A laboratory, to support a three-course sequence in parallel and distributed computing is being created. The goals of the lab are (1) to provide a rigorous grounding in the basics of these fields, while exploring innovative educational ideas: the use of a distributed spreadsheet to teach the basics of distributed computing, and an active learning approach to teaching parallel algorithm design; (2) to orient the courses toward the technical issues students encounter in applying parallel and distributed computing to Information Technology (IT) problems in the service sector (e.g., air transportation, telecommunications, wholesale and retail trade, health care, the financial services industry) rather than problems in scientific computing. The course is taught on workstation networks and gives equal attention to database problems as well as to numerical computing. The course also introduces issues of security and reliability, which are often more important than program performance. The course sequence culminates in a group project course in which students carry out projects motivated by real problems from the IT sector.
