: November 11th 2005
Bachelor of Science (Honours)
Closing date: November 30th 2005
Honours degree of Bachelor of Computer Science
Bachelor of Digital Systems (Honours)
Applications:
Applications for Honours of Bachelor of Computer Science and Bachelor of Digital Systems (Honours) are available from:http://www.infotech.monash.edu.au/apply/forms/honours-application-form.pdf
The applications should be submitted by the closing date to:
Clayton School of Information Technology
Building 75
Monash University Victoria 3800 AUSTRALIA
Facsimile: +61 3 9905 5146
Applications for Bachelor of Science majoring in Computer Science, should be submitted by the closing date to the Faculty of Science, Clayton Campus.
Note: Students must apply before their final results are released: if you are not sure if you will meet the cut-off but are interested in Honours, apply anyway and we will consider your application when results are released.
David Albrecht