CIS 700/005, Spring 2007: Project Guidelines

The primary goal I have for this course is to introduce students to research opportunities at the boundaries of networking and databases, with the intention of generating new research ideas. The class project gives us an opportunity to explore these new ideas together. There are two options for the class project:

Research project: If you are interested in starting a research project on any topic covered in the course, please come and see me during office hours for a list of possible projects. You can also propose your own research project based on your ongoing research interests, as long as it falls under the general theme of the course. Students can work in small teams of two or individually on the project.
Survey paper: You can write a short survey paper that analyzes a minimum of 3 papers from any topic covered in class. The survey paper should (1) identify the problems being tackled in the chosen topic, (2) survey solutions proposed by the different papers, and (3) suggest future research directions that might be of interest to you. The survey paper must be done individually.

In either options, the outcome of the project is a 6 page final report that should be structured like a workshop paper, with a short abstract, introduction, body, related work, and conclusion.

Project Milestones

The grade breakdown and timelines are as follows:

Deliverables Due Description

Project proposal (10%) Feb 12 Format: Up-to 1 page in length, 2-columns, 10pt font, single-spaced.
Research project option:
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.
Survey paper option:
The set of papers that you intend to survey.
The goals of your survey (e.g. what aspects of these papers are you comparing?)

Status Report (20%) Mar 23 Format: Up-to 2 pages in length, 2-columns, 10pt font, single-spaced.
Research project option:
The problem being solved.
The specific approach taken.
Description of related work.
Description of things accomplished so far.
The timeline and deliverables for the rest of the semester.
Survey paper option: Your report should include a two page outline of your survey.

In-class presentation (25%) 19 Apr 15 minutes presentation including Q&A.

Project report (45%) Apr 25 Format: Up-to 6 pages in length, 2-columns, 10pt font, single-spaced.

Deliverables	Due	Description
Project proposal (10%)	Feb 12	Format: Up-to 1 page in length, 2-columns, 10pt font, single-spaced. Research project option: 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. Survey paper option: The set of papers that you intend to survey. The goals of your survey (e.g. what aspects of these papers are you comparing?)
Status Report (20%)	Mar 23	Format: Up-to 2 pages in length, 2-columns, 10pt font, single-spaced. Research project option: The problem being solved. The specific approach taken. Description of related work. Description of things accomplished so far. The timeline and deliverables for the rest of the semester. Survey paper option: Your report should include a two page outline of your survey.
In-class presentation (25%)	19 Apr	15 minutes presentation including Q&A.
Project report (45%)	Apr 25	Format: Up-to 6 pages in length, 2-columns, 10pt font, single-spaced.