NUS year 1 semester 2 module review AY2013/14

CG1108 - Electrical Engineering

The module is roughly divided into 2 parts - DC circuits and AC circuits. Most of the content such as resistance, capacitance, inductance, impedance (complex resistance), AC power, diodes and rectifiers were briefly covered in the ISC class 12 Physics syllabus, so I found the concepts slightly easier to understand. Nevertheless, the 2nd part (AC circuits) is difficult and most students say so. Brush up your concepts of complex numbers for this part. The DC circuits part is easy. Thevenin and Norton equivalents should be at your fingertips by the first half of the module, otherwise you will struggle later.

There is a project which involves making an automated car which runs on a black road on a white background. Lab assignments are held every week and there is a lab test at the end of the semester (easy if you know how to use digital multimeter, signal generator and oscilloscope properly).

Tips

Practise Thevenin and Norton equivalent conversions a lot.

Get your concepts clear for AC circuits. At least know how to convert inductance and capacitance to complex resistance.

Be familiar with complex numbers. Buy a calculator that can perform complex number calculations. Practice using functions like conversion between rectangular and polar, complex number addition, subtraction and multiplication in your calculator. If you don't do this, you may end up wasting a huge amount of time in your exam.

Difficulty: Medium

My grade: A

CS1020 - Data Structures and Algorithms

CS1020 is like a continuation of CS1010. However, you are expected to learn Java syntax within the first 3-4 weeks. During the rest of the semester, topics such as stacks, queues, linked lists, hashing, sorting and recursion will be taught.

There are 4 sit-in labs (friendly term for practical exams). Almost 90% of the class, including myself, could complete only the first sit-in-lab happily. For the rest, getting the correct output within 1 hour and 40 minutes was a nightmare. In fact, to help students, for labs 3 and 4, the lecturers actually split the programming into 3 parts. I never completed all the parts but always ensured my code was correct for the first and, if possible, the second part also. I was relieved that this technique gave me much higher marks than I expected.

The final exam is easier than the sit-in labs and requires you to recall concepts you have learnt throughout this module. Some questions were similar in pattern to the tutorials.

Tips

In my year, I had to use VIM editor. It helps in the practical exam if you are familiar with VIM shortcut commands so that you do not waste time unnecessarily.

During practical exams, always INDENT your code, and do not forget to write your name, matriculation number and program description at the top of the program. It would be extremely disappointing to lose marks for these mistakes when the questions are already so difficult.

In the final exam and midterm, whenever you encounter a question from linked lists, stacks and queues, draw a diagram to help you visualize.

Difficulty: Hard

My grade: A+

ES1531 - Critical Thinking and Writing

This module is a demanding one. There is only sectional teaching (tutorials), no lectures. Since the class size is small (~around 20), class participation is monitored and taken into account. You must read the tutorial readings before class and participate in group discussion.

The module does not teach you English, rather it aims to make you a critical and logical thinker who analyses statements and ideas rationally based on evidence. You learn about strong and weak arguments. In the first assignment you have to critically evaluate a spoken or written article. In my semester, a TED talk on energy by Bill Gates was provided. You have to decompose the speaker/writer's arguments, state his claims and mention whether they are valid, whether his arguments are strong or weak and support your stand with your own research.

The second assignment was done in groups of three. Each group has to write their own position paper on a certain topic.

Tips

Attend the tutorials. Skipping classes without valid reasons will give the tutor a bad impression of you.

There are 2 types of reasoning taught in this module - deductive and inductive. Deductive means that the main claim is stated first, then the reasoning follows. Inductive reasoning is the opposite. The reasons come first, then they lead to a conclusion. I personally feel that while constructing an argument, deductive reasoning is easier since there is less chance of a reader getting confused. If the reader cannot identify your main claim easily, he is likely to label your work as poor. Hence, my tutor encouraged the class to 'front their claims'.

Difficulty: Very hard

My grade: A-

MA1506 - Mathematics II

This is all about differential equations and linear algebra. It may be tempting to skip lectures because of the webcasts but don't forget to watch these afterwards. Otherwise your workload will pile up miserably.

The first chapter teaches the fundamentals techniques of solving differential equations. The later ones are applications of differential equations including harmonic oscillators, plug flow reactors, cantilever principle, population ad harvesting model. Then comes the Laplace transforms. This is just like differentiation in the way that you can derive the Laplace transform all the way from the beginning or just memorize common formulae that will make your life easier.

Linear algebra is slightly easier. The chapter on matrices is very simple to score in if you avoid careless mistakes. Learn to use your calculator to double-check your matrix algebra.

Tips

Don't be discouraged if you don't know how to do the tutorials. I found the tutorials too hard. I rarely understood the questions, let alone the solutions. I just relied on past year papers.

Practise all the past year papers. The questions set are usually of a similar type.

Try to score good marks in the midterm which is MCQ.

For harvesting model, remember the formula and conditions i.e when is equilibrium stable and unstable.

Practise eigenvalues and eigenvectors as they cover a large percentage of marks in the final exam. Most questions from linear algebra require you to find eigenvalues and eigenvectors first.

Difficulty: Hard

My grade: A+

GEK1540 - Modern Technology in Health and Medicine

This is the best module I have taken so far in NUS, extremely interesting and informative. The module teaches about the technology used in medical care nowadays. Topics include endoscopy, lasers and laser surgery, ultrasound, color Doppler, X-rays, mammograms, CT scan, nuclear medicine, SPECT and PET scans, radioactive oncology, cyber knife and gamma knife, MRI and possible nano-medicine in future. Each topic explains the physics behind the idea, a brief description of the medical condition treated and how the instrument is used.

The lecturer showed videos in every lecture which brought the concept 'alive' and showed recent developments in that particular field. It is offered by the Department of Physics and requires very basic knowledge of Physics, nothing compared to engineering Physics. The lecturer really wants you to understand the topics and not treat it like a slack module. Hence, the standard of questions is slightly hard. The midterm comprises MCQs but the choices are very close, so it is far from easy. The final exam has open-ended questions. Each answer should be around 10 lines long.

If you always wondered what how medical procedures and diagnostics are conducted and how hospital equipment works, go ahead and take this module. It's very engaging.

Tips

Attend lectures and tutorials and take notes if necessary. Some information required for MCQs were orally mentioned by the lecturer and tutor but nowhere mentioned in the lecture notes.

Along with the facts, make a comparison of medical procedures, such as the pros and cons of CT scan, MRI, SPECT, PET and which is preferable for a particular situation. The test and exam contain analytical questions.

Difficulty: Medium

My grade: A+

Semestral average point (SAP): 4.9

Cumulative average point (CAP): 4.89 

I am on the Dean's list again and also the top year 1 CEG (computer engineering) student. :D 

NUS year 1 semester 1 module review AY2013/14

The beginning of a new journey of my life was filled with uncertainties. Having studied in an ICSE/ISC school in India, I took quite some time to get adjusted to the academic system in a Singaporean university. Concepts such as the module system, bidding, lectures and tutorials were absolutely new for me. At that point of time, I felt extremely nervous and wondered whether I would be able to follow the fast pace and fit in.

I proved myself wrong! After a year of study, I can now proudly claim that I belong to NUS and am having a delightful time here. I hope this blog post helps freshmen to know more about their modules and also aid seniors who are 'module shopping'.

Course: Computer Engineering (CEG)

Year: AY 2013/14, Semester 1

Note: The module codes, names, lecturers and content may change. This information is correct as of AY2013/14.

CG1001 - Introduction to Computer Engineering

This is a 2 MC (modular credits) module with no exams and no term tests. Its purpose is to give students a brief introduction to the field of computer engineering. Every week, guest lecturers were invited to speak about their specialized field. The topics introduced were embedded systems, system on a chip, communications and networking, big data, intelligent systems and interactive digital media. Basically, these are the technical electives CEG students study in year 3 or 4.

The module was graded on the basis of three report-writing assignments related to the content discussed in the lectures. There were no tutorials. The first two reports were done in groups of 2 while the last one had to be done in groups of 4.

Tips

 Do NOT plagiarize in your reports. You will pay heavily.

The professors want unique and creative content in your reports. Show them that you have gone beyond Google and you will get the extra credit.

Stick to the page limit or word limit, if any. I exceeded it and my marks got deducted. :(

Difficulty: Easy

My grade: B+

CS1010 - Programming Methodology

This one was my favourite module this semester. It teaches programming in C language and builds your logical thinking and analytic skills. I was lucky to be in a lab-based teaching class. With a computer in front of me, I found it easy to type code and run a program as lecturer is teaching. Since the class size was about 30-40, any doubts could be cleared right away and the lecturer can move around and check and even help to debug your code if necessary. There was a mid-term test, two practical exams and a final exam (open book). The course website is very informative. Remember to check it regularly.

The module assumes you have no programming knowledge and begins with the basics - variables, functions, constants, mathematical expressions, data types in C, but you have to catch up very fast, since pointers and arrays are slightly tricky. The practical exams focus on your coding skills, so you have to practise, practise and practise.

Tips

Recursion will be hard unless you have a knack for recursive thinking. Read a lot of examples from books and the Internet.

The exams are open book, but you will hardly have any spare time to read a page of your book or notes. And nothing from your book can save you in the final exam, in the end you must rely on your brains, so it's prudent to make a cheat sheet and copy the most important information (such as sorting and searching algorithms).

In my year, I had to use VIM editor. It helps in the practical exam if you are familiar with VIM shortcut commands so that you do not waste time unnecessarily.

During practical exams, always INDENT your code, and do not forget to write your name, matriculation number and program description at the top of the program.

Manage your time well in the final exam. Do all the easy questions first, then go for the hard ones.

Difficulty: Medium

My grade: A+

CS1231 - Discrete Structures

The module was divided into 2 halves - mathematical proofs, boolean algebra, relations, functions, logical reasoning, natural deduction for the first part, and graphs, trees, permutations and combinations for the second half. I found the proofs rather difficult and some content of the lecture notes really seemed Greek and Latin to me. I liked some parts of the module - natural deduction and propositional logic, boolean algebra and combinatorics, but I felt that the tutorials and final exams were too hard. I found plenty of books,videos and lecture notes from other universities on the net from where I learnt many of the topics in this module. Frankly, I was relieved when this module was over.

Tips

If you do not understand the notes, especially in the 1st half of the module, don't panic. Search for the topic on the Net and you will get excellent resources. If you can understand the notes, you are a genius.

Difficulty: Very hard

My grade: A

MA1505 - Mathematics I

The calculus module may seem easy in the first few weeks. You may even laugh when you learn the basic differentiation and integration you already learnt in high school. Beware, this is only an introduction. The later chapters are pretty hard and you have probably not studied Fourier series, line integrals, surface integrals and multiple integrals. Be serious as all engineering students take this module so the bell curve is very steep. Pay full attention to the lectures and attempt the tutorials diligently. The answers for the tutorials will be released, but it is important you attempt the questions by yourself.

Tips

Practise all the past year papers. The questions set are usually of a similar type.

Try to score good marks in the midterm which is MCQ.

In the final exam, show your working clearly so that you can get partial marks even if your answer is incorrect.

Difficulty: Hard

My grade: A

PC1432 - Physics IIE

One of the longest syllabi I have ever seen for a single semester module. It entirely covers the topics of electrostatics, current electricity, magnetism, electromagnetism, light (interference & diffraction), nuclear physics and quantum mechanics. There were more than 20 chapters altogether. It is almost similar to the ISC class 12 Physics syllabus, just that the coverage in NUS is more in-depth and requires more thinking. Rote learning will not get you through this module, so take time to understand the concepts, proofs and theories. It will be good to practise the tutorials. The homework assignments were done through Mastering Physics. The questions are for practice but the difficulty level of Mastering Physics is very easy compared to the actual term test and final exam, so do remember to study hard even if you score well in Mastering Physics.

Tips

Some of the chapters I found easy were static electricity, Coulomb's law, electric potential, capacitors and dielectrics, nuclear physics and photoelectric effect (mostly this one). I prayed that may there be more questions from photoelectric effect. :)

Be familiar with the chapters you like and find easy so that you can answer any question which comes from there. 

Numericals are generally easy to solve if you know the formula and understand the question. Don't be overwhelmed when you see large numbers like electron mass or Planck's constant. 

Difficulty: Hard

My grade: A+

Cumulative average point (CAP): 4.89 

I am on the Dean's list :D