We've just released our solutions set for the final project, which also includes statistics and common mistakes. The projects are available for pickup in the Gates building, and electronic submissions should be returned soon. Problem Set Six will also be returned soon.

Thanks for a wonderful quarter, and enjoy the rest of the summer!

The final project goes out today. It's due this Saturday, August 17 at 12:15PM. No late submissions will be accepted! Also remember that unlike on the problem sets, you must work on the project entirely on your own. Good luck!

The algorithm we gave for solving the Longest Increasing Subsequence problem on the "Guide to Dynamic Programming" handout had an error in it (sorry about that!) We've posted a corrected version online.

Problem Set Six goes out today. It's due next Monday, August 12 at 2:15PM. This final problem set of the quarter explores dynamic programming in a variety of contexts.

We've also released a guide to dynamic programming outlining how to structure correctness proofs for DP algorithms.

EDIT: Ooops! There was a small typo in the counterexample to why the greedy algorithm for change making doesn't work. It's now fixed in the online version.

Problem Set Five goes out today. It's due next Monday, August 5 at 2:15PM. This problem set explores greedy algorithms and the proof techniques associated with them. Some problems are standard greedy algorithms, while others show how greedy algorithms can find approximately good solutions to hard problems.

We've also released a guide to greedy algorithms that should give you some extra assistance writing proofs. As you'll see, proving greedy algorithms work correctly can be challenging, and we hope that this handout helps out!

Problem Set Four went out today. It's due next Monday, July 29 at 2:15PM. This problem set is about randomness: expected values, probabilities, and universal hashing all make an appearance here, and by the time you've completed the problem set we hope you'll have a much deeper understanding of just how powerful a tool randomness can be.

We've also released a guide to randomized algorithms that should give you a sense for the level of detail we're looking for in your answers.

Problem Set Three went out today. It's due next Monday, July 22 at 2:15PM. This problem set explores divide-and-conquer algorithms and recurrence relations, and we hope that it will cement your understanding of this algorithmic technique!

We have just posted a handout containing useful mathematical terms and identities. We hope that this handout helps you navigate some of the mathematically trickier parts of the course!

Problem Set Two went out today. It's due next Friday, July 12 at 2:15PM. In this problem set, you'll get to play around with graphs and graph algorithms and will gain experience applying the techniques from the course across a variety of domains.

There was a small bug in Monday's lecture's definition of Ω notation. The constant c must be positive, since otherwise f(n) = Ω(g(n)) for any f and g by just setting c = 0. The slides have been updated to correct for this.

Sorry about that!

Problem Set One went out today. It's due next Wednesday, July 3 at 2:15PM. This problem set explores O, Ω, and Θ notations, algorithm design and correctness, and basic graph algorithms. By the time you're done, we hope that you'll have a much better understanding of how to design and analyze algorithms!

We've also put together a handout containing advice and policies for problem sets. We recommend reading over it before starting the problem set.

Hope this helps!

Welcome to CS161! We've got an exciting quarter ahead of us filled with beautiful algorithms and problem-solving strategies. Over the upcoming weeks, we'll explore a variety of ways to model and solve problems that arise in computer science, biology, operations research, networking, and much more.

In the meantime, feel free to check out the course information handout and syllabus to learn more about what this class is all about, the prerequisites, and the course policies. If you have any questions in the meantime, feel free to email me at htiek@cs.stanford.edu with questions.

See you soon!