ENG1060: Computing for engineers

Weekly 2.5% labs
Weekly 0.5% preworkshop
10% (?) assignment
2x 2.5% consolidation quizzes after week 6 and 12
5% lecture participation (answers don't need to be right, just answered during the workshop)
Probably something else but I've already forgotten

This was probably by far the best first year engineering unit. Having done ENG1003 in the same semester, the stark difference in lecturer engagement and tute one on one interaction is crazy. The tutors are all (suspiciously) recruited from the mechanical/aerospace/mechatronics faculty and are usually 4th/5th/PhD students and mine at least was really interactive and good. We were split in groups of 3 to 4 people every lab to work on the lab questions after doing team tasks. During the lab we would be asked individually a question from the team task to get marks for that lab and then would usually either go silent or talk to other people in our breakout room about that week's questions.

Dr Tony Vo is an excellent lecturer and has great interaction with his students. The TAs which assist in teaching in the workshops also explain things very well and connect with their students, making the unit so much less dry (the TA that kept mentioning his love for KFC was great).
As for the content, it starts off with the basics of MATLAB in weeks 1 - 6 and develops those skills in weeks 7 - 12 with root finding etc. It's not particularly difficult and definitely has a lower learning curve than ENG1003. The tutors also help spot errors in your code and break down problems which you don't understand.

Dr Tony Vo

Yes, there were around 4 past exams but they were when exams were on campus without the aid of MATLAB so the actual exam was very different.

4.5 out of 5

Yes, recorded zoom workshop with students asking questions

Don't recall a textbook being recommended

1h pre-workshop videos
2h workshop
3h lab

2020 Semester 2

HD

9 labs worth 2% each (18% total)
Library session/ test (2%)
Assignment (10%)
Exam (70%)

Okay, so a lot of the reviews for computing on AN are pretty positive. From what I've found, computing is generally a subject that you either love or hate. Unfortunately I strongly disliked the unit.

The first six weeks of content covers the basics on how to use MATLAB, such as writing M-files, for and while loops, loading data if statements etc. I've never had any experience with MATLAB or programming at all whatsoever, which made the labs so much more terrifying. For the most part I thought I understood the content fairly well, but the labs would take hours and hours to complete, and were extremely draining and frustrating to say the least. I would highly recommend obtaining your own copy of MATLAB as the computer labs at Monash can get quite loud which makes it pretty hard to concentrate (plus, think of the convenience!)
The last six weeks of content covers numerical methods, which is essentially writing MATLAB codes that are able to fit curves, solve ODE's (through trapezoidal and simpsons rules), perform gaussian elimination and solve simultaneous equations. Personally, I found numerical methods to be more interesting and logical than the first six weeks of content. The labs were less frustrating for me and much more manageable time wise! Although the content for this topic was still fairly dry, it was MUCH better than the previous content!!

Wai Ho Li covered the first six weeks of the course. She wasn't particularly great but wasn't absolutely horrible either. (Her voice is very high pitched if trying to watch on MULO though so beware!)
Murray Rudman took the last six weeks. I didn't actually physically attend any of his lectures, but from what I saw on MULO, he seemed to be a decent lecturer (again not amazing though)

The library session is a total waste of time and is done in place of a lab. On the bright side is super easy to score full marks and you'll be out long before the lab was meant to finish!
As for the exam, the first 40 marks cover the first six weeks of content and is fairly straightforward. No huge issues in this section.
The last 60 marks cover the last six weeks of content. This part was more challenging than the previous one, but is still manageable. The main issues I had with this section were the questions asking to write out and correct code, as it was difficult to recall how some of the codes were written (probably my fault for not studying enough though). The rest of the section shouldn't be too bad if you've practiced the questions on past exams and are good with the scientific calculator.
Overall a super unenjoyable unit. Even though it managed to be my highest average coursework mark, I still consistently felt confused and behind in terms of the workload. The labs were horrible. Worst thing in my timetable all semester. So happy I never have to look at this unit again!

Wai Ho Li and Murray Rudman

Yes, but they only released two sets of solutions

1.5 out of 5

Yes, with screen capture

Don't even bother

2x 1 hour lectures and a 3 hour computer lab each week

Semester 1 2014

88 HD

Well firstly, if you're studying any type of engineering at monash you will be required to undertake this unit whether you want to or not. With this being said, I found the unit quite enjoyable, despite the amount of time I spent being frustrated at matlab.

My best recommendation towards studying for the unit isn't necessarily reading textbooks like you may other units, but rather spending quite a bit of time on matlab as it practically provides most of the stuff you need to know. The more time you spend on matlab the more you learn about how the code works and how to fix errors, which has focus in parts of the exam.

The lectures can be useful, but most of the time can be quite dry at times due to easy material and not all that engaging. The material is also taught pretty much from the slides with an example here and there. I made the decision to stop attending lectures early in the semester (although I still attended some), choosing to learn the course material solely from the lecture notes, which seemed to suffice.

I strongly recommend trying to begin, if not complete, the lab class questions before your session as they can be quite long and arduous at times. It's also a good idea to try and allocate your lab later in the week because if you get stuck you'll be able to get friends who have already done the lab to help. In regards to finishing the lab sessions early, the same goes for the assignment. Although, it isn't hard once you grasp the concepts, you do want to make sure you grasp them early and really avoid making silly mistakes, as they can be quite costly when you actually know what you're doing.

For the latter part of the unit I recommend doing more questions and really cementing in your brain the method behind the questions, as the only thing that really changes from year to year in part B of the exam is the numbers used in the questions.
Additionally, I attended a few PASS sessions which were quite helpful, you go through worksheets relating to the course material being studied that week and also do a bit of coding on matlab. If you're struggling grasping the course content I would certainly recommend dropping into one of these. Even if you don't sign up originally you can ask to be allocated to a time or just appear in one hoping they have room, which they most likely will.

Transport Modeller @ Arup

Dr Yi Hong and Mr. Yogen Padayatchy

Yes, 14 (2005-2011, both semesters) available in the past exam database. Worked solutions were provided for 2011 semester 1 and 2, however I also have solutions to 2008 semester 2 and 2009 semester 1 and 2.

4 Out of 5

Lecture notes will suffice for a good mark, however if you're interested in doing more reading or want more exposure to eng1060 related questions "Applied Numerical Methods for Engineers & Scientists" by Chapra may be helpful. A book written by Wai Ho Li, who wrote the lecture notes and from what I can gather helped design the unit, is also available in the Hargrave-Andrew Library.

Semester 2, 2012

91 HD

9x2% Comp Labs, 2% Library Test, 10% Assignment, 70% Exam

Besides the lectures being quite boring, and going over the simplest of things sometimes, this unit wasn't too bad, once you learnt how to put up with a frustrating Matlab. Looking back at it, you could probably learn this unit easily off the lecture notes and with a fair bit of practice. The compulsory library test is an absolute waste of time, but it needs to be done anyway. With labs, the best way to approach them is to prepare your code before hand, bring it in on USB and then just make the final touches to it during the lab. Its best if you get Matlab to use on a computer at home to practise on. With the assignment, while it isn't easy, its not hard, just confusing and not well worded (well for us anyway). Ended up getting the harder part right, but missing a line of code on q1a (the easiest one on the whole assignment...) which put the results of q1 b,c,d out... In short, make sure you check the easy parts too...., missing

First 6 weeks: Dr Yi Hong, Second 6 weeks: Yogen Padayatchy

Both Sems from 2005-2011 (Only 3 with solutions)

3.5 Out of 5

Yes, with screen capture.

Textbooks were pointless for this unit, don't need them at all.

2x1 hr lectures, 1x3 hr Comp Lab per week

2012 Semester 2

92 HD