NWI-IPC002
Languages and Automata
Course infoSchedule
Course moduleNWI-IPC002
Credits (ECTS)3
CategoryBA (Bachelor)
Language of instructionEnglish
Offered byRadboud University; Faculty of Science; Informatica en Informatiekunde;
Lecturer(s)
PreviousNext 2
Lecturer
prof. dr. J.H. Geuvers
Other course modules lecturer
Coordinator
dr. J.C. Rot
Other course modules lecturer
Examiner
dr. J.C. Rot
Other course modules lecturer
Contactperson for the course
dr. J.C. Rot
Other course modules lecturer
Lecturer
dr. J.C. Rot
Other course modules lecturer
Academic year2020
Period
KW3  (25/01/2021 to 04/04/2021)
Starting block
KW3
Course mode
full-time
Remarks-
Registration using OSIRISYes
Course open to students from other facultiesYes
Pre-registrationNo
Waiting listNo
Placement procedure-
Aims
By the end of this course, the students can
  • recognise and describe languages using various kinds of automata, grammars, regular expressions and set-theoretic descriptions
  • carry out basic constructions on automata and expressions, including constructions to convert between different descriptions of regular and context-free languages
  • classify languages in the Chomsky hierarchy
  • define and reason about languages and words using structural induction
Content
In this course, you learn to accurately and formally describe (computer) languages, and mechanisms to check whether a given word/text is a member of such a language. You learn about different classes of languages, and ways to describe these with mathematical models. Aspects of this course occur throughout computer science, for example in the design of programming languages, in (network) protocols, text processing, program verification, and in compiler construction. 

Instructional Modes
Level

Presumed foreknowledge
The students can
  • explain mathematical definitions in terms of sets, relations and functions
  • apply elementary proof techniques for these structures
  • prove properties of natural numbers using induction It suffices to succesfully complete the course Mathematical Structures.
  • Test information
    The final grade is based on:
  • weekly homework assignments (h),
  • final exam (t) Homework qualifies as a potential bonus for the final grade, which is t + h/10, provided that t >= 5.
  • Specifics

    Required materials
    Reader
    Lecture notes by Alexandra Silva: "Languages and Automata"
    Handouts
    Lecture slides

    Recommended materials
    Book

    Instructional modes
    Course occurrence

    Remark
    • 14 hours lecture
    • 14 hours exercise class
    • 56 hours self study

    Tests
    Final grade
    Test weight1
    Test typeDigital exam with CIRRUS
    OpportunitiesBlock KW3, Block KW4