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Graduate Studies Calendar 2020-2021 Courses of Instruction Course Descriptions C Computer Science CPSC
Computer Science CPSC

For more information about these courses, see the Department of Computer Science ucalgary.ca/cpsc.

Notes:

  • Registration in all courses requires the approval of the Department of Computer Science.
  • In several cases, credit is not allowed for Computer Science courses and various courses offered by the Faculty of Engineering. Students who have successfully completed Engineering courses should contact the Department of Computer Science for additional information.
Graduate Courses
Computer Science 601       Special Topics in Computer Science
A study of problems of particular interest to graduate students in Computer Science.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
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Computer Science 605       Information Storage and Processing in Biological Systems
Examination of complex biological systems; concepts and fundamentals of biological solutions to information storage and processing; modelling and computer simulation of biological systems; information storage in biological molecules; genetic networks; hierarchical organization of biological information processing in signal transduction, development, evolution, and ecology; biological control systems.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Also known as:
(Medical Science 605)
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Computer Science 607       Biological Computation
Examination and modelling of biological networks; focus on the latest developments in biological computing and their theoretical backgrounds, such as: DNA computing; genomic algorithms; artificial chemistries; complex adaptive systems, chaos and fractals; immune system computing; gene regulatory networks; swarm intelligence systems.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 609       Foundations of Multi-Agent Systems
Modelling of agents and properties of multi-agent systems. Communication issues, including interaction and co-ordination concepts, forming and maintaining organizations, and competitive agent environments. Example systems; the implementation of a multi-agent system will be performed as the assignment.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 609 and either Computer Science 567 or Software Engineering 697 will not be allowed for programs offered by the Department of Computer Science.
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Computer Science 610       Compiler Code Generation and Optimization
Compiler code generation and optimization techniques, including register allocation, instruction selection, dataflow analysis, and code optimization techniques using intermediate representations. Implementation of special language features and tools for automated code generation.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 611       Complexity Theory
Deterministic and non-deterministic time and space complexity; complexity classes and hierarchies; NP-complete problems and intractable problems; axiomatic complexity theory.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 611 and Computer Science 511 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 615       Computational Techniques for Graphics and Visualization
Various case studies from the fields of graphics and visualization. Topics in numerical linear algebra, numerical optimization, and discrete differential geometry.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 615 and Computer Science 601.13 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 617       Category Theory for Computer Science
Introduction to category theory with applications in computer science. Functors, natural transformations, adjoints and monads, initial and final algebras. Introduction to 2-categories and fibrations.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 619       Quantum Computation
Introduction to quantum computing. Quantum algorithms, quantum search, quantum fourier transforms, quantum error correcting codes, quantum cryptography, nonlocality and quantum communication complexity, and quantum computational complexity.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 619 and Computer Science 519 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 622       Randomized Algorithms
Design and analysis of randomized algorithms; discrete probability theory; randomized data structures; lower bound techniques; randomized complexity classes; advanced algorithmic applications from various areas.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 622 and Computer Science 522 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 625       Principles of Computer Security
Security policies and protection mechanisms for a computing system, including such topics as design principles of protection systems, authentication and authorization, reference monitors, security architecture of popular platforms, formal modelling of protection systems, discretionary access control, safety analysis, information flow control, integrity, role-based access control. Legal and ethical considerations will be introduced as necessary.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 625 and Computer Science 525 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 626       Network Systems Security
Attacks on networked systems, tools and techniques for detection and protection against attacks including firewalls and intrusion detection and protection systems, authentication and identification in distributed systems, cryptographic protocols for IP networks, security protocols for emerging networks and technologies, privacy enhancing communication. Legal and ethical issues will be introduced as necessary.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 626 and Computer Science 526 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 627       Computer Viruses and Malware
Study of computer viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and other forms of malicious software. Countermeasures to malicious software. Legal and ethical issues, and some general computer and network security issues.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Consent of the Department.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 627 and Computer Science 527 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 628       Spam and Spyware
Spam and other unsolicited bulk electronic communication, and spyware. Legal and ethical issues. Countermeasures, and related security problems.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Consent of the Department.
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 628 and Computer Science 528 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 629       Elliptic Curves and Cryptography
An introduction to elliptic curves over the rationals and finite fields. The focus is on both theoretical and computational aspects; subjects covered will include the study of endomorphism rings, Weil pairing, torsion points, group structure, and effective implementation of point addition. Applications to cryptography will be discussed, including elliptic curve-based Diffie-Helman key exchange, El Gamal encryption, and digital signatures, as well as the associated computational problems on which their security is based.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Also known as:
(Pure Mathematics 629)
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Computer Science 630       Information Theory and Security
Information theoretic concepts such as entropy and mutual information, and their applications to defining and evaluating information security systems including encryption, authentication, secret sharing and secure message transmission.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2T)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 630 and Computer Science 530 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 635       Image Analysis and Computer Vision
Standard methods used in the analysis of digital images. Image acquisition and display: visual perception; digital representation. Sampling and enhancement. Feature extraction and classification methods. Object recognition.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 635 and Computer Science 535 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 641       Performance Issues in High Speed Networks
An overview of current research in high speed networks. Topics covered will include the current Internet, the future Internet, wireless networks, optical networks, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), TCP/IP, network traffic measurement, Web server performance, and mobile computing. Emphasis will be placed on network performance issues for next-generation Internet protocols and applications.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 643       Modern Wireless Networks
An introduction to the fundamentals and applications of wireless networks.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 653       Computational Geometry
Geometric searching, hull proximity and intersection data structures and algorithms and their complexity.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 657       Modelling And Visualization of Plants
Modelling, simulation and visualization of plants for computer graphics and biological purposes. Modelling of plants as an example of interdisciplinary research including computer science, biology, mathematics and physics. L-systems as a formal basis for model construction. Modelling languages. Information flow in plants. Symmetry, self-similarity and allometry of plants. Descriptive models of plant architecture. Models integrating plant structure and function. Simulation of plant development. Case studies: competition for space, phyllotaxis, tropisms, and biomechanical considerations. Reaction-diffusion models of morphogensis. Genotype-to-phenotype mapping. Modelling of plant ecosystems. Rendering and visualization of the models. A survey of applications and research directions.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 661       Algorithms for Distributed Computation
Fundamental algorithmic problems in distributed computation; impact of communication, timing, failures and other characteristics on computability and complexity of solutions.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 661 and Computer Science 561 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 662       Agent Communications
An examination of communication paradigms in multi-agent systems. A number of paradigms will be covered including simple protocols, BDI (Believe, Desire, Intension), and social commitments.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 662 and Computer Science 568 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 667       Computer Algebra
Fundamental problems, classical and modern algorithms, and algorithm design and analysis techniques of use in computer algebra. Integer and polynomial arithmetic. Additional problems in computer algebra, possibly including problems in computational linear algebra, factorization, and concerning systems of polynomial equations will be considered as time permits.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 667 and Computer Science 518 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 669       Cryptography
An overview of the basic techniques in modern cryptography, with emphasis on fit-for-application primitives and protocols. Topics will include symmetric and public-key cryptosystems; digital signatures; elliptic curve cryptography; key management; attack models and well-defined notions of security.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Also known as:
(Pure Mathematics 669)
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Computer Science 671       Database Management Systems
Foundations of database applications and database systems, plus some advanced topics in data management systems will be introduced.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 671 and Computer Science 571 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 672       Fundamentals of Social Network Analysis and Data Mining
Introduction to data mining with emphasis on frequent pattern mining, clustering and classification, data collection, network construction, basic graph theory concepts and network analysis metrics, and case studies.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 672 and either Computer Science 572 or 599.77 will not be allowed.
Also known as:
(formerly Computer Science 601.77)
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Computer Science 673       Distributed Database Systems
Introduction to distributed database systems. Topics covered include: architecture, data design, query processing, transaction management, multidatabases, object-oriented databases and advanced system issues.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 675       Datawarehouse Systems
Design, development and deployment of datawarehouses. Schemas, models, data organization, OLAP, tuning, data mining and architectural models may be discussed.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 681       Research Methods in Human-Computer Interaction
Application of the theory and methodology of human-machine studies to real systems; theory and practice.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 683       Information Visualization: Theory and Practice
The theory and development of interactive visual representations of abstract data for the purpose of amplifying cognition. Topics covered can include representational issues, perceptual issues, visual literacy, spatial abstraction, and interaction issues.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 687       Computer Animation
Principles of traditional animation, key framing, parametric and track animation, free form deformation, inverse kinematics, dynamics, spring mass systems, particle systems, numerical integration, Lagrangian constraints, space time constraints, collisions, human animation, behavioural animation, metamorphosis, implicit animation techniques, animating liquids, gases and cloth, motion capture.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-2T)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 687 and Computer Science 587 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 689       Modelling for Computer Graphics
Parametric Modelling. B-splines and NURBS. Subdivision schemes. Surface subdivision. Multiresolution. Wavelets. Implicit modelling. Blends. Polygonization. Blobtree. Precise contact modelling. Solid modelling. CSG. Procedural modelling. Special topics, e.g. Differential geometry. Graph-based modelling. Topology.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 689 and Computer Science 589 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 691       Rendering
Physical foundations of illuminations techniques. Color. Radiometry and photometry. Reflection models. The rendering equation. Ray tracing. Monte Carlo techniques. Sampling and antialiasing. Texturing. Radiosity. Photon tracing. Volume rendering. Image-based rendering. Real-time shading.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 691 and Computer Science 591 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 695       Data Management in Geographical Information Systems
Examination of advanced geometric algorithms for representation, analysis and visualization of Geographical Information Systems. Data structures such as progressive mesh, ROAM, multidimensional Delauney triangulization, quadtree and space partitioning. Algorithmic techniques such as incremental, divide and conquer, sweep-plane, and dimension reduction. Algorithms for surface simplification, culling, quality measurement and reduction.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 696       Information Security Seminar
Topics in information security, such as security management, emerging threats, research frontiers using case studies and best practices.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 696 and 699 will not be allowed.
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Computer Science 697       Biometric Security
Principles of biometric system design, technology and performance evaluation. Verification, identification and synthesis in biometrics. Traditional and emerging techniques for fingerprint matching, face recognition, iris modelling, signature authentication, and biometric pattern recognition. Multi-modal biometrics and biometric security.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 698       Information Security Project
An information security project conducted under the guidance of a faculty member. A report must be written and presented on completion of the course.
Course Hours:
6 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 699       Research Methodology in Computer Science
An introduction to and survey of research areas and methods in Computer Science. Professional skills in computer science research such as reviewing, critical evaluation, and the preparation of research proposals.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Antirequisite(s):
Credit for Computer Science 699 and 696 will not be allowed.
NOT INCLUDED IN GPA
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Computer Science 701       Research Topics in Computer Science
In-depth course on a focused current research topic in Computer Science. Involves a significant research component and requires substantial background knowledge.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
MAY BE REPEATED FOR CREDIT
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Computer Science 767       Advanced Topics in Multiagent Systems
An in-depth study of a selected subfield of multiagent systems including state-of-the-art research. This is a project-driven course.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Computer Science 567 or 609.
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Computer Science 771       Current Trends in Database Technology
Advanced topics chosen from Bioinformatics, Data mining, Mobile Databases, Spatial Databases and Web Databases. There is a large project component.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 781       Advanced Topics in Human-Computer Interaction
The topics covered will change year by year depending on current advances in human computer interaction.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
Prerequisite(s):
Computer Science 481.
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Computer Science 785       Implicit Modelling
A detailed look at modelling using implicit and iso-surface techniques taking an in-depth review of the literature. Algebraic methods will be followed by skeletal models, field function design, modelling techniques, rendering and texture mapping. Polygonisation algorithms, ray tracing implicits, techniques for animation, meta-morphosis, precise contact modelling, deformation and warping. Algorithms and data structures and implementation details will be presented. Students will be expected to make a new contribution in their project and term paper.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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Computer Science 789       Advanced Geometric Modelling
Current research topics including spline modelling, Subdivision Surfaces, multiresolution, wavelets, analysis of the subdivision surfaces and reverse subdivision.
Course Hours:
3 units; (3-0)
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