BioGrad Computer Science Residential
We will host a group of Year 12 students on our campus for an in-depth experience of various computer science topics with our staff and students. This 2 day residential event is organized by BioGrad education.
Workshops
Turing Tumble
This session teaches the basics of computation through Turing Tumble puzzles. Turing Tumble is a mechanical marble-run computer, using kinetic energy instead of electrical energy. It is configured using modular pieces, after which marbles will flow from the top to the bottom.
You will explore how to build key components of CPUs as Turing Tumble puzzles, such as representing numbers, arithmetic operations, and storing bits permanently without the need of an energy source (equivalent to how non-volatile memory acts as persistent storage in computers). Theoretical issues will also be explored, e.g., what would be possible if we had unbounded space and parts and how Turing Tumble can be seen as identical to other computing devices. Indeed, Turing Tumble can simulate any conventional computer (although it might require about the size of Texas…).
The session also leaves time to get creative yourself, to explore what you can create with Turing Tumble.
How do deep neural networks learn?
In this session you will develop an intuitive understanding for their capabilities and limitations by exploring and modifying real neural networks on Tensorflow Playground, based on the very libraries used in industrial-scale AI applications. The goal of this session is to demystify deep learning techniques by reducing them to their intuitively understandable core algorithms, but without resorting to simplistic analogies and metaphors.
Rubik’s Cube
Learn the theory and practice of solving the Rubik’s cube from competitive speedcuber Nikhil Mande. In this session you’ll learn some mathematical concepts that go into solving the Rubik’s cube. By the end of the session you’ll know the theory behind solving the Rubik’s cube…blindfolded!
Competitive Programming
In this session, we teach students how to write fast Python code to solve programming puzzles against the clock!