George Mason University
DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE
DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING

Course Description 1999

NETWORK SCIENCE CERTIFICATE
ECE590 Introduction to Network Science
CS699 Advanced Network Science

Distributed education delivered to the desktop at home and office via Internet. 

Certificate Manager Professor J. Mark Pullen
ST2 Room 403; Office hours 1-4PM Monday and by appointment 
Address: Computer Science, MS4A5, George Mason University, Fairfax VA 22030 
contact by email: mpullen@gmu.edu phone: 703-993-1538 fax: 703-993-3692

Instructors:
Dr. Robert Finn, ANSER Corp.
Mr. Wayne Fuller, Stanford Telecommunications Inc.
Dr. Bernd-Peter Paris, GMU Electrical and Computer Engineering Dept.
Dr. Mark Pullen, GMU Computer Science Dept.
Dr. Robert Simon, GMU Computer Science Dept.
Dr. Ravi Sandhu, GMU Information Systems Engineering Dept.


DESCRIPTION

This course is part of GMU's Network Engineering Certificate (NEC), which is intended to 
educate technical professionals sufficiently that they are able to function as practicing 
network engineers.  The Network Science Certificate supports the initial, academic portion of the NEC.  It provides a graduate-level technical background in telecommunications principles, electronic telecommunications practices for both fixed carrier and wireless systems, data communications, local and wide-area networking protocols, network security, network management, and network design.

Prerequisites: bachelor's degree and working experience in any branch of engineering, 
mathematics, or physical science discipline.  Students are expected to have a working 
knowledge of mathematics to include calculus and statistics/probability.

Delivery: Receiving class sessions requires a multimedia Pentium workstation with 28.8 kbps  modem, running Microsoft Windows (95 or NT) and PowerPoint, plus ClassWise learning station software from Magideas Corporation which is available for free download.  Class sessions will be available synchronously at the time of presentation (generally, 3 to 5 PM on Tuesdays) or asynchronously from a recording of the scheduled session, played back via the ClassWise software. 

GRADING POLICY

Grading for the Network Science Certificate is pass/fail.  Students are required to score at 
least 80% on the examination for each block of four lessons to pass that block. A student 
who participates in all class sessions and submits all required homework can repeat the 
block asynchronously to pass the exam.  Professional Education students are allowed up to 
six months to complete each block, whereas ECE590 and CS699 students are allowed up to
the end of the semester for completion.

REFERENCES

1. Noll, Introduction to Telecommunications Electronics, 2nd Ed., Artech House, 1995 

2. Stallings, Data and Computer Communications, 5th Ed., Prentice-Hall, 1997

3. Tanenbaum, Computer Networking, 3rd Ed., Prentice-Hall, 1996

4. Comer, Internetworking with TCP/IP, Vol. I, 3rd Ed., Prentice-Hall, 1996

5. Stallings, High-Speed Networks, Prentice-Hall, 1998

6. Opplinger, Internet and Intranet Security, Artech House, 1998

ADMINISTRATION

Course notices will be provided via email. Students will be provided with an account
on bacon.gmu.edu for download of slides, and may use this or other account for email, which they are responsible to read regularly.  Assignments and examinations will be posted to the HyperLearning Meter (HLM) and may be submitted via HLM, email, or fax. Slide files will be available on bacon.gmu.edu three days before they are presented in class.  Students are responsible for all material presented in class as outlined in the lecture slides.


 SYLLABUS OF ECE 590

COM1: Telecommunications Principles (Finn)

1. introduction/overview; circular trigonometric functions review;
   electromagnetic waveform properties; waveform analysis;
   spectra; filters, Fourier representation

2. speech signals; oscillators; frequency translation; spectrum
   sharing; frequency translation; spectrum sharing; frequency division
   multiplexing

3. analog modulation; decibels measurements; double sideband full carrier
   amplitude modulation; demodulation of amplitude modulation

4. frequency modulation; modulation index; FM spectrum; FM gain;
   COM1 summary and homework review

COM2: Carrier Telecommunications (Finn)

1. sampled signals; delta modulation; adaptive delta modulation; pulse
   amplitude modulation; pulse code modulation

2. sampling theorem; quantization; quantization noise; aliasing;
   time division mutliplexing; North America/Japan T carriers;
   European E-carriers

3. digital communications; data codes; baseband line codes; noise
   and its effects; modulation and demodulation methods

4. amplitude shift keying; frequency shift keying; phase shift keying; 
   differential phase skift keying;  multilevel signalling; hybrid
   signalling; comparative performance; COM2 summary and homework review

NET1: Data Communications (Pullen)

1. link and LAN basics; vocabulary; review of communications model;
   network concepts; OSI reference model and layering; data coding;
   analog/digital communications review; Shannon's law

2. physical layer and data link control; transmission media; link
   performance; bit stuffing/destuffing; digital transmission; switching
   and multiplexing; commercial digital link standards; DLC functions

3. DLC protocols; timing and efficiency; flow control; stop-and-wait; 
   alternating bit protocol; selective repeat; go-back-n; framing and
   bit stuffing; error control; link management; common link protocols

4. local area networks; basics/definitions; media access control; LAN
   performance; LAN standards, rings and buses; bridging and frame
   relay; NET1 summary and homework review

NET2: Wide Area Network Protocols (Pullen)

1. OSI reference model review; packet network layer functions;
   connection-oriented and connectionless packet switching;
   X.25 and X.75 standards

2. routing methods; internetworking; Internet Protocol concepts; 
   IP subnet protocols; ICMP; Internet routing protocols

3. transport protocols; User Datagram Protocol; Transmission Control
   Protocol; OSI transport layer

4. client-server model; Domain Name system; telnet; File Transfer Protocol; 
   Simple Mail Transfer Protocol; Simple Network Management Protocol; 
   Hypertext Transfer Protocol; NET2 summary and homework review

 SYLLABUS OF CS 699

COM3: Wireless Telecommunications (Paris)

1. fundamentals of radio transmission; the wireless communication
   channel (terrestrial and satellite); digital modulation for wireless
   communications, digital receiver principles

2. cellular and satellite communication networks; multiple access
   methods; mobility management

3. wireless LANs, existing and emerging standards, IEEE 802.11

4. mobility support in wide area networks, CDPD, Mobile IP; COM3
   summary and homework review

SEC: Network Security (Sandhu)

1. security objective, threats and techniques; network firewalls: packet
   filtering and proxies 

2. firewall architectures; firewall limitations; secret key and public key 
   cryptosystems; cryptographic services and building blocks

3. authentication and key distribution protocols; cryptography in network 
   protocols; IPSEC; SSL; secure RPC

4. securing the networking infrastructure: secure DNS and routing protocols;
   SEC homework review

MGT: Network Management (Fuller)

1. introduction to network management; network management Functions

2. standards bodies; network monitoring; SNMP network management concepts

3. management interface bases; ASN.1; RMON

4. network management security issues, SNMP V2 and V3; CMIP;
   network management tools; MGT homework review

 NET3: Advanced Network Protocols (Simon)

1. next generation switched networks; high-throughput and QoS constrained
   applications; overview of 100Mbps LANs, DQDB, frame relay, ATM, NG Internet;
   advanced flow control mechanisms; congestion avoidance

2. advances in TCP/IP; IPv6 (address space, variable headers, auto-configuration);
   effective of mobility and wireless on IP and TCP (mobile routing, naming, 
   effect of losses)

3. new protocols for new applications; web, real-time and multimedia; RTP;
   HTTP evolution; effect of distributed computing, Java, RPC; multicasting;
   multimedia; multicast routing, reliable multicasting

4. ATM and cell switching; PNNI; AALs; traffic shaping, policing, congestion
   control; next generation Internet; integrated services architecture (flow
   specifications, service classifications, admission/congestion control, routing); 
   NET3 homework review