UAT: Artificial Life Programming Course List

Bachelor of Science Degree Requirements
Program Length in Weeks	120
Minimum General Education Credits	36
Minimum Bachelor’s Core plus Degree-Specific/Elective Credits	84
Minimum Total Semester Credits	120
Within 120 minimum credit hours, the following requirements also apply:
Minimum Major Credits: 36 Minimum Total 300/400 Level Credits: 40

University Core - Complete 28.00 credits minimum

INT350 Internship

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): sponsor approval and Junior standing
An internship is considered a supervised, practical experience that is the application of previously learned theory. Employers/sponsors work with the student to meet specific objectives and/or learning goals and provide special mentoring or networking opportunities. In exchange, the intern helps the employer/sponsor in meeting overall work goals for the agency/company. Students completing 3.0 credit internships must work a total of 150 hours, or 10 hours per week for 15 weeks.

LAW370 Legal Issues in Technology

Credits: 3.00

Pre-Requisite(s): ENG101
This course addresses typical legal and business issues in the multimedia field. Rights granted under copyright, principles of fair use, trademarks, intellectual property law, trade secrets, unfair competition, disclosure and privacy laws are covered. Students explore these legal topics with focus on electronic media.

MGT112 Project Management in a Technology Environment

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): none
This course covers every aspect of managing a project in a technology environment, from assembling the right team to figuring out a schedule, estimating needed resources and monitoring its progress. This course will cover determination, examination and critiques of current practices in project management with an emphasis on the use of technology to support project development. Also included are real-life project management problems such as the following: how to get results when there is no direct authority over participants, what to do when team members don't follow through, how to handle differing departmental agendas and how to balance regular work with additional responsibilities. Communication skills will also be emphasized.

PRO102 Professional Skills Development

Credits: 2.00

Prerequisite(s): none
This course is designed to develop life-long learning strategies and provides the basic skills for success in the educational, professional and personal environment. Specific topics explored are personality profile analysis, developmental styles,conflict resolution skills, group problem solving and learning style analysis. Collaboration and group skills development will be emphasized.

PRO211 Senior Innovation Project I

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): none
The purpose of this course is to develop students as technologists. Students will explore and critically analyze a potential and emerging topic for a thesis and shape their ideas into a form that represents a clear set of thinking to be used as the basis for developing their innovation. In creating a topic document based upon these investigations, students will demonstrate the ability to communicate technology ideas to others and increase the likelihood that the idea will take form and find a relevant application in society. The course will culminate with the composition and approval of the student’s topic paper. The topic paper will include an abbreviated introduction of the innovation, short prior art identification and general methodology.

PRO250 Senior Innovation Project II

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): PRO211
This course presents the student with the opportunity to work on their selected innovation and share their progress through a series of activities, teachbacks, and workshop sessions. The focus will be placed on the process of innovation and how to overcome the hurdles that can arise in such endeavors.

PRO300 Senior Innovation Project III: Analysis & Patent

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): PRO211 and PRO250
This course continues the journey towards the completion of the student thesis and should be taken after the actual innovation or hypothesis has been tested, and students are ready to compose analysis/results and the conclusion to the work. This course will culminate in the composition and approval of thesis chapters including Results (Chapter 4) and Conclusions (Chapter 5).

PRO481 Senior Innovation Project and Portfolio Presentation

Credits: 2.00

Prerequisite(s): PRO300/PRO301 or instructor approval.
This course completes undergraduate thesis and portfolio process providing guidance and structure for the formal presentation of the student’s work. Students will passionately and clearly articulate their innovation, technology concepts and application in a formal defense. Students entering this class are expected to have completed all works included in their portfolio and have their thesis chapters approved through the completion of prior thesis course work prior to enrolling.

TCH110 Foresight Development

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): none
Foresight is the act of looking to the future. This course teaches better global, business and personal foresight to better enjoy and manage your own future. This course will explore the big picture history of accelerating change from universal, historical and technological perspectives, as well as identifying global trends that are affecting individuals, society, businesses and governments. Additionally, the course will examine how organizations make bets on the future and gives the student a chance to explore career prospects in a variety of fields. Finally, discussion of how biology, psychology, community and culture help and hinder personal thinking about the future will be discussed. We will articulate and explain the four fundamental foresight processes: innovating the future (creative development of products and services); planning the future (developing shared goals and processes); profiting in the future (achieving measurable positive results, including environmental, social, and economic benefits); and predicting the future (trend identification and analysis). Assignments will be fun, personalized to foresight goals, and will include brief readings, brief writing, discussions, debates, visuals, film, podcasts and games.

TCH150 Technology and Society

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): None
TCH150 introduces students to essential elements of the historical, contemporary and possible future interdependencies of technology and society. These elements are discovered through readings, discussions and forecasts related to technological development. This course provides students with tools necessary to understand the role technology plays in society and to prepare students for interaction within a technology-driven world. Technology will be recognized as a driving force in cultural revolutions and as a foundational concept of human development. The course will consider rapidly changing technologies in modern society, the problems associated with these changes and the effects of these technologies on modern culture.

TCH301 Ethics in Technology

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): ENG101
TCH301 is designed to introduce students to essential concepts necessary to evaluate the ethical implications and potential impacts of the use of new technology within human society and culture. Students will explore modern ethical dilemmas in technology, looking at multiple aspects of how the introduction of technology redefines law and values.

General Studies - Complete 36.00 credits minimum

COM226 Communication in Technology

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): none
Through the exploration of technology concepts, students will introduce, demonstrate, inform and/or persuade the audience. Effective use of voice, nonverbal skills and visuals will be applied to topics such as robotics, virtual reality, internet speech and privacy, and/or technology ethics. Presentations will be followed by student-led discussions and brainstorming sessions about each technology topic. The art of seeing pros and cons pertaining to controversial concepts will be explored through group discussions. And, students will have the opportunity to create a resume and be formally interviewed for a technology position.

ENG101 Composition I

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): ENG055 or equivalent
This course is designed to present effective techniques in organizing, developing and revising academic essays that reflect collegiate-level critical and logical thinking skills. Students will write a minimum of four essays, directed toward audiences with specific rhetorical situations, that stress descriptive, analytical, evaluative and persuasive/ argumentative writing. Students will also develop their critical reading skills: analyzing, evaluating and critiquing the claims and evidence used by various authors.

ENG102 Composition II

Credits: 3.00

(GE, Humanities)
Prerequisite(s): ENG101
ENG102 is designed to introduce students to the essential language, theories and strategies of argumentation and research. The purpose of the course is to provide students with the tools necessary to develop arguments for specific audiences within specific rhetorical situations. Students will also develop their critical reading skills: analyzing, evaluating and critiquing the claims and evidence used by various authors. Finally, students will learn proper research skills and write an in-depth research essay/project.

PSY150 Psychology of Thinking

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): none
PSY150 will examine the writings of Pythagoras, the father of formal mathematical thinking; Aristotle’s major works, including his 100-plus tests for the truth of any proposition; and other major thinkers from the classical period to modern times, including Francis Bacon, Galileo and other progenitors
of the natural and behavioral sciences. The course will close with a survey of living thinkers, including “system thinkers” and a study of the major books by Edward de Bono.

Conceptual/Foundational Courses - Complete 12.00 credits minimum

CIS204 LINUX I

Credits: 2.00

Pre-Requisite(s): None
This course provides an overview of the commands, utilities, and supporting architecture used in the UNIX operating system. This course provides the student with skills needed to navigate the UNIX aspects of the Internet and perform file/system operations on graphics workstations. Topics include common utilities, making files, the VI and EMAC editors, and C, Bourne and Korne shells.

CSC100 Computer Programming Concepts

Credits: 4.00

Prerequisite(s): none
The purpose of this course is to introduce the fundamentals of computer science and programming to students majoring in this area. Students will become familiar with problem-solving techniques and algorithm development using computers, including a structured high-level programming language. Students will also explore object-oriented programming including the design considerations and conventions used in development of object-oriented applications. Topics will include flow of control, assignment, arrays, functions, and input and output, among others.

CSC207 Introduction to Artificial Life

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): none
This course will provide an overview of the field of artificial life. Students will learn about the key historical moments, personalities and innovations. The philosophical and social implications of the ability to simulate and synthesize life-like entities and behaviors will be discussed. Topics may include simulation of real and imaginary life forms and their evolution; self-organization; emergent behavior; swarm intelligence; agent-based simulations; and adaptive, complex and biologically inspired stems.

CSC280 Data Structures and Algorithms

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC215, MAT250
This course surveys the specification and implementation of containers as abstract data types (ADTs). Structures covered include strings, vectors, stacks, queues, sequential lists and binary trees. Other topics include running time analysis, recursion, generic programming and dynamic memory management. Object design and object tools are emphasized.

DBT200 Database Theory: Introduction to SQL Language

Credits: 4.00

Prerequisite(s): none
This course will cover the theory of database design and manipulation. Students will learn about relational modeling, normalization in the area of database design and the theories of transaction management . Students will use Structured Query Language to manipulate data.

Skills Development Courses - Complete 12.00 credits minimum

CSC202 C# Programming I

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC102
Based on the .NET framework, C# provides a full-fledged development system for creating powerful, stand-alone applications. This course introduces the student with the C# code structure and syntax. Topics include data types, control structures, functions, file management, string manipulation, windows forms fundamentals, console-based applications and an introduction toobject-oriented design in C#.

CSC203 Java Programming I

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC102
This course surveys the major elements and applications of object-oriented programming and the JAVA programming language. Students are introduced to JAVA syntax, data types, operators, IO operations, control structures, member functions and classes. Students learn the fundamental skills needed to develop and debug simple object-oriented applications.

CSC215 C/C++ Programming I

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC102
This course provides an introduction to the syntax of C++ as a programming language, as well as an introduction to related concepts in C. Topics include data types, control structures, arrays, pointers, functions, classes, inheritance, virtual functions and polymorphism.

CSC262 C# Programming II

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC202 or CSC203
C# Programming II concentrates on object-oriented principles. Students will learn how to create and integrate class objects. Topics will include the use of inheritance, files access, error handling, collections, user-defined types, events and polymorphism. Student will also create assembly libraries.

CSC263 Java Programming II

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC202 or CSC203
This course introduces the advanced principles of object-oriented programming using the Java programming language. Students are introduced to the concepts of developing a business application, including user interfaces, file input and output (both data and text), security considerations and database connectivity.

CSC275 C++ Programming II

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC215
Built upon CSC215, this course explores advanced coding techniques in C++. Topics include interface-based programming, basic data structures, exception handling, advanced algorithms, sockets, templates and the Standard Template Library.

CSC318 Software Engineering Principles

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC280 and (CSC262 or CSC263 or CSC269 or CSC275) and ENG301
This course introduces the principles of software engineering. Students are introduced to the concepts of requirements development and analysis, scheduling, project estimation, design and development, statistical tracking, as well as testing and verification techniques. This course will involve a smallto- medium- scale software engineering project that will require team effort.

CSC321 Data Structures II

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC280
Besides problem solving and coding techniques, software documentation is one of the most important skills required in the marketplace. Topics will cover standards and tools available, requirements documentation, software specifications development and help files.

CSC322 Software Architectures

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC275
Developing a sound architecture involves identifying the functional and non-functional requirements that have impact on the design decisions. The designer then identifies the analysis and design patterns for use in the creation of the software architecture. The many published and new and emerging patterns are the focus of this course.

Synthesis Courses - Complete 12.00 credits minimum

CSC360 Artificial Life Programming

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC202 or CSC203 or CSC215
This course uses computer science as a test bed to attempt to answer such questions as “What is life?”, “How can we measure evolution?” and “Under what conditions does life-like behavior emerge?” Students will design and implement computer programs and computer simulations using methodologies like evolutionary algorithms, genetic algorithms, swarm intelligence, ant colony optimization, agent-based models and cellular automata. Using these methodologies, students will create models of real-life organisms and situations. The strengths, weaknesses and applications of various models and methodologies will also be discussed.

CSC365 Agent-Based Models

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC360
This applied programming course provides an advanced, in-depth exploration of agent-based models. Students will study the key historical moments, personalities, and concepts. The course will also survey the broad varieties of agent-based models as well as their applications. Students will develop and apply their own agent-based models.

CSC370 Artificial Intelligence

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC280 and (CSC262 or CSC263, or CSC269, or CSC275)
This course surveys artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, theories and applications including knowledge representation, searching, expert systems and machine learning. Modern AI research is concerned with producing useful machines to automate human tasks requiring intelligent behavior.

CSC375 Cellular Automata

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC360
This applied programming course provides an advanced and
in-depth exploration of cellular automata (CA). Students will
study the key historical moments, personalities and concepts.
The course will also survey the broad varieties of CAs as well as their applications. Students will develop and apply their own
CA models.

CSC385 Evolutionary Algorithms

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC360
This applied programming course provides an advanced, in-depth exploration of evolutionary algorithms (EA), including genetic algorithms and genetic programming. Students will study the key historical moments, personalities and concepts. The course will also survey the broad varieties of EAs as well as their applications. Students will develop and apply their own EA models.

CSC390 Neural Networks

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC360
This applied programming course provides an advanced and
in-depth exploration of neural networks. Students will study the
key historical moments, personalities and concepts. The course will also survey the techniques and types of neural
networks as well as their applications. Students will develop
and apply their own agent based models.

CSC412 Software and Simulation

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC262 or CSC263 or CSC275
Simulation is useful for modeling natural and human systems in order to better understand the operation of those systems. The applications of computer simulation include the generation of believable virtual worlds, the automation of elaborate, software-driven special effects for film and the creation of business analysis tools that can extrapolate information more accurately. Simulation allows the analysis of complex systems without the need to incur the expenses of actually constructing the real system. Students in this course will explore and develop applications utilizing these principles.

CSC421 Artificial Life and Robotics

Credits: 3.00

Prerequisite(s): CSC207
This course will explore the intersection of robotics and artificial life. Students will study ways in which artificial life technologies and techniques can be applied to robotics. The course will focus on artificial organisms that are embodied in robots and can adapt to their environment through evolutionary and learning processes.

Bachelor of Science Degree Requirements