From rr370 at msstate.edu Mon Dec 1 23:15:41 2008 From: rr370 at msstate.edu (Ram Mohan Reddi) Date: Mon Dec 1 23:15:49 2008 Subject: [ece3163] Recitation Class Message-ID: Dear Dr.Joe, I didn't meant that I will be busy, I said that they can email me if they have any further questions. Regarding a class on Matlab, I am not sure I will be of much help to them and also I am in a doubt that I may confuse them if I made some mistake regarding the Matlab programs. Regards, RAM From rr370 at msstate.edu Tue Dec 2 08:03:38 2008 From: rr370 at msstate.edu (Ram Mohan Reddi) Date: Tue Dec 2 08:03:52 2008 Subject: [ece3163] Recitation class Message-ID: Hi everybody, Upon your request for a class on MATLAB for the course. I am thinking of having the class on Wednesday, at 10.00 am.I will reserve a classroom for us and will email you tomorrow. Please email me if you have conflict with class timing on Wednesday,depending on the majority we will think of an alternative.There will be no recitation class tomorrow evening. Regards, Ram From picone at ece.msstate.edu Tue Dec 2 16:18:47 2008 From: picone at ece.msstate.edu (Joseph Picone) Date: Tue Dec 2 16:19:08 2008 Subject: [ece3163] final exam in S213 *** live cockroaches *** Message-ID: <4935B447.6020604@ece.msstate.edu> The final exam will be located in S213 on Dec. 9 from 3 to 6 PM. S213 has outlets at each desk for your laptops... so lack of power can't be used as an excuse for not getting every problem 100% correct :) Remind me to tell you the story of "live cockroaches"... -Joe From rr370 at msstate.edu Tue Dec 2 17:30:50 2008 From: rr370 at msstate.edu (Ram Mohan Reddi) Date: Tue Dec 2 17:31:04 2008 Subject: [ece3163] Recitation Class Message-ID: Hi everybody, Tomorrow we will be having our class in Simrall 130 at 10.00 am. regards, RAM From picone at ece.msstate.edu Tue Dec 2 21:43:00 2008 From: picone at ece.msstate.edu (Joseph Picone) Date: Tue Dec 2 21:43:26 2008 Subject: [ece3163] Final Exam In-Reply-To: References: <4935B447.6020604@ece.msstate.edu> Message-ID: <49360044.5010908@ece.msstate.edu> > What chapters will the final exam cover? The final exam will cover the entire book - Chaps. 1 to 11. -Joe From picone at ece.msstate.edu Tue Dec 2 23:15:32 2008 From: picone at ece.msstate.edu (Joseph Picone) Date: Tue Dec 2 23:16:09 2008 Subject: [ece3163] early toys with speech recognition technology Message-ID: <493615F4.90102@ece.msstate.edu> We were talking about the Julie doll today in class. Here is a YouTube clip of a commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UkU9SbIictc and a URL: http://www.dollinfo.com/wowjulie.htm Here is a related product: http://www.datamath.org/Speech/Voyager.htm that had a simple speech recognizer in it. Both products were follow-ons to Speak 'N Spell and, though they tested very well with focus groups, and even won design awards, they did not do very well in the marketplace :( Those were fun times because Texas Instruments thought they could make a lot of money in the educational toy business. Every year we would roll out some new toys. These were usually developed on very tight schedules and with very strict cost constraints. For example, the speech technology for the Julie doll was developed in about two months, and that was the first time we had attempted to turn floating-point software running on mainframes into fixed-point software running in a DSP chip. It was also the first time a DSP chip sold in a toy for less than $10. If you want to learn a little more about this technology, here is a presentation I gave five years ago to the MS State IEEE Student Branch: http://www.ece.msstate.edu/research/isip/publications/seminars/msstate/2003/ieee/presentation_v0.ppt Well, that's it for tonight's stroll down memory lane ;) Back to studying for your finals! -Joe From picone at ece.msstate.edu Wed Dec 3 13:28:13 2008 From: picone at ece.msstate.edu (Joseph Picone) Date: Wed Dec 3 13:28:57 2008 Subject: [ece3163] final exam study method In-Reply-To: References: <493615F4.90102@ece.msstate.edu> Message-ID: <4936DDCD.40204@ece.msstate.edu> > What do you think is the best way to study for our final exam? There is really no magic to courses like Signals and Systems. It just takes time. I always recommend the following: (1) Read the book ahead of the lecture to get an idea what will be discussed in class. (2) Attend the lecture and ask questions about what you don't understand. (3) Read the book again making sure you understand everything this time. (4) Work the homework problems. (5) Go back and read the book again. This is when it all starts to make sense. In studying for the final exam, I would follow this approach: (1) Review the lecture notes. (2) Review the homework problems making sure you know how to approach them. (3) Take a look at the previous exams. Identify topics which you are unclear about. (4) Review the book on these topics. (5) The night before the exam, relax for a few hours and watch some television :) The last step is important because you need to be relaxed for the final. Cramming all night rarely improves your score on a final exam if you have put in adequate amounts of time ahead of time. When you walk into the final you should feel confident if I mention a topic, such as the discrete Fourier transform, in your mind you can visualize the lecture notes on that topic in your head and can say to yourself "Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know what that is." Again this might sound silly, but this is really true. By the final exam you should be tired of looking at the material because you know it so well. Let me know if you have further questions. -Joe From picone at ece.msstate.edu Sat Dec 6 21:47:24 2008 From: picone at ece.msstate.edu (Joseph Picone) Date: Sat Dec 6 21:48:15 2008 Subject: [ece3163] final exam - open book and notes Message-ID: <493B474C.7040805@ece.msstate.edu> The final exam will essentially be open book and notes since you will be allowed to use your laptop. So you can bring your textbooks if you like. Email or chats with other students will not be allowed - you have to do your own work. You have been a good class this semester, so I'll use the "trust and verify" approach :) But then, maybe since I realize you will have all these resources at your disposal, I have designed the test so that these resources won't be so helpful ;) -Joe From picone at ece.msstate.edu Mon Dec 8 23:20:56 2008 From: picone at ece.msstate.edu (Joseph Picone) Date: Mon Dec 8 23:21:51 2008 Subject: [ece3163] final exam in S213 *** live cockroaches *** Message-ID: <493E0038.9060004@ece.msstate.edu> One last reminder... note the change in room. -Joe -------- Original Message -------- Subject: final exam in S213 *** live cockroaches *** Date: Tue, 02 Dec 2008 16:18:47 -0600 From: Joseph Picone Reply-To: joseph.picone@gmail.com To: ece3163@ece.msstate.edu The final exam will be located in S213 on Dec. 9 from 3 to 6 PM. S213 has outlets at each desk for your laptops... so lack of power can't be used as an excuse for not getting every problem 100% correct :) Remind me to tell you the story of "live cockroaches"... -Joe From picone at ece.msstate.edu Wed Dec 10 12:57:57 2008 From: picone at ece.msstate.edu (Joseph Picone) Date: Wed Dec 10 12:58:58 2008 Subject: [ece3163] final grades Message-ID: <49401135.2060908@ece.msstate.edu> The final grades have been posted. If you email me, I will provide your grade on the final exam, but I think a relevant quote is "Some things are better left unspoken." Performance on the final was, shall we say, "interesting." I won't post statistics for the exam in the interest of maintaining the holiday spirit. I think many of you were capable of working the Matlab examples presented in the textbook and lectures, so that is a good start. I hope over time you get a chance to use Matlab more so you can appreciate the value of simulation in system design, testing and optimization. It is a large part of engineering today. I wish all of you a happy holiday season. Best regards, Joe