Teaching Staff

Professor Tami Lieberman

tami@mit.edu

Hybrid office hours: Tues, 4p-5p [or until questions are answered]; or by appointment

E25-551B and https://mit.zoom.us/j/7507575233

TA : Alyssa Haynes

alyssah@mit.edu

Office hours:  or by appointment

Room and Zoom link

Readings

There is no textbook for this course, which covers both fundamental and cutting-edge material. Readings are posted to Canvas and can be accessed from the 'Calendar' view. These should be read before class, as discussions in class will build on them.

Some class time will be dedicated to critical discussion of primary literature (indicated as discussion papers in calendar events). Reading primary literature can be time consuming, so please plan accordingly.

Homework and Grading

• 60% Problem sets (5)

  • Assignments from 2023 are currently posted for reference. There will continue to be an easy opportunity for extra credit on each pset (providing feedback on the pset)

• 25% Very short quizzes (mostly multiple choice) at the end of every class period 

  • These are very low-stakes assessments to allow you to continually evaluate your own learning, taken in Canvas. They will be graded automatically and students will be able to reattempt them at their own leisure within 36 hours. The highest score will be kept for each quiz, and the 4 lowest quizzes will be discarded at the end of the semester. 

• 15% Participation in paper discussions

Collaboration: Working together on problem sets is discouraged but permitted. Problems are not designed to be impossibly hard, and you will learn a lot from reasoning through difficult problems on your own. Each student must hand in their own unique code and write-up, and state if they worked with others.

Programming: You are welcome to use any programming language you like to solve problem sets. We will provide pointers and helpful starting code in Python, but the teaching staff can also help you with your questions in R or MATLAB.

Use of generative AI:  Permitted for helping with writing code, but not other uses on assignments. 

Late assignments: 10% will be deducted for the first day late, and then 15% deducted for each day after that. Exceptions can be made with advance warning and appropriate justification. Failure to plan for difficult scheduling is not a justification, as problem sets are designed such that they can be started well ahead of the due date (no problem sets cover material presented in the lecture preceding the due date). 

Lectures will be in person unless there are extenuating circumstances. If Professor Lieberman or too many students are sick, class will be held virtually. Please reach out to Professor Lieberman ASAP if you are unable to attend class for any reason, including due to illness. If you are unable to attend class, the teaching staff will make accommodations for you to receive lecture materials or participate in paper discussions remotely. 

Syllabus

See the calendar below for topic, reading, and assignment schedules. Topic schedules and readings are copied from last year's course and may change before the start of the Spring 2024 semester. Psets shown are examples only and will be updated for Spring 2024. Zoom links to the 2021 class are also provided in the calendar view. While you may find these videos helpful, they are not a substitute for attending class, as lectures and course content are revised and updated each year. Quizzes and psets will cover content not covered in these Zoom recordings. In addition, in-class discussions are an important part of learning; accordingly, active participation is considered in grading.