Teaching Faculty Candidate Seminar: Introduction to Hash Tables

Abstract: Hash tables are an associative data structure widely used in software engineering due to their ability to provide efficient insert, lookup, and delete operations. This talk will introduce the fundamental concepts of hashing and hash tables by working through a running example. We will conclude with a brief discussion of research on cognition for programming and its implications on teaching and learning. This talk is aimed at students who are currently taking Data Structures and Algorithms (EECS 281), and have previously seen arrays, linked data structures, and asymptotic analysis (big-O).

Bio: Hammad Ahmad is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Michigan. His research interests broadly span software engineering and human cognition. He is particularly interested in using the cognitive basis of programming to enhance tool support for developers and explore more effective methods for teaching Computer Science. He has previously taught several CS courses across two institutions, and received a departmental Outstanding Teaching Award in Winter 2021. He holds an M.S. in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Michigan, and a B.S. in Computer Science from Washington and Lee University. During his free time, he enjoys soccer, video games, and portrait photography.