CMSC 477/677 - Spring 2009
Agent Architectures and Multi-Agent Systems

Course Website: http://maple.cs.umbc.edu/~don/477/

Teaching Staff

Instructor: Don Miner
E-mail:

Instructor: Marie desJardins

Teaching Assistant: Niels Kasch
E-mail:

Current office hours and office locations are available on the website.

Course Description

This class focuses on fundamental techniques for developing intelligent agents and multi-agent systems. In the first part of the class, we will study a wide variety of architectures for building intelligent agents, including cognitive, logic-based, reactive, and belief-desire-intention architectures. We will read, discuss, and compare research papers on each of the models. In the second part of the class, we will learn about key issues in designing and implementing multi-agent systems, including inter-agent communication languages and protocols, distributed problem solving, planning, and constraint satisfaction methods, distributed models of rational behavior, and learning and adaptation in multi-agent systems.

Textbook

Prerequisites

Academic Adjectives

Communication

Whenever you e-mail the instructor or TA, please use a meaningful subject line and include the phrase "CMSC 477" at the beginning of that line. Your e-mail will catch my attention and I will respond quicker if you do this. I make an effort to respond to e-mails within 24 weekday hours. Feel free to send the email to both the TA and the instructor at the same time so that either of us can respond and answer your question quicker.

Being able to receive class emails from blackboard is crucial to keeping track of announcements.

Grading concerns should be directed to the Instructor in person (not in email).

Grading

Your final grade will be composed of:

• Attendance -- 10%
  Since this is a seminary-style class, attendance is very important. You are expected to come to class every day. Each class is evenly weighted. That is, if you come to 18 of the 20 classes, you will get 90% of this 10%. Moderately good excuses given ahead of time will be forgiven.
• Class Participation -- 20%
  Participating in class discussions about the readings is an important part of a seminar class. The number of inputs you give each class will be recorded.
• Homework -- 20%
  During the course of the semester, you will be responsible for completing a number of homework assignments. The number of and total value of these assignments will vary as the semester continues. These assignments include paper summaries, problem sets and coding assignments.
• Topic Presentation -- 10%
During the course of the semester, you will be responsible for presenting one topic. You are to give a approximately 20 minute talk presenting the reading.
• Agent Architectures Project -- 20%
You will be required to design your own, novel agent architecture. The work will include planning, diagrams, a final paper and a presentation. More details are given in the assignment prompt.
• Multi-Agent Systems Project -- 20%
You will be required to re-implement a multi-agent system. The work will include the implementation (coding), a final document and a presentation. More details are given in the assignment prompt.

Your final grade will be determined according to the following criteria:

90% <= A <= 100%
80% <= B < 90%
70% <= C < 80%
60% <= D < 70%
0% <= F < 60%

These criteria may be adjusted slightly in your favor. Incomplete grades will be given only for verifiable medical illness or other such dire circumstances.

Homework Assignments

Each homework assignment is unique. The requirements and expectations are described in the assignment handout.

Homework assignments may not be turned in late without prior notice. To turn in something late, you must have a valid excuse (the instructor determines what is valid).

Homeworks are to be turned in at the beginning of the class the day that it is due. Although emailing the assignment is acceptable, please do not do it often, as it is inconvenient and often times the assignment gets lost. If an assignment has to be emailed, text files and pdf files only

You may discuss homeworks in depth with fellow classmates. When turning in your homework, list the people you collaborated somewhere on the assignment. Obviously, all writing and code must be your own.

Graduate Students

UMBC Statement of Values for Academic Integrity

By enrolling in this course, each student assumes the responsibilities of an active participant in UMBC's scholarly community in which everyone's academic work and behavior are held to the highest standards of honesty. Cheating, fabrication, plagiarism, and helping others to commit these acts are all forms of academic dishonesty, and they are wrong. Academic misconduct could result in disciplinary action that may include, but is not limited to, suspension or dismissal. To read the full Student Academic Conduct Policy, consult the UMBC Student Handbook, the Faculty Handbook, or the UMBC Policies section of the UMBC Directory. [Statement adopted by UMBC's Undergraduate Council and Provost's Office.]

For additional details on university policies on academic integrity, see the UMBC Undergraduate Student Academic Conduct Policy and the Faculty Handbook, Section 14.2 -- POLICY ON FACULTY, STUDENT, AND INSTITUITIONAL RIGHTS AND RESPONSIBILITIES FOR ACADEMIC INTEGRITY

Any violation of the UMBC academic honesty policy will carry the following minimum penalty: the student will receive no positive credit on the assignment, and the assignment will count against the student's final grade by the full amount it was worth. For example, cheating on an assignment worth 10% of the final grade would result in the student getting no credit for completing the assignment and the assignment counting 10% against their final grade, giving them a maximum possible grade of 80% in the class.

Cheating in any form will not be tolerated. Cheating includes but is not limited to: copying a solution from another student or the internet (or providing your solution to another student), plagiarism, working in collaboration with another student on individual work, and using resources prohibited by the assignment.

Instances of cheating will be reported to the UMBC Academic Conduct Committee. These reports are filed by the Committee and can be used for disciplinary action such as a permanent record on your transcript. You are expected to be honest yourself and to report any cases of dishonesty you see among other students in this class. Reports of dishonest behavior will be kept anonymous.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Dr. Marie desJardins for making her course materials available. Many of the course materials for this class have been adapted from Dr. desJardins' previous courses.