CSCI 6951 02: Data Science and Machine Learn

CSCI 6951 - Data Science and Machine Learning

Fall 2026 Syllabus, Section 02, CRN 42711,

Credit hours: 3

Course Meeting Times

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Instructor

Zack While

Email: zwhile@ysu.edu

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Public Instructor Information

 

Instructor Title: Assistant Professor

Instructor Professional Qualifications: 

  • PhD, Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Amherst (2025)
  • MS, Computer Science, University of Massachusetts Amherst (2022)
  • BS, Computer Science & Mathematics, Youngstown State University (2018)

Instructor Office Location: Meshel Hall #312

Instructor Office Phone: 330-281-1806

Instructor Website: zwhile.prof

Private Instructor Information

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Course Description

6951. Data Science and Machine Learning. Basic methodologies for the data science pipeline: data acquisition and cleaning, handling missing data, exploratory data analysis, visualization, feature engineering, modeling, interpretation, and presentation in the context of real-world datasets. Classical models and techniques for classification, clustering, anomaly detection, deep learning, and collaborative filtering. Cross-Listed: CSCI 4851. 3 s.h.

Course Readings

Group Title Author ISBN
Required Data Science from Scratch: First Principles with Python (2e) Joel Grus 9781492041139

Available for free online via Maag Library and O'Reilly.

The course readings are subject to change in the event of extenuating circumstances, research developments, current events, and/or to ensure better learning.  

Additional Course Materials

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Course Learning Outcomes/Objectives/Goals

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How to Succeed in This Course

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Attendance Expectations

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Late Work Submission Policy

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Additional Course Expectations

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Artificial Intelligence Policy Statement

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Assignments/Assessments

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Grading and Grading Scale

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University Policies

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Tentative Course Schedule

Week of Reading(s) Proposed Topic Due/To Prepare for Class
8/24 Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Introduction to Data Science
Crash Course in Python
8/31 Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Theoretical Background Quiz 1
Homework 0
9/7 Chapter 3 Data Visualization Quiz 2
9/14 Chapter 9 Getting Data Quiz 3
Homework 1
9/21 Chapter 10
Chapter 26
Working with Data
Data Ethics
Quiz 4
9/28 Exam 1 Review Quiz 5
Exam 1
10/5 Chapter 11 Machine Learning Concepts Homework 2
10/12 Chapter 12
Chapter 17
K-Nearest Neighbors
Decision Trees
Quiz 6
Project Proposal
10/19 Chapter 13 Naïve Bayes Quiz 7
Homework 3
10/26 Chapter 20
Chapter 23
Clustering
Recommender Systems
Quiz 8
11/2 Exam 2 Review Quiz 9
11/9 Chapter 14 Simple Linear Regression Homework 4
11/16 Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Multiple Regression
Logistic Regression
Project Poster
Homework 5
Project Code
11/23 Chapter 8 Gradient Descent Quiz 11
Project Report
11/30 Chapter 18 Neural Networks Quiz 12
Poster Presentation
Poster Session
12/7 Quiz 13
Exam 3

The course schedule, policies, procedures, and assignments in this course are subject to change in the event of extenuating circumstances, by mutual agreement, and/or to ensure better learning. 

Additional Information

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