COMS S1004

Research Project

Project Description

You will research a topic of your choosing that relates to either: how computer science can be used to address real-world problems; or the social impact of computing.

Topic ideas are listed on the proposal page.

In this project, you are expected to investigate the problem suggested in your proposal, and come up with innovative (yet realistic) ways in which it can be solved. The goal is for you to learn more about a particular aspect of computer science, to consider its practical use in real-world problem solving, and to think creatively about how to apply technology.

Whether you are doing a paper or a presentation, you should cover:

  • a brief description of the problem you are addressing
  • your motivation for selecting this problem
  • your ideas for solving the problem
  • previous work in the field that addresses a similar problem and/or uses a similar solution
  • your estimation of what is currently feasible and what is not

Due date

If you are writing a paper, the due date is Wednesday, June 24, at 5:30pm.

In-class presentations will begin on Wednesday, June 17. Students who are presenting in class will be contacted with their specific presentation dates by the instructor.

Presentation/paper guidelines

If you are writing a paper alone, your paper should be 2-3 pages long, single-spaced, 12-point font (groups that are writing papers together should have a total of 4-6 pages). Note that you are required to cite any ideas in the paper that are not completely your own, particularly in the "previous work" section. Failure to properly cite the work of others will be considered plagiarism. If you have questions about citing the work of others, please contact a member of the teaching staff.

In-class presentations should be 5-10 minutes long. When a group presents, each member should present at least a small part of the work. You may use PowerPoint slides but try to keep it to 4-6 slides; anything more will probably be too long. You will be asked to stop your presentation if it exceeds 10 minutes, so please make sure you have the timing right.