Start of Term Class Roundup

I have to admit it – as a fourth year computer science student at Wilfrid Laurier, I pretty much hate school. Don’t get me wrong, I dig the computer science based courses in my program, and the courses I’ve been taking towards my history minor are intriguing. The campus is beautiful, and overall, the profs are excellent. These things said, math has never been my strong suit, but is a heavy requirement in my program, and the entire school experience is beginning to sour. I’d really just like to get on with my life and quit being a poor student. Ah well, only another year and a half to go.

In any case, my upcoming term looks alright. I’m taking the following courses:

1. MA205 – Differential Equations I: Like most of my classmates, this is my second shot at MA205, a class that relies mostly on first year knowledge, but generally (and unwisely) isn’t taken until third or fourth year because most people don’t like taking two math courses per term – it’s just too stressful. My previous experience with this course was less than enjoyable. For those who have never taken a course on DE’s, imagine of a course that is about 80% Integration and 20% differentiation in a field of application where most real problems cannot be completed by hand, and are instead generally solved by handy software like Maple.
2. CP411 – Computer Graphics: So far, this course has been excellent. It covers the basic concepts involved in computer graphics, including software, hardware, common algorithms and techniques, all with a focus on OpenGL in C++. Aside from my relative unfamiliarity with C++ (I haven’t worked much with C since first year), this should be an interesting course and an excellent learning opportunity, taught by one of my favourite professors at WLU.
3. CP472 – Programming Languages: Another excellent course, this is a brief overview of the history of programming languages, from the very first machine code languages for IBM machines built in the 1950′s, through punch card languages, assembly languages, early (but still used) languages like FORTRAN and COBOL, right up to current high-level object-oriented interpretive languages like Java and the members of the .NET framework.
4. HI248 – The Second World War: Another extremely interesting course that covers the history of WWII from the end of WWI and the treaty of Versailles, right up until the end of the war, with emphasis on strategy and geographic troop movements throughout the war. It has one of the coolest textbooks that I’ve ever had, which explains the entire war through maps, allowing you to visualize why battles were fought the way they were, and how the fronts moved throughout Europe, Asia, and Africa.

Aside from the math, this should be a very interesting term, with a lot of courses that I’ve been looking forward to taking for a long time.

Cheers,

Jon