Engr 694-60: Research Methods in Computer Science
Spring 2016

Final Project Paper and Presentation
Revised Due Date for Paper: Monday, 9 May 2016, Noon
Presentation: Thursday, 12 May 2016, Noon (Final Exam period)

For this assignment, you are required to produce a final paper:

• Choose a computer science topic you wish to investigate. Ideally, this should be in an area that you are considering for a possible dissertation, thesis, or other research project. It may be (but is not required to be) the same topic that you chose for the annotated bibliography assignment.


• Select three or four important papers on your chosen topic. (Some or all of these may be among those you selected for your annotated bibliography assignment.)


• The papers you choose should be scholarly papers of reasonable length published in reputable computer science journals or refereed conference proceedings (or post-proceedings). The journals, transactions, and conference proceedings published by ACM and IEEE are good sources for papers. But you may choose other reputable publishers of scholarly papers with significant computer science content.


• Read and study the papers carefully.


• Using what you have learned this semester, write a 5-to-6 page (approximately 2500-word) summary (and critique) of the selected papers. Your summary should be an integrated overview of the papers, not just independent summaries of each paper concatenated together. You may reference additional papers, books, or other materials as needed.


• Your paper must be your own work. Be sure to include appropriate quotations, citations, bibliography, and acknowledgements as we have discussed in this course. Use the IEEE citation style and IEEE Transactions template. Do not include annotations in the reference list.


• Format your paper using either LaTeX or a word processor that produces a document that is compatible with Microsoft Word.


• Submit the source files and a PDF of your paper electronically via Blackboard by the paper's due date.

For this assignment, you are also required to give a final presentation:

• Be ready to present a 12-minute talk on your paper for the instructor and your classmates during the period set for your presentation. Your instructor plans to schedule all presentations for the final exam period (Thursday, 12 May, Noon until 3:00), but this is subject to modification by the end of April. He expects you to attend all presentations and to submit an evaluation form on each student presentation (except your own).


• Design your presentation to fit within the allocated time budget. Practice the delivery as needed. Be prepared to answer questions from your classmates or instructor.


• Try to resolve all technical issues with your presentation in advance. If you plan to use the Windows computer, projector, and/or document camera in the classroom, make sure that appropriate software, fonts, etc., are available and that you can operate the equipment as needed. If you plan to bring your own computer, make sure you can connect it to the projector expeditiously. If you need to use files on a server or web pages, may sure you can access them from the classroom.


• If you produce slides, handouts, or web pages to support your presentation, please submit the materials electronically to Blackboard.

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