B000367 - INFORMATICS

Computer science

knowledge and understanding: the general aim of the course is to introduce the student to the Information and Communication Technology (ICT), providing him/her with the basic concepts of the information processing. The topics of the course can be grouped into: common hardware characteristics and functioning; operating systems characteristics and functioning, and main memory management in windows-like systems; features of the spreadsheets, pointing out formulas and functions in Excel; hints on computer networks, and Internet; query to PsycInfo database; problem solving tools, and formal algorithmic representation of a problem's solution; macros in the Excel embedded language. All over the course, it will be stressed the connections between ICT and the current research methodologies.

Applying knowledge and understanding: the course provides the skills to autonomously processing data, focusing on those coming out from psychological researches, and using spreadsheets and their embedded languages.

Making judgements: the limits of the ICT will be explored. The tools that ICT provides together with its theoretical features will be applied in the psychological framework.

Communication skills: the course provides students with the knowledge to analyze and interpret data using different softwares.

Learning skills: the topics of the course are of great relevance to understand and use the ICT inside the psychological framework.

Computer architecture, I/O devices, information encoding. Software including operating systems. Electronic sheets. Networks: structure and services. Algorithms, paradigms and programming languages.

Physics and Mathematics Basic knowledges (secondary school)

knowledge and understanding: lessons

Applying knowledge and understanding: class exercises to be carried on autonomously using specific softwares

Making judgements: discussion of the main topics of the course

Communication skills: some examples of how to analyze and interpret data obtained from specific softwares

Learning skills: lessons

Knowledge and understanding: written exam with multiple choice tests and theoretical questions

Applying knowledge and understanding: in itinere exams to test the students' capabilities of analyzing and interpreting data.

Making judgements: analysis of problems where the student is requested to check the knowledge and tools acquired during the course

Communication skills: the exam stresses the students' capabilities of managing problems and interpreting the related data using specific softwares

Learning skills: a written exam with both multiple choice and theoretical questions, will test the acquired skills to use the tools provided by the ICT inside the psychological framework.

Computer architecture: analysis of the main characteristics and of the way the main devices making up a processor work, according to the Von Newman architecture with particular attention to the central processing unit, registers, cache, buffer, RAM (Random Access Memory) and ROM (Read Only Memory). Encoding both numeral and alphanumerical informations in a machine, analysis of the flow of operations taking place during the execution of a program. Analysis of the characteristics and functions of peripherical components: mass memories, pointing devices, input/output devices and other common ones. Definition of software and study of the main characteristics and functions of operating systems with particular reference to Windows like environments. Basic theoretical notions on the common and potential characteristics of electronic sheets, high-level applications of Excel by using the tools of the environment itself with particular attention to formulae and functions. Basic notions on the architecture and the topology of networks, with particular attention to the peculiar characteristics of each of them. Algorithmic reasoning: problem definition, study of a solution, description of the solution itself. Programming languages: paradigms and characteristic. Study of classical concepts, connected to the programming languages such as constant and variable types, their visibility, conditional instructions and cycles, etc. The syntax of VBA in order to create macro in Excel environment.

On-line handbooks and tutorials