CIS 505, Spring 2008: Research Project Guidelines

As an alternative to the distributed mail server project, interested students can work on an independent research project on any topic related to distributed systems. This alternative requires substantially more work. You should propose your own research project based on your ongoing research interests, as long as it falls under the general theme of the course and I approve it. Students can work in groups of 2-3 or individually on the research project.

If you are interested in pursuing this option, you have to submit a 2 page proposal (two columns, 11pt font, single-spaced) by 28 Mar 2008. Before you commit to writing the proposal, please email me to check with me informally first to make sure your project has a chance of being approved.

The proposal should include the following:

  • The description of the problem you are trying to solve.
  • The approach you plan to take to solve the problem.
  • A sketch of how you plan to evaluate your solution.
  • A list of at least two papers related to your problem.
  • Your proposed timeline and deliverables.

    The outcome of research project is an optional 10 minute in-class presentation on the last day of class, and a mandatory 6 page final report (two columns, 11pt font, single-spaced) that should be structured like a workshop paper, with a short abstract, introduction, body, related work, and conclusion. The report is due 30 Apr 2008.

    Note: You should only pursue this option if you have an ongoing research project that can be integrated with the course material, and/or are currently working with a faculty member on a research project related to distributed systems. Since this is a systems-oriented class, your project should be experimental and involve implementation work. You should also plan on something that can be completed in 3-4 weeks of intensive work.