MK's wiki

Homework

Only hand in homework electronically via OWL either as plaintext, markdown with math (best option), or a PDF file. The PDF can be created from MS Word, LibreOffice Writer, typeset with (La)Tex, or it can be a readable (!!!) scan or camera picture (I recommend Office Lens (iOS, Android) or a similar app, especially if you want to accompany your solution with a picture.)
Unless stated otherwise, by „solving“ a task I mean that you prove the given statement.
A proof must be correct, clear, and easy to understand.
If the proof involves an algorithm, you must give a proof of correctness and a complexity analysis.
In your proof you can use statements from the lecture without proving them.
If you start getting lost in your formulations, introduce notation. Assign precise names to objects or quantities and use these names or variables in your text, instead of using pronouns. (It is a common mistake that you talk about this or that set and I'm quickly lost. Why not say a set $A$ and a set $B$?) In plaintext denote a subscript as follows: $a_1$ is a_1, and superscript as follows: $a^2$ is a^2$.
For a good (correct, clear, easy to understand) solution you will gain the full amount of points. If something is missing, but the proof contains the right idea, or if the proof is correct but not quite clear or intelligible, you will get about half the points. If you don't solve the task at all or the proof is completely incorrect, you will get 0 points.
Grading Process:
- About a week after publishing homework, I will give first feedback.
- If your solution looks like it might be correct but important details are missing, I will ask you for explanations. If your solution is incorrect, you will have a chance to resubmit.
- Shortly after the deadline, I will do the same, giving an additional week to those who have tried to do the homework within the deadline. This process can repeat at most once more, so you get 2 resubmission / correcting attempts.
- Late submissions are graded in the same way but the obtained points are reduced by 2/3.
- Submissions 2 months after the deadline are not accepted.
I strongly recommend to learn the basics of mathematics typesetting using LaTeX. I have good experience with the LaTeX wikibook. The easiest way to get into it is probably hackmd.io (small syntax demo; click „edit“ to see the code.) You can also use a web LaTeX editor (Overleaf) because getting LaTeX to work locally can be nontrivial.
I always recommend collaboration when solving tasks and homework, BUT:
- Try solving the task yourself first, you will learn more.
- Try to avoid using ChatGPT and similar tools; I think you don't learn much that way, but I don't strictly forbid it. I will treat ChatGPT usage the same way as talking to a friend, most crucially:
- Even if you solved the task with someone, you must write up your own solution, without the help of any AI/LLM/… If anything makes me suspicious that you don't really understand the task and are just copying what someone (or something) else wrote, and if my suspicion is confirmed, I will report you to PlagUE. I will be much more skeptical next time and I will keep asking many questions about your solution until I'm convinced you really understand the solution.
- Don't ever cheat.