Piazza: We'll use the 6.02 piazza forum (opens in new tab) for Q&A and other discussions regarding the course. Please sign up, and check that page regularly.

Lab hours: The TAs and LAs will be available in the afternoons and evenings in the 6.02 lab, 38-530. The staffing schedule is posted on the Lab Hours page on the course website. The lab has 100 debathena workstations (or, BYOL -- bring your own laptop). The lab is open during the following hours:

Hours	Days
9:00am - 11:45pm	Mon - Thu
9:00am - 5:15pm	Fri
closed	Sat
1:00pm - 11:45pm	Sun

There are special hours during holidays and breaks -- see the schedule posted here for details.

It's possible to successfully complete all the lab tasks on your own computer without coming to the lab (you'll need to install all the required software, of course), and resolving your questions using Piazza or coming to the lab during the posted hours.

You may also email 6.02-help at mit dot edu, but we prefer Piazza. Did you remember to sign up?!

Each PSet is divided between analysis/theory problems and tasks that involve exploring communication concepts using Python. You will have to write some of your own code, so be sure to start early and leave enough time to debug your implementation before the due date. There will be weekly checkoff interviews during the semester, lasting 10 minutes on average, which you must complete with your assigned TA on or before the dates specified on the problem set. Your TA will contact you to schedule these interviews.

Completing the interviews is a pre-requisite for passing the course. An unexcused missing interview will result in a failing grade; we will not grant "incompletes" for missing interviews.

After your PSet has been graded, your score and any comments from the grader can be viewed online by browsing the PSet. If you have any questions or concerns about the grading, contact your TA.

Please note that working through the PSets (and other practice problems we provide) is an essential component in learning the material. They are also helpful to test your understanding of what we teach and to prepare for the quizzes.

Late policy: You may use up to five extension days (in total) over the course of the semester for the ten PSets, with a maximum of two days on any one PSet. To claim an extension day, click on the "student extension" button associated with the PSet, on the "Online grades" link. For any other late PSets, your score will be multiplied by 0.5; moreover, you must submit it within 5 days of the original due date to get any credit.

If you have a note from Student Support Services, please see your TA or one of the course lecturers. For all other circumstances (interview trips, sporting events, performances, overwork, etc.) you may use your extensions.

Collaboration policy: We encourage you to work with other students in the class, as well as the course staff, to learn the underlying material. However, the work you hand in must be your own. In particular, you must not copy another person's solution, code, or other work. Someone telling you the solution to a problem is also not acceptable. Copying another person's work or allowing your work to be copied by others is a serious academic offense and will be treated as such. We will spot-check your submissions using a software utility, as well as manually, for cheating, so please don't tempt fate by submitting someone else's work as your own; it will save us all a lot of grief.

Quiz 1: October 7, 2014 (Tu), 7:30-9:30pm. Location: 50-340 (26-100 for overflow)
Quiz 2: November 13, 2014 (Th), 7:30-9:30pm. Location: 50-340 (26-100 for overflow)
Quiz 3: Week of December 15, 2014. Date, time, and location TBD.

We expect you to be sufficiently engaged with the course staff (at least your recitation instructor and TA) to enable them to assign you a small portion (2%) of your overall grade for participation. This participation score can make a significant difference if you end up on the border between two letter grades.

Three quizzes for a total of 48%:

Quiz 1: 16%
Quiz 2: 16%
Quiz 3: 16%

Ten PSets: 5% each, for a total of 50%
Participation in recitations and lecture: 2%

To see your scores, use the "Online grades" link in the nav bar on the left.