i JTTE-020003: Topics in Modern Computer Science Michael Kohlhase Computer Science Jacobs University, Bremen Germany
[email protected] April 20, 2016 ii Preface The Course While there are different theories about the impact of technology on human nature and culture we can certainly all agree that we are living in an increasingly tech-heavy age. As global networks become more integrated and active, and the way we interact with texts and documents becomes more computer-supported, students from all academic disciplines will benefit from fundamental concepts and tools for dealing with digital documents and from the ability to think critically about the use(s) of technology. This course will introduce students to modern document representation, management, and dis- tribution technologies. These technologies are a central – but by far not the only – aspect of Computer Science. But the underlying mechanisms and principles are very much hidden away un- der the user interfaces that “naive” users use for dealing with documents in their daily lives. This course attempts to reveal some of these underlying mechanisms and forces for a non-CS audience and along the way the course expose students to basic topics in Computer Science. This Document This document contains the course notes for the Triangle Course “Topics in Modern Computer Science” held at Jacobs University Bremen in Spring 2016. Contents: The document mixes the slides presented in class with comments of the instructor to give students a more complete background reference. Caveat: This document is made available for the students of this course only. It is still a draft and will develop over the course of the current course and in coming academic years.