CSCI 136 :: Fall 2020

Data Structures & Advanced Programming

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Final Exam Details

There are nine problems on this exam, but for full credit, you only need to answer six of the nine problems. There are two categories of problems: A and B. You may select any six problems to answer as long as at least two problems are from category B.

If for some reason you answer more than six questions, clearly indicate which of the six questions that you would like us to grade.

Some solutions might benefit from the use of multiple data structures.

Your responses will be evaluated based on the following criteria

• correctness
• efficiency, in the Big-O sense, with preference given to better time complexity over better space complexity
• completeness and clarity

You do not need write any Java code.

Although we strongly encourage you to perform calculations, draw pictures, and/or draft answers on scratch paper, we cannot grade this work. Please make sure that the answers you submit represent the work that you would like us to consider.

Exam Logistics

Once we have sent all students into private Zoom breakout rooms, you will have 2.5 hours to complete this exam. Here is what that means:

• The time that you actively work on the exam should not exceed 2.5 hours; this time limit does not include any time spent resolving technical difficulties. We understand that technical difficulties are not only possible, but in a class as large as ours, it is likely that someone will experience a technological issue that is outside of their control. That is OK. If you are disconnected or if you have some other issue, please do the following:
  • Message us using Slack and then try to reconnect to Zoom. Upon reconnecting, let us know that you had an issue, and will try to figure out an appropriate accommodation. If you are unsuccessful reconnecting, then
  • Roughly document the issue in a few short sentences (e.g., approximately when did the issue occur, what did you observe, what led to the issue, how did it affect your exam-taking, etc.). We would like to know these details so that we can fix the issue in the future (if possible), and also to ensure that we take appropriate steps to prevent you from being negatively affected by it. If you are unable to reconnect to Zoom, then when you submit the exam (or decide you are unable to resolve the issue on your own), email us your description.
  • Once you/we are able to resolve the issue, continue taking the exam and resume your 2.5 hour “timer”. Do not stress out; we trust you to do the right thing, and that means we trust that you will exercise good judgment.

Available Resources

Because we care more about problem-solving than memorization, you may consult select materials during your exam-taking period.

• For any question, you are allowed to write Java code from scratch, then compile and run your code. Note: We are looking for correct reasoning and understanding of concepts more than perfectly syntactically correct Java. You do not need to edit/compile/run your code (and doing so may take time away from other exam work) but you are permitted to do so if you think it will help you complete the exam more effectively.
• You may consult the textbook, slides, your own notes, and any assignments that are linked directly from the course webpage. While we don't prohibit you from looking at the videos, we think it would be a very inefficient use of your exam time and so we advise against it!
• You may consult the official Oracle Javadoc webpages, and you may consult the Structure5 documentation.
• You may look at your own private CS136 lab repositories.

However, you may not use any search engines or public webpages, and you may not discuss any exam questions with anyone else, during or after the exam.

Glow Particulars

GLOW may attempt to assign a "grade" as soon as you submit your exam. If this happens, ignore that grade as it is not a reflection of how we will be evaluating your work. We are intentionally not attempting to use the autograding features in GLOW because they are misleading; we will carefully review your exams by hand and provide the same individualized feedback that we would to a physical exam.