GENERAL

Engineering Sciences E-129 (previously designated Computer Science E-129) is an examination of the processes by which we attain and convey information -- in a word "communication."  In our everyday life and without a second thought, we routinely make use of enormously sophisticated and complex communication systems.  Our goal in this course is to present a relatively self-contained introduction to the concepts and technologies utilized in such systems. Taken in the broadest sense, the term communication encompasses not only  processes of information transmission, but also processes involved in "remote" observation, information processing and archiving (i.e. the storage and retrieval of information).  In its full generality, the subject is one of immense diversity and a comprehensive treatment would far exceed the scope of any one course.   Our aim is to highlight a relatively small set of ideas which seem to be quite fundamental.

As a means to help define several key conceptual issues and to introduce some relevant physics, the lectures begin with a semi-historical review tracing the development of the various technical means for communicating and the evolution of our conceptual understanding of the communication process.  The lectures continue with a treatment of the critical issue of information representation and quantification which includes a survey of the essential characteristics of visual and auditory information, examples of coding schemes, statistical measures of information content and, above all, an introduction to spectral analysis.  The lectures continue with a discussion of communication media and, in particular, the dissemination of information via electromagnetic radiation.  Finally, the lectures conclude with a discussion of the organization and characteristics of important communication networks.

Engineering Sciences E-129 presupposes relatively little technical background, but treats material that should help to develop a student's technical and scientific literacy and numeracy.  It is intended for those with a particular interest in learning more about some of the remarkable new developments and opportunities in communication and information technology.

PREREQUISITES

A sound knowledge of introductory calculus -- e.g., Math E-15; some exposure to physics is highly recommended--e.g., Physics E-1b.  However, the course is structured to accommodate students with a wide range of scientific and mathematical backgrounds.

POSSIBLE/PROBABLE LECTURE TOPICS

Introduction and historic overview: ancient modes of telecommunication -- signal fires, drums and semaphores; Shannon's diagrammatic model of communication processes; information and uncertainty; the statistical nature of information sources; representations of information; analog and digital communication; the role of perception in the communication process. (1 lecture)

Wire telegraphy: an introduction to basic electrical concepts -- voltage, current, resistance and capacitance; liquid models of electric current flow; electrostatic telegraphic transmitters and receivers; electromagnetism -- Oersted and Faraday; electromagnetic telegraphic transmitters and receivers; analog and digital telegraphy; simple alpha-numeric codes; physical limitations on data transmission rates; telegraph/teletype store and forward systems; duplex and quaduplex transmission -- a means of sharing of scarce communication resources; the seminal harmonic telegraph. (2 lectures)

Telephones and phonographs: sound and hearing -- the characteristics of auditory information; temporal and spectral representations of auditory signals; analog telephony and recording; telephonic and phonographic transmitters and receivers; frequency (FDM) and time (TDM) multiplexing; the Nyquist-Shannon sampling theorem; harmonic oscillators; frequency filtering -- an important example of information transformation; models and characteristics of speech. (2 lectures)

Wireless (radio) telegraphy and telephony: more on electromagnetism -- Maxwell and Hertz; understanding how electromagnetic disturbances propagate; characteristics of the electromagnetic spectrum; early radio transmitters and receivers; the encoding and multiplexing of electromagnetic signals; modulation formats -- AM, FM, PM, ASK, FSK, PSK etc.; radio broadcasting systems. (2 lectures)

Video communication: light and vision -- the characteristics of visual information; representations of visual or pictorial information; comparison of conventional analog TV and alternative formats; video bandwidth requirements; video compression as another important example of information transformation; video recording. (1 lecture)

Evolution of analog (telephone) networks: an introduction to circuit switching concepts; architecture of telephone switches; the hierarchical structure of telephone networks; time multiplexing; analog-to-digital conversion and evolution from FDM to TDM; PCM telephone systems. (1 lecture)

The new look of wireless communication: communication satellites; portable radio communication -- cordless telephones; beepers, cellular telephones, and personal communication services in general; radio frequency identification. (1 lecture)

Fiber optics: an introduction to the physics and technology of lightwave communication in general; fiber optics -- a communication channel of, essentially, limitless capacity. (1 lecture)

Digital (data) networks: an introduction to store-and-forward switching concepts; packet switched networks; network architectures and protocols; high data rate networks; vanishing distinction between communication and computation. (1 lecture)

TEXTBOOK

Highly recommended: Contemporary Communication Systems Using MATLAB^® and Simulink^®, John G. Proakis, Masoud Salehi and Gerhard Bauch, Brooks/Cole of Thompson Learning, Menlo Park, Belmont, CA 94002, 2004.  ISBN 0-534-40617-3.

Also recommended (but not required): A Digital Signal Processing Primer, Ken Steiglitz, Addison-Wesley Publishing, Menlo Park, CA, 1996.  ISBN 0-8053-1684-1

Copies of graphic materials used in the lectures will be distributed through the course web site.

WORLD-WIDE WEB SITES

There are some extreme valuable, relevant resources on the Web and we will make extensive use of some of these. See for an evolving listing:

The CSCI E-129 List of Commuication Links

• Introduction to Wireless Systems, P. Mohana Shankar, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 2002.  ISBN 0-471-32167-2

• Signal Processing First, James H. McCellan, Ronald W. Schafer and Mark A. Yoder, Pearson Education of Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 2003.  ISBN 0-13-090999-8

• DSP Processing First, James H. McCellan, Ronald W. Schafer and Mark A. Yoder, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ, 2003.  ISBN 0-1324-3171-8

• An Introduction to Analog and Digital Communications, Simon Haykin, John Wiley & Sons, New York, 1989. ISBN 0-471-85978-8.
 
• being digital, Nicholas Negroponte, Alfred A. Knopf, New York, NY, 1995. ISBN 0-679-43919-6.
 
• Data Communication: A Comprehensive Approach (Second edition), Gilberd Held and Ray Sarch, McGraw-Hill Information Services Company, New York, NY, 1989. ISBN 0-07-607002-6.
 
• Coding and Information Theory (Second edition), Richard W. Hamming, Prentice-Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, NJ, 1986 ISBN 0-13-139072-4.


• Signals: The Telephone and Beyond, John R. Pierce, W. H. Freeman and Company, San Francisco, CA, 1981. ISBN 0-7167-1311-X.
 
• Modern Data Communication: Concepts, Language, and Media, William P. Davenport, Hayden Book Company, Inc., Rochell Park, NJ, 1971 ISBN 0-8104-5667-2.


• Telecommunications Technology, R. L. Brewster, Ellis Horwood Limited, Chichester, England, 1986. ISBN 0-470-20270-X.


• Introduction to Telephone Switching, Bruce E. Briley, Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc., Reading, MA, 1983.
 
• The Science of Sound, Thomas D. Rossing, Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., Reading, MA, 1982. ISBN 0-201-06505-3.


• Data and Computer Communications (Seventh edition),William Stallings, Prentice Hall, 2002. ISBN 0-13-1006819.


• Computer Networks (Fourth edition), Andrew S. Tanenbaum, Prentice-Hall, 2002. ISBN 0-13-0661023.

Computer simulations are used extensive throughout the course to help understand and model communication processes and systems. The following software packages are found to be particularly valuable:

Signal (information) analysis and processing:

SIMULINK^®(The MathWorks, Inc. ) is an integrated simulation package based on MATLAB^® which is exceedingly valuable for studying signal characteristics and communication operations.

Physical ideas:

See The ENSC/CSCI E-129 List of Interactive Tutorials.

R. Victor Jones,
Robert L. Wallace Research Professor of Applied Physics
112 Pierce Hall, Harvard University
(617) 495-4447
email: jones@deas.harvard.edu

LECTURES:

Lectures will start promptly at 7:35!  Much of the essential material in the course will be available only through the lectures and lecture supplements distributed on the course web page.   Students unable to attend a given lecture should make appropriate arrangements with another member of the class.

ASSIGNMENTS

It is expected that all students enrolled for credit will complete all assignments in a timely fashion. There will be an additional major assignment required of all credit students. Most of the regular assignments will make use of the simulators which are described above.

EXAMINATIONS
 

There will be a two hour, mid-semester examination and a two hour, final examination. These exams will cover material from the lectures, assigned exercises, and readings.  It is Extension School policy that all creditors, without exception, are required to take the final at the designated time.