The XSEDE project and the University of California, Berkeley are offering an online course on parallel computing for advanced undergraduates to design, implement, optimize, and verify programs to run on present generations of parallel processors. We are seeking other university partners that are interested in offering the course for credit to their students. The course includes online video lectures, quizzes, and homework assignments with access to free accounts on the NSF supported XSEDE supercomputers.
As it has become the basic computing device in products ranging from single cell phones to racks of hardware in the cloud, parallel processors are emerging as the pervasive computing platform of our time. This course will enable advanced undergraduate students to design, implement, optimize, and verify programs to run on present generations of parallel processors.
There are four principal themes that are pursued in this course:
- Software engineering
- Performance Programming
- Programming in Parallel Languages
- Course project
Course prerequisites include:
Students should have taken, the following or equivalents:
- Basic programming course using Java, C or C++
- Undergraduate course on computer organization
It is recommended that students have taken:
- At least one upper division course that includes significant programming assignments (e.g. Compilers, Operating Systems, or Software Engineering)
Participating institutions will need to provide a local instructor that will be responsible for advising the local students and officially assigning grades. Students will complete the online course quizzes and exercises as part of their grade and can then undertake a final group project supervised by the local instructor. The course will begin late August 2014 and end the first week of December 2014. A draft syllabus and schedule for the course can be found here.
The XSEDE and Berkeley staff will meet with local instructors online every two weeks and also help with answers to student questions using an online forum. Local instructors may design their own group project or choose from a number of projects that have been undertaken by students in the past.
Instructors interested in the collaborative class should contact Steve Gordon, lead for the XSEDE education program at sgordon@osc.edu or by phone at 614-292-4132.
