COMP1711 Carbon Capture Data Analysis

UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS | SCHOOL OF COMPUTING 
 
Resit Assessment Brief 
 
Module title Procedural Programming 
Module code COMP1711 
Assignment title Resit – Carbon Capture Data Analysis 
Assignment type and 
description 
This is a programming assignment. You will design and create a number of 
programs to solve a problem from your client. 
Rationale You are doing this assessment to develop your skills in software design and 
development. 
Word limit and guidance You should spend around 10-15 hours on this assessment. 
Weighting 100% 
Submission deadline 9
th
 August 2024 @ 23:59 BST 
There are no late submissions permitted. 
Submission method Via Gradescope. 
Feedback provision Automated feedback through Gradescope 
Learning outcomes 
assessed 
LO1: select appropriate data types to represent data. 
LO2: apply problem solving techniques to develop a programming solution to 
real world problems. 
LO3: design, implement, debug and test procedural programs. 
Module leader Amy Brereton 
Other Staff contact 
 
  
UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS | SCHOOL OF COMPUTING 
1. Assignment guidance 
Scenario, Struct & tokeniseRecord() 
 
You have been asked to work on a new sustainability project, exploring the effectiveness of new carboncapture
techniques by analysing data files produced by sensors. 
 
The data is stored in comma separated value (csv) files, and each row in the file is in this format: 
 
2023-09-01,08:15,150 
 
 The first column represents the date (in YYYY-MM-DD format). 
 The second column represents the time (8.15am in our example). 
 The third column represents the units of carbon saved (measured in grams) since the last timestamp. 
 
These files are valid if: 
- They contain between 1 and 1000 records (inclusive) 
- All carbon readings are positive 
- The times and dates are valid 
- There are no missing values. 
 
To store this data, one of the other developers on your team has produced a custom struct which you can 
use to store the information for each row in the file: 
 
typedef struct _CARBON_DATA { 
 char date[11]; 
 char time[6]; 
 int carbon_units; 
} carbonData; 
 
And you have also been given the function tokeniseRecord() which is able to split records into their 
comma separated values – the README.md in the code folder has a brief explanation of how to use this 
function. 
 
Development Process 
 
It is recommended that you use Github Codespaces, which gives you access to a Linux virtual machine which 
can run from any internet connected device. 
You should develop your code on a private repository to prevent others from accessing it. 
 
You can also access the University’s virtual Linux desktop via: 
https://feng-linux.leeds.ac.uk/ 
You will need to be running the PulseSecure VPN in order to access Feng: 
instructions here (you must be logged on to the IT service website to access)  
UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS | SCHOOL OF COMPUTING 
2. Assessment tasks 
Task 1: Reading Data 
 
Task 1 marks: 25 
Expected time: 1 - 2 hours 
 
To ensure that data can be correctly read in from the files, you will make a simple C program which is able to: 
 
 1. Read in the csv file (for this task, always named ‘CarbonData_2023.csv’) 
o You may assume that this file always exists and is always valid for task 1. 
2. Store it in a suitably sized and structured array using the provided struct carbonData 
3. Write the number of records in the file to the screen in this exact format (234 is just an example): 
 
Number of records in file: 234 
 
4. Write to the screen the first three rows of the file in the following format: 
 
2023-09-01/07:30/300 
2023-09-01/07:45/400 
2023-09-01/08:00/600 
 
Note that there are NO SPACES in the output string, each value is separated by a single forward slash 
‘/’ with a single newline after each row. 
 
How it’s marked: 
 
All submitted code for all tasks is marked by an autograder which checks that your code meets the 
requirements from the brief. You will see a selection of tests when you submit your code, but some will not 
be visible to you. 
 
Each section is tested separately, and marks are available for each individual test. 
 
SECTION MARKS AVAILABLE 
Reading in the original CarbonData_2023.csv file 2.5 marks 
Reading in a new set of data from CarbonData_2023.csv 2.5 marks 
Printing out the correct number of records 10 marks 
Printing out the correct first 3 rows 10 marks 
TASK 1 - TOTAL 25 MARKS 
 
  
UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS | SCHOOL OF COMPUTING 
Task 2: Analysing Data 
 
Task 2 marks: 40 
Expected time: 4 – 5 hours 
 
Now that you have been able to read the data into an appropriate structure, you have been given the task of 
making a tool to analyse the data to give some useful statistics. 
 
Follow good programming practices by structuring your program into two separate files: 
 
CarbonDataStruct.h – A header file containing includes, the struct and any helper functions you'd like to 
include – the template includes tokeniseRecord(). 
CarbonAnalysis.c – A program file containing the code and functions needed to solve the given tasks. 
 
Requirements: 
 
The program should present a simple menu system to the user, offering the following functions: 
 
A: Specify the filename to be imported. Implement error checking to handle incorrect filenames. 
B: Display the total number of records in the file. 
C: Find the date and time of the timeslot with the fewest carbon units saved. 
D: Find the date and time of the timeslot with the most carbon units saved. 
E: Calculate the mean carbon units saved across all records in the file. 
F: Identify the longest continuous period where the carbon units saved are below 100 grams. 
Q: Quit the program 
 
When an option is selected, you code should show the correct data and then return to the menu. 
You must not use ‘clear()’, ‘cls()’ or any other method which clears the screen – this causes issues with 
grading. 
 
The data should be printed out in the formats below: 
Option Example output 
B Total records: 229 
C Lowest units: 2023-09-01 14:20 
D Highest units: 2023-09-01 18:00 
E Mean units: 427 
Note: This should be rounded to the nearest integer (1.4 -> 1, 1.5 -> 2) 
F Longest period start: 2023-09-01 14:20 
Longest period end: 2023-09-01 18:00 
 
If the filename provided is invalid (does not exist/cannot open) – you must exit the program and return the 
value 1. 
 
You do not need to check that the data inside is valid. 
 
 
  
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How it’s marked: 
 
 SECTION MARKS AVAILABLE 
A - File handling / dealing with invalid filenames 5 marks 
B – Correctly counting records in a file 5 marks 
C – Finding row with lowest carbon units 5 marks 
D – Finding row with highest carbon units 5 marks 
E – Finding correct mean average of units 10 marks 
F – Finding the correct period of < 100 units. 10 marks 
TASK 2 - TOTAL 40 MARKS 
 
 
In order to make the autograder work correctly, you must follow the format and return codes given above. 
 
You will get a small amount of feedback from the grader, but you should ensure that you have tested your 
code and its behaviour on a variety of different files – do not just rely on testing it on one file! 
 
You can make the following assumptions for task 2: 
- The data in the .csv file is always valid 
- The user will always set a filename first (i.e the grader will always run ‘A’ first) 
- The user will always input capital letters to the menu (i.e ‘A’, ‘B’, etc.) 
- There will only be one instance of a count which is the lowest/highest 
- There won’t be multiple periods < 100 of the same length. 
  
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Task 3: Presenting Data 
 
Task 3 marks: 20 marks 
Expected time: 2 – 3 hours 
 
This task requires you to write a utility program to output the data file sorted by descending order of carbon 
count in tab separated value (.tsv) format. 
 
A .tsv file differs slightly from a .csv in that the delimiter (character which separates each piece of data) isn’t 
a comma (,) but a tab character. This has the special code \t which places an appropriate number of spaces 
when printed. 
 
Your program should: 
1. Ask for a filename and check the file exists. 
2. Read the data file – and validate that the data is in the correct format 
3. Write out the sorted data into a new file. The record with the highest carbon count should be at the 
top and the record with the smallest carbon count should be at the bottom (descending order). If any 
records contain the same carbon count, these should be in chronological order (the one which 
occurred first should be at the top). 
An example .tsv file is provided in the carbon_files/valid/ folder. 
 
If the filename provided is invalid (does not exist/cannot open) – you must exit the program and return the 
value 1. 
If the data format is wrong – you must exit the program and return the value 2. 
 
If the input file is: 
mydata.csv 
The output file should be called: 
mydata.csv.tsv 
 
You should submit files: 
CarbonDataStruct.h - containing any functions/structs you use in your source code. 
CarbonDataSorter.c - containing your source code. 
 
How it’s marked: 
 
SECTION MARKS AVAILABLE 
File handling 2 marks 
Handling invalid data 6 marks 
Correctly sorting and outputting the data 12 marks 
TASK 3 - TOTAL 20 MARKS 
 
  
UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS | SCHOOL OF COMPUTING 
Invalid File Specification 
 
An invalid file will contain one or more of the following: 
 
 - Invalid carbon count: 
o Not an int 
o < 0 
- Date which is invalid: 
o Not in format YYYY-DD-MM 
o Day > 31 or < 0 
o Month > 12 or < 1 
o Year Between 2000 – 2024 (inclusive) 
o No requirement to validate number of days in month (i.e. 2023-02-31 is valid) 
- Time which is invalid: 
o Not in format HH:MM 
o Hours > 23 or < 0 
o Mins > 59 or < 0 
- A record with a missing or empty field 
 
  
UNIVERSITY OF LEEDS | SCHOOL OF COMPUTING 
Task 4: Quiz 
 
Task 4 marks: 15 
Expected time: 1 hour 
 
For this task, you will need to complete the 15 question multiple-choice quiz on Gradescope. 
 
There are 3 sections with 5 multi-choice questions each: 
- Questions about a provided piece of C code 
- Questions about programming in general 
- Questions about code quality 
 
Once you begin the quiz, you have 60 minutes to complete it. You only have one attempt to complete it, so 
be prepared in a quiet environment where you will be able to focus – you should also ensure you have a 
stable internet connection and a device with sufficient power for 60 minutes. 
 
You may complete this part of the assignment at any time before the deadline. 
 
This is an assessment, and therefore must be completed independently. You can use any notes or online 
resources you would like, but you must not work with other students. 
 
How it will be marked: 
 
Each of the 15 questions is worth 1 mark – partial marks are not awarded for questions where you can 
choose multiple answers. 
 
You will not see your mark or any feedback until after marks are released. 
  
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3. General guidance and study support 
Please refer to the module teaching materials in Minerva for any background support. 
 
4. Assessment criteria and marking process 
All code is graded solely on functionality – you must ensure that your code follows the brief exactly, and use 
the feedback from the grader to check that your code is passing the visible tests. 
 
The passing mark for the assessment is 40% - you may obtain this grade through any combination of 
tasks/parts of tasks. 
 
5. Presentation and referencing 
If you use an idea in your solution that you have seen on the Web somewhere then add a comment to the 
code like this: 
 
// I based this on an idea I found here: 
// https://stackoverflow.com/questions/12901021/error-in-c-file-handling 
 
If you use a book or a printed resource then give the author and title: 
 
// I based this on an idea I got from here: 
// An Introduction to C and GUI Programming by Simon Long, pages 56-57 
 
This assignment is rated ORANGE for use of generative AI tools – this means that you may use generative AI 
tools in an assistive capacity, but must not generate any of your final answer directly from a generative AI 
tool. 
You may not give any generative AI tool access to this brief or any part of this brief, nor ask it to write code 
for you. 
 
You must reference any use of any generative AI by comment in the format below: 
 
// I based this on a discussion with ChatGPT 
// Prompt: Explain how to import a CSV file in C 
 
6. Submission requirements 
Your code must: 
- Be in C 
- Compile on Linux with the following command: gcc *.c –o task 
- Not be inside a subfolder (not in a zip) 
 
  
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7. Academic misconduct and plagiarism 
Leeds students are part of an academic community that shares ideas and develops new ones. 
 
You need to learn how to work with others, how to interpret and present other people's ideas, and how to 
produce your own independent academic work. It is essential that you can distinguish between other 
people's work and your own, and correctly acknowledge other people's work. 
 
All students new to the University are expected to complete an online Academic Integrity tutorial and test, 
and all Leeds students should ensure that they are aware of the principles of Academic integrity. 
 
When you submit work for assessment it is expected that it will meet the University’s academic integrity 
standards. 
 
If you do not understand what these standards are, or how they apply to your work, then please ask the 
module teaching staff for further guidance. 
 
By submitting this assignment, you are confirming that the work is a true expression of your own work and 
ideas and that you have given credit to others where their work has contributed to yours. 
 
8. Assessment/ marking criteria grid 
Task Description Marks available 
Task 1 Reading Data 25 
Task 2 Analysing Data 40 
Task 3 Presenting Data 20 
Task 4 Multiple choice quiz 15 
Total 100