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Computer-Aided Teaching of All Mathematics (CATAM)

 

Read CATAM News for up-to-date information about the Computational Projects and changes to the Desktop Services/Managed Cluster Service (DS/MCS) network facilities.


Headlines

General | Part IB | Part II | Old Perennials

General items:

 

 

Part IB Projects:

05/08/24: Part IB Manual online

 

 

Part II Projects:

05/08/24: Part II Manual online

 

 

 

Less recent, but still relevant:

27/03/08: Warning - cached pages
31/01/07: Make sure you get through to the CATAM Helpline
22/04/04: File security


Details

5th August 2024: Part IB Manual online

The Manual containing the Part IB Projects for 2024-25 is now available online. If you notice any misprints, we would be grateful if you could draw them to our attention.

However familiar you already are with computing, you will need to read the Introduction to the Manual before starting either on the Introductory Project 0.1 (for which a solution will be posted early in the Michaelmas Term), or on the Core Projects 1.1 and 1.2 (which are due to be submitted by the beginning of the Lent Term). Please note that you are required to submit your project reports electronically. In particular you should submit your write-ups in Portable Document Format (PDF) form. Please see the Introduction to the Manual for more details.  Further instructions will be given during the year.

Please note that while there are no quality marks, i.e. alphas and betas, for CATAM, the maximum contribution to the final merit mark is roughly the same (averaging over the alpha weightings) as for a 16-lecture course.

Please also make sure you familiarise yourself with the section on Unfair Means, Plagiarism and Guidelines for Collaboration in the Introduction to the Manual.

 

 

5th August 2024: Part II Manual online

The Manual containing the Part II Projects for 2024-25 is now available online. If you notice any misprints, we would be grateful if you could draw them to our attention.

However familiar you feel you already are with the Computational Projects course, you will need to read the Introduction to the Manual. You are required to submit your project reports electronically. In particular you should submit your write-ups in Portable Document Format (PDF) form. Please see the Introduction to the Manual for more details. Further instructions will be given during the year.

As in IB, while there are no quality marks, i.e. alphas and betas, for CATAM, the maximum contribution to the final merit mark is the same as the maximum for a 16-lecture course.

Please also make sure you familiarise yourself with the section on Unfair Means, Plagiarism and Guidelines for Collaboration in the Introduction to the Manual.

 

 

 

 

 

Announcements from 2023-24:

 

29 April 2024: Part II Projects: arrangments for extensions

In line with the University-wide policy on self-certified extensions, arrangements are now in place to enable IB students to request a self-certified extension of up to 7 days for the submission of CATAM projects. To request an extension, a Self-Certification Form must be completed on the CATAM IB Moodle page by 4pm on 8th May 2024.

Self-certification should only be used where unforeseen circumstances mean that a submission by the original deadline is not possible, or where your SSD states extensions as a reasonable adjustment. Students who self-certify must have first informed their Tutor in writing or by email.

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29 April 2024: Part IB Additional Projects: arrangments for extensions

In line with the University-wide policy on self-certified extensions, arrangements are now in place to enable IB students to request a self-certified extension of up to 7 days for the submission of CATAM projects. To request an extension, a Self-Certification Form must be completed on the CATAM IB Moodle page by 4pm on 7th May 2024.

Self-certification should only be used where unforeseen circumstances mean that a submission by the original deadline is not possible, or where your SSD states extensions as a reasonable adjustment. Students who self-certify must have first informed their Tutor in writing or by email.

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11th April 2024: Minor amendment to Part II Project 5.2

Question 7 has been amended to refer to the results of Question 6, rather than Question 5.

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15th March 2024: Part IB Additional  Projects: Electronic submission

Students intending to submit CATAM projects are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports in PDF format, and programs to the Project Assessors for checking, via the University's Moodle site. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on Tuesday 30 April 2024. However submission will take some time and the system may be slow on the day of the deadline, so you are encouraged to submit your work when it is ready and start the submission process well in advance. Click here for further information  You should:

  • Read and complete the online Declaration
  • Download, complete, and upload the editable Submission Form
  • Select (only) the Project(s) which you intend to submit from "Project Choices";  this will give you access to the submission folders.
  • Submit your Programs for each project to the "Code" section, as directed.
  • Submit your Report for each project as a single PDF file to the "Report" section. 

Please note that:

  • Reports must be in PDF, and must contain copies of programs at the end of the report.
 
 

25th January 2024: Part II Projects: Electronic submission

Students intending to submit CATAM projects are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports in PDF format, and programs to the Project Assessors for checking, via the University's Moodle site. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on Wednesday 1 May 2024. However submission will take some time and the system may be slow on the day of the deadline, so you are encouraged to submit your work when it is ready and start the submission process well in advance. Click here for further information  You should:

  • Read and complete the online Declaration
  • Download, complete, and upload the editable Submission Form
  • Select (only) the Project(s) which you intend to submit from "Project Choices";  this will give you access to the submission folders.
  • Submit your Programs for each project to the "Code" section, as directed.
  • Submit your Report for each project as a single PDF file to the "Report" section. 

Please note that:

  • Reports must be in PDF, and must contain copies of programs at the end of the report.
 

 

22nd January 2024: Part IB Core  Projects: arrangments for extensions

In line with the University-wide policy on self-certified extensions, arrangements are now in place to enable IB students to request a self-certified extension of up to 7 days for the submission of CATAM projects. To request an extension, a Self-Certification Form must be completed on the CATAM IB Moodle page by 4pm on 30th January 2024.

Self-certification should only be used where unforeseen circumstances mean that a submission by the original deadline is not possible, or where your SSD states extensions as a reasonable adjustment. Students who self-certify must have first informed their Tutor in writing or by email.

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21st December 2023: Part IB Core  Projects: Electronic submission

Students intending to submit CATAM projects are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports in PDF format, and programs to the Project Assessors for checking, via the University's Moodle site. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on Tuesday 23 January 2024. However submission will take some time and the system may be slow on the day of the deadline, so you are encouraged to submit your work when it is ready and start the submission process well in advance. Click here for further information  You should:

  • Read and complete the online Declaration
  • Download, complete, and upload the editable Submission Form
  • Select (only) the Project(s) which you intend to submit from "Project Choices";  this will give you access to the submission folders.
  • Submit your Programs for each project to the "Code" section, as directed.
  • Submit your Report for each project as a single PDF file to the "Report" section. 

Please note that:

  • Reports must be in PDF, and must contain copies of programs at the end of the report.
 

9th November 2023: Minore clarification to Part II project 13.1

A note has been added to section 2 to clarify that, conventions in the lterature vary, but in this project the start state can be an accept state.

 

 

 


 

 

Announcements from 2022-23:

 

26th February 2023: Part IB Additional Projects: Electronic submission

As for the Core Projects, students intending to submit CATAM projects are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports in PDF format, and programs to the Project Assessors for checking, via the University's Moodle site. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on Tuesday 2 May 2023. However submission will take some time and the system may be slow on the day of the deadline, so you are encouraged to submit your work when it is ready and start the submission process well in advance. Click here for further information  You should:

  • Download, complete, and upload the editable Submission Form
  • Select (only) the Project(s) which you intend to submit from "Project Choices";  this will give you access to the submission folders.
  • Submit your Programs for each project to the "Code" section, as directed.
  • Submit your Report for each project as a single PDF file to the "Report" section. 

Please note that:

  • The 4pm deadline will be strictly adhered to (unless there are exceptional circumstances, and your Director of Studies has obtained an extension for you).
  • Reports must be in PDF, and must contain copies of programs at the end of the report.
 

29th January 2023: Minor correction to Part IB Project 2.2

The value of $c_o$ in the second bullet point in section 2.1 has been amended and now reads $c_o = 0$ (rather than $c_o = 1$)..  

14th January 2023: Part II: Electronic submission

Students intending to submit CATAM projects are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports in PDF format, and programs to the Project Assessors for checking, via the University's Moodle site. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on Wednesday 3 May 2023. However submission will take some time and the system may be slow on the day of the deadline, so you are encouraged to submit your work when it is ready and start the submission process well in advance. Click here for further information  You should:

  • Read and complete the online Declaration
  • Download, complete, and upload the editable Submission Form
  • Select (only) the Project(s) which you intend to submit from "Project Choices";  this will give you access to the submission folders.
  • Submit your Programs for each project to the "Code" section, as directed.
  • Submit your Report for each project as a single PDF file to the "Report" section. 

Please note that:

  • The 4pm deadline will be strictly adhered to (unless there are exceptional circumstances, and your Director of Studies has obtained an extension for you).
  • Reports must be in PDF, and must contain copies of programs at the end of the report.
 

22nd August 2022: Minor correction to Part II Project 17.7

In the first paragraph of section 3, the definition of "interleave" has been extended as follows:

\( B '\) and \( B'' \) are also said to interleave if they both have exactly three vertices of attachment, these three vertices being the same for \( B' \) as for \( B'' \).

 

1st August 2022: Part II Manual online

The Manual containing the Part II Projects for 2022-23 is now available online. If you notice any misprints, we would be grateful if you could draw them to our attention.

However familiar you feel you already are with the Computational Projects course, you will need to read the Introduction to the Manual. You are required to submit your project reports electronically. In particular you should submit your write-ups in Portable Document Format (PDF) form. Please see the Introduction to the Manual for more details. Further instructions will be given during the year.

As in IB, while there are no quality marks, i.e. alphas and betas, for CATAM, the maximum contribution to the final merit mark is the same as the maximum for a 16-lecture course.

Please also make sure you familiarise yourself with the section on Unfair Means, Plagiarism and Guidelines for Collaboration in the Introduction to the Manual.

 

1st August 2022: Part IB Manual online

The Manual containing the Part IB Projects for 2022-23 is now available online. If you notice any misprints, we would be grateful if you could draw them to our attention.

However familiar you already are with computing, you will need to read the Introduction to the Manual before starting either on the Introductory Project 0.1 (for which a solution will be posted early in the Michaelmas Term), or on the Core Projects 1.1 and 1.2 (which are due to be submitted by the beginning of the Lent Term). Please note that you are required to submit your project reports electronically. In particular you should submit your write-ups in Portable Document Format (PDF) form. Please see the Introduction to the Manual for more details.  Further instructions will be given during the year.

Please note that while there are no quality marks, i.e. alphas and betas, for CATAM, the maximum contribution to the final merit mark is roughly the same (averaging over the alpha weightings) as for a 16-lecture course.

Please also make sure you familiarise yourself with the section on Unfair Means, Plagiarism and Guidelines for Collaboration in the Introduction to the Manual.

 

 

 


 

 

Announcements from 2020-21:

 

5th January 2021: Part II Projects: Electronic submission

Students are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports in PDF format, and programs to the Project Assessors for checking, via the University's Moodle site. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on Wednesday 5 May 2021. However electronic submission is already available and you are urged to perform it in advance. Click here for further information. Please note that you will need to know your UIS (or Raven) password in order to complete electronic submission.  You should:

  • Download, complete, and upload the editable Submission Form
  • Select (only) the Project(s) which you intend to submit from "Project Choices";  this will give you access to the submission folders.
  • Submit your Programs for each project to the "Code" section, as directed.
  • Submit your Report for each project as a single PDF file to the "Report" section.    [Cover sheets are not required.]

Please note that:

  • The 4pm deadline will be strictly adhered to (unless there are exceptional circumstances, and your Director of Studies has obtained an extension for you).
  • Reports must be in PDF, and must contain copies of programs at the end of the report.

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5th January 2021: Part IB Additional  Projects: Electronic submission

As for the Core Projects,  students are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports in PDF format, and programs to the Project Assessors for checking, via the University's Moodle site. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on Tuesday 4 May 2021. However electronic submission is already available and you are urged to perform it in advance. Click here for further information. Please note that you will need to know your UIS (or Raven) password in order to complete electronic submission.  You should:

  • Download, complete, and upload the editable Submission Form
  • Select (only) the Project(s) which you intend to submit from "Project Choices";  this will give you access to the submission folders.
  • Submit your Programs for each project to the "Code" section, as directed.
  • Submit your Report for each project as a single PDF file to the "Report" section.    [Cover sheets are not required.]

Please note that:

  • The 4pm deadline will be strictly adhered to (unless there are exceptional circumstances, and your Director of Studies has obtained an extension for you).
  • Reports must be in PDF, and must contain copies of programs at the end of the report.

top

18th September 2020: Minor change to Part II Project 15.3

Question 8 now requires the application of the method to only two values of $N$; a third value has been removed.  

1st September 2020: Minor correction to Part IB Project 1.1

The first example in question 7 has been amended, and now refers to the row spaces of $A_2$ and $B_1$, rather than $A_1$ and $B_1$  

11th August 2020: Minor corrections to Part II Project 2.7

A few parameter values have been amended on page 2 of Project 2.7. The line above equation (7) now refers to $u(x,0.5)$, and the following paragraph asks for the exact solution at $t=0.5$. In Questions 3 and 4, $\delta$ is now $0.03$, and the first soliton should have a value of $A=2$.  

 

3rd August 2020: Part II Manual online

The Manual containing the Part II Projects for 2020-21 is now available online. If you should notice any misprints, we would be grateful if you could draw them to our attention.

However familiar you feel you already are with the Computational Projects course, you will need to read the Introduction to the Manual. You are required to submit your project reports electronically. In particular you will be asked to submit your write-ups in Portable Document Format (PDF) form. Please see the Introduction to the Manual for more details. Further instructions will be given during the year.

As was the case last year, while there are no quality marks, i.e. alphas and betas, for CATAM, the maximum contribution to the final merit mark is the same as the maximum for a 16-lecture course.

Please also make sure you familiarise yourself with the section on Unfair Means, Plagiarism and Guidelines for Collaboration in the Introduction to the Manual.

 

31st July 2020: Part IB Manual online

The Manual containing the Part IB Projects for 2020-21 is now available online. If you should note any misprints, we would be grateful if you could draw them to our attention.

However familiar you already are with computing, you will need to read the Introduction to the Manual before starting either on the Introductory Project 0.1 (for which a solution will be posted early in the Michaelmas Term), or on the Core Projects 1.1 and 1.2 (which are due to be submitted by the beginning of the Lent Term). Please note that you are required to submit your project reports electronically. In particular you will be asked to submit your write-ups in Portable Document Format (PDF) form. Please see the Introduction to the Manual for more details.  Further instructions will be given during the year.

Please note that while there are no quality marks, i.e. alphas and betas, for CATAM, the maximum contribution to the final merit mark is roughly the same (averaging over the alpha weightings) as for a 16-lecture course.

Please also make sure you familiarise yourself with the section on Unfair Means, Plagiarism and Guidelines for Collaboration in the Introduction to the Manual.

 

 

 

Announcements from 2019-20:

 

 

10th March 2020: REVISED Electronic submission of Part IB Additional CATAM Projects

Students are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports in PDF format, and programs to the Project Assessors for checking, via the University's Moodle site. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on Tuesday 28 April 2020. However electronic submission is already available and you are urged to perform it in advance. Click here for further information. Please note that you will need to know your UIS (or Raven) password in order to complete electronic submission. Resetting passwords can take time, so check that you know yours well before submission day.

 You should complete and upload a Submission Form, and complete and attach a Cover sheet to each report. You will be sent your coversheet and submission form via email.  Additional information can be found here.

Please note that:

  • The 4pm deadline will be strictly adhered to (unless there are exceptional circumstances, and your Director of Studies has obtained an extension for you).
  • Reports must be in PDF, and program listings must be at the end of the report.

 

10th March 2020: REVISED Electronic submission of Part II CATAM Projects

Students are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports in PDF format, and their programs to the Project Assessors for checking, via the University's Moodle site. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on Wednesday 29 April 2020. However electronic submission is already available and you are urged to perform it in advance. Click here for further information. Please note that you will need to know your Raven (or UIS) password in order to complete electronic submission. Resetting passwords can take time, so check that you know yours well before submission day.

You should complete and upload a Submission Form, and complete and attach a Cover sheet to each report. You will be sent your coversheet and submission form via email.   Further information can be found here.

Please note that:

  • The 4pm deadline will be strictly adhered to (unless there are exceptional circumstances, and your Director of Studies has obtained an extension for you).
  • Reports must be in PDF, and program listings must be at the end of the report.

 

29th November 2019: Part IB Core Projects: PAPER submission

Paper submission of Part IB Core Projects will take place in room EL.09 in Pavilion E of the CMS between 10am and 4pm on Tuesday 21 January 2020. There will be directions to EL.09 from the entrance to the CMS. You must submit in person; someone else cannot submit your work for you.

As explained in the Part IB Manual you will need to sign a Submission Form (an example was given in Appendix D of the Manual). You should download the Core Projects Submission Form by clicking on this link (forms will also be available from the CMS reception on the morning of Tuesday 21 January 2020). Please print the form double-sided. Please also make sure that you understand what you are signing, and that you have fully filled in the `Declaration of Discussions and Exchanges' section.

As also explained in the Part IB Manual, you should leave a gap 11 cm wide by 5 cm deep in the top right-hand corner on the first page of each project write-up. This is for a sticky label, so that your candidate number (which you will be given on submission day) can be added to each project. Also, while you should put the project number clearly in the top left hand corner of the first page, your name or user identifier should not appear anywhere in the write-up (including program listings, graphs, etc.), as the scripts are marked anonymously. Please also remember to print on only one side of the paper, to leave a margin at least 2 cm wide at the left, to number each page, table and graph, and not to use red or green ink (although red and/or green lines on plots are acceptable).   Do not staple your report.  Scanned hand-written pages are not acceptable.  

Please note that:

  • For both paper submission and electronic submission the 4pm deadline will be strictly adhered to (unless there are exceptional circumstances, and your Director of Studies has obtained an extension for you).
  • Please do not email asking for confirmation that your electronic submission has been successful; we do not have the resources to provide confirmation. However, if your files are not there we will notice and be in touch.
  • It would help if you made your paper submission as early in the day as you can (to avoid long queues). You should make your electronic submission beforehand; advisors will be on duty in the CATAM MCS room from 10am until 4pm on submission day.

 

29th November 2019: Part IB Core Project files: ELECTRONIC submission

Part IB students are required to submit electronic copies of their project reports (in PDF format) and their programs to the Project Assessors for checking. Files may be submitted up to the deadline of 4pm on 21 January 2020. However electronic submission is already available and you are urged to perform it as soon as possible. Click here for further information. Please note that you will need to know your UIS password in order to complete electronic submission Resetting passwords can take time, so check that you know yours well before submission day.

 

29th November 2019: Advisors on duty in Lent Term

An advisor will be on duty in the CATAM MCS room, GL.04, from 2pm until 4pm for the week Monday 13 January to Friday 17 January. An advisor will also be on duty on Monday 20 January and Tuesday 21 January, from 10am until 4pm, since Part IB students will be preparing and submitting their Core Projects.

 

 

27th March 2008: Warning - cached pages

When checking the latest online version of a project before finalising your write-up, ensure that your computer has not 'cached', and is therefore displaying, the previous version that you accessed.

31st January 2007: Make sure you get through to the CATAM Helpline

When emailing the Helpline:

(1) Always write from your University email address (@hermes or @cam)

(2) If a project is involved, put it it the subject line: e.g., Part II Project 14.5. Otherwise make it clear how the email relates to CATAM, e.g. mention MATLAB.

(3) Include a clear message in the body of the email, making clear the relevance to CATAM: e.g. I have attached the electronic versions of my Part IB Core CATAM Projects.

(4) Discuss only one project and, ideally, only one question in each email.

If for good reason you cannot achieve (1), be particularly careful about (2) and (3).

At first sight the above may seen rather pedantic and unnecessary. However it is the cost of modern communications: the University estimates that it receives over 6 million messages per day of which at least 90% are spam. Most is filtered by the University's spam filter, which will remove emails with no message for example. What gets through to the Helpline still needs filtering, which is done ad hoc, mainly by reference to the sender's address and the subject line.

22nd April 2004: File security

It is important that you keep backup copies of your project files e.g. on memory stick to guard against loss by human error (accidental overwriting or deletion), or by hardware problems on your own computer or University/College fileservers.

Do not leave copies of your project files behind on the local hard disk of Managed Cluster Services (MCS) or College computers. If someone took a copy of your work and incorporated it in one of their own programs, you might be accused of unfair collaboration by the Project Assessors.

If you lose a memory stick containing your programs, please report it to the CATAM helpline.

The Computing Service publish these notes on file security on the MCS.