Short Projects

COMP 536

Short projects are where you build the core habits of this course: clean repo structure, a reproducible run path, verification discipline, and clear scientific communication.

Each short project uses GitHub Classroom + CI and follows the same submission contract (see the submission guide linked in the site sidebar).

Project list

Project 1: Published Model to Verified Code

Turn a published stellar-physics model into verified, tested code.

• Project 1 Assignment — Main requirements
• Science Background — Astrophysics context
• Starter Code — Scaffold and run.py contract

Project 2: N-body Dynamics

Build an N-body gravitational dynamics simulator with multiple integrators.

• Project 2 Assignment — Main requirements
• Science Background — Astrophysics context
• Planning Worksheet — Pre-coding checklist

Project 3: Monte Carlo Radiative Transfer

Build a Monte Carlo radiative transfer code to model dust extinction in a young star cluster.

• Project 3 Assignment — Main requirements
• Starter Code Structure — Module scaffold and code contracts
• Expectations & Grading — Tiered grading (C / B / A)
• Planning Worksheet — Pre-coding checklist

Project 4: Building a Universal Inference Engine

Build a reusable Bayesian inference pipeline and apply it to Type Ia supernova cosmology.

• Project 4 Assignment — Main requirements
• Science Background — Cosmology context
• Starter Code Structure — Repo contract and run.py scaffold
• Expectations & Grading — Tiered grading with graduate HMC overlay
• Planning Worksheet — Pre-coding checklist

The final project now lives in the Projects section:

• Final Project Assignment
• Technical Guide
• Expectations & Sample Repo Contract
• Final Project Launch Worksheet
• Growth Synthesis Guide

Guides

• Submission Guide
• Growth Memo Guide
• Growth Memo Template
• Markdown Cheatsheet