[ELEN E4810] Digital Signal Processing

Let's get the bad news out of the way:

1. He's HEARTLESS.

Do not expect any concilation from him. If you made an honest mistake and wrote on both sides of your formula sheet instead of only one, he will give you a 0, and will announce it to the class. If you plead him to count the final more, he'll just say "No, I'm not changing the grade breakdown." If you ask him if it's at all possible to pass the class, he'll reply with "You know the grade breakdown, go calculate your grade."

He will also tell you that he does not curve, that he will not answer any question regarding what grade you deserved.

2. He thinks we're RETARDED.

If you ask him some question that he considers dumb in class, he'll stare at you for a while, then elaborate by showing 2 more steps, and then say "If you don't understand how I went from here to here, drop the course."

3. The TA is a Chinese PhD student.

That means unless you can speak Chinese to the TA, he's not very nice, and he'll hardly understand what you mean.

Now the good news:
1. Tough guy has a soft side.

On the last day of class, he will tell you that your final will override the midterm grade ON THE LAST DAY OF CLASS! So if you bomb the midterm, don't be alarmed -- you will get a second chance.

He DOES curve. His curve is weird though. He calculates the grade that everyone is supposed to get, and then he shifts everyone's grade up. My real grade was 2/3 of a letter grade higher than the straight out average according to the grade breakdown So don't believe the bullshit he tells you. He's trying to get you to study harder. Don't be discouraged.

2. Xiaodong Wang is a great instructor.

His organization is crazy good. His notes are very good, and he doesn't ask anything on the final that he doesn't cover in class. If you understand everything he said in class (easier said than done) then you're fine.

3. The TA is a Chinese PhD Student.

Also a good news, because if you speak Chinese to him, he'll love you. If you're among the lucky ones, then go suck up to him like crazy. He'll try to do everything he can to help you out.

Professor Ellis is without a doubt the worst professor I have ever had. If you want a good introduction to DSP, look elsewhere.

The course is good for the first few weeks, when it is an extension of Signals and Systems. After that point, there is no hope. The lectures are 100% powerpoint, with some Matlab demos mixed in. He skips around between slides and moves much too quickly. If you expect any effort on his part, you will be disappointed. Ellis doesn't care if you learn, and it shows.

For grad students: if you've taken some sort of DSP before, this course probably won't be so bad. Other undergrads and I were overwhelmed, but the older folks seemed to be doing OK.