COMP1730/6730: Labs -
Programming for Scientists
Skip navigation Programming for ScientistsANU College of Engineering & Computer Science Programming for Scientists ANU College of Engineering & Computer Science Search query Search ANU web, staff & maps Search COMP1730/6730 Course content & schedule Labs Assessment Archive COMP1730/6730 Course content & schedule Assessment Archive Search COMP1730/6730 Labs COMP1730/6730: Labs Semester 1, 2022: Lab 1 Semester 1, 2022: Lab 2 Semester 1, 2022: Lab 3 Semester 1, 2022: Lab 4 Semester 1, 2022: Lab 5 Semester 1, 2022: Lab 6 Semester 1, 2022: Lab 7 Semester 1, 2022: Lab 8 Lab computers guide news 9 Feb | Important TODOs related sites Course wattle page Home » COMP1730/6730: Labs COMP1730/6730: Labs There will be programming labs in most weeks, starting from semester week 2. The labs consist mainly of exercises that you can do in your own time, on any computer that has the right software installed. During scheduled lab times, tutors will be available to answer questions and help you with the exercises. We strongly recommend that you both: read through, and attempt at least some of, the lab exercises before your scheduled lab; and attend your scheduled lab to talk to fellow students and the tutors about any questions or problems you have encountered. In some weeks, there will also be assessments during the labs. In those weeks, you must attend your scheduled lab to have your assessment marked. Please read the assessment schedule to see which weeks will have in-lab assessment. Labs will be held on-line, via MS teams, or on-campus (CSIT N115/N116). The Labs (Tentative Schedule) Lab 1 (Semester week 2): Introduction to the python programming environment and programming the robot simulator. Lab 2 (Semester week 3): Expressions, values and data types, and functions that compute them. Lab 3 (Semester week 4): Branching and iteration. Lab 4 (Semester week 5): Debugging, and introduction to sequence types. Lab 5 (Semester week 6): Strings, and more about sequence types. Lab 6 (Semester week 7): Data analysis. Lab 7 (Semester week 8): Mutable types and references, scope and namespaces. Lab 8 (Semester week 9): Working with files. Lab 9 (Semester week 10): Dictionaries. Lab 10 (Semester week 12): Exam problems. Note that in Semester week 11, there will be labs, but no new lab) content. Use the labs this week to get additional help with your) assignment, or to catch up on and get help with material from the) previous labs.) Software We will be using the python programming language, version 3. Python has two major versions, 2 and 3. They are quite similar, and with small work-arounds python 2 can be made to behave much like python 3. However, assignment solutions will be tested with python 3 only. The Anaconda distribution provides a set of additional modules that enable more efficient mathematical programming and some graphical data presentation tools, which we will make a little bit of use of in the course. Depending on if you attend an online or on campus lab, the way labs are conducted and your lab environment will be quite different. If you are attending online labs, see the online labs section. If you are attending on campus labs, see the section on the on campus lab. In either case, we recommend that you install python on your own computer, so that you can work on your homework or assignment without having to come onto campus, and/or so that you do not have to rely on an internet connection. See the installing python page page on how to do this. Online labs Online labs will be conducted via Microsoft Teams (setup and info here). We also have backup options available in the event that Microsoft Teams causes bandwidth or latency problems for people. To join the team corresponding to your lab group, you will need an access code; these will be posted on the course wattle page. Since online labs are remote, you will need to install Python on your own device. Please have a look at the installation instructions and notes here. If for some reason you are unable to or do not want to install python on your computer, or if your installation of python got broken by something, you can try to use the ANU virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI). This gives you a virtual desktop that can be used as if you are sitting in front of a CSIT lab desktop. Note that this method may not work well if you do not have a very good internet connection to the ANU. We strongly recommend you install python locally on your computer instead of relying on the VDI. That said, please follow these instructions if you need/want to use the VDI. To get the most out of online labs, we encourage you to make full use of the screen sharing features of Teams when discussing with your tutor(s), so that they can see what you are doing and the code that you are writing and running. Please make sure that you do not have private (or potentially offensive) material on display, before sharing your screen with your tutor or other students. On campus labs On-campus labs are held in CECS computer lab rooms located either on the ground floor of the CSIT building (#108) (CSIT N115/N116), or the Hanna Neumann building (#145). The lab computers run the GNU/Linux operating system. If you are not familiar with working with the operating used, a guide to working with the lab computers is available here. There will also be time in the first lab (in semester week 2) to get used to working with the lab computers. We expect that students who are on campus will be allowed to access the CECS computer lab rooms (on condition that they follow social distancing rules and other safety protocols), to use those computers to participate in on-line labs and to work on lab exercises outside of lab time. If you are planning to be on campus, please read the ANU return to campus plan carefully. NOTE: You may need permission to access the CSIT labs such as N112, N113 and N114, and follow the requirement enforced by the ANU, such as social distancing. Once having the access, just use your student card to swipe in. If you do not yet have access, try getting someone to let you in for the meanwhile. Anaconda python is also installed on the ANU InfoCommons computers. These are the Windows and Mac computers found in, for example, libraries and lecture theatres across the campus. This means you can work on programming exercises also on those machines. **COVID-19 UPDATE** Due to the growing concerns about increasing number of COVID positive cases, we will now run on-campus labs in a hybrid mode. That means, you can choose not to come at this time if you do not feel safe on campus. (If you feel safe to do so, you can still come onto campus and we will still be running on-campus labs in-person.) DO NOT COME ON-CAMPUS IF YOU HAVE SYMPTOMS OR IF YOU TESTED POSITIVE FOR COVID-19. If you are not coming to your on-campus lab, let your tutor(s) know by either sending a message in your lab group’s team chat or by private messaging/emailing your tutor(s). Your tutors will organise the lab accordingly once you do so. For example, they can do a joint hybrid session (at the same timing) and organise an individual online meeting with you. Keep in mind that in the long run we want to return to in-person only on-campus labs. You can of course choose to move entirely online by switching to another lab using the lab sign-up page. Please read the information on online labs if you will be attending your on-campus lab session online, or if you decide to switch to an online lab session. Updated: 01 May 2022/ Responsible Officer: Head of School/ Page Contact: Minh Bui Contact ANU Copyright Disclaimer Privacy Freedom of Information +61 2 6125 5111 The Australian National University, Canberra CRICOS Provider : 00120C ABN : 52 234 063 906 You appear to be using Internet Explorer 7, or have compatibility view turned on. Your browser is not supported by ANU web styles. » Learn how to fix this » Ignore this warning in future
