Dr. Ugrasen Suman Professor School of Computer Science & Information Technology Devi Ahilya University, Indore (MP), India

Contents  What is research?  Research process  Writing a research paper  Writing a research report  Preparing presentations  Research Careers Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

 What is research? Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

What is research? Generating ideas Discovering/ developing new knowledge, which is interesting/useful “A combination of investigation of past work and effort in the present that will help others in the future” Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

What is research? Consists of work that leads to a meaningful contribution or provides a better solution to the problem. Along with opposites Fun and frustration Patience Small steps and large insights Building on others’ work and contributing your own work Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India Cont…

Engineering science research  Science research focuses on discovery of facts and laws of nature (Physics, maths, life science, laser …)  Engineering research facilitates the creation of new artifacts (mechanism, models …) or improving existing artifacts.  Engineering science research is a synthetic, an engineering discipline: Phenomena are manufactured Outcomes are often intellectual only (e.g., algorithms, software, architecture, process,…) Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Computer Science Research Computer Science is originated from mathematics, engineering, and commercial practices, which are evolved into theoretical, experimental and design (or user) orientated aspects. Computer Science is “not a science, but a synthetic, an engineering discipline” [Brooks]. Research outcomes must have A new idea (algorithm, architecture, process,…) Which leads to some improvement Newness is necessary but not sufficient A lot of CS research therefore is devoted to finding a better algorithm, methodology, architecture, tool, … Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

What Isn’t Research Obtaining PhD degree Playing with technology Book report Programming project Doing what others have already done However, each of these can be done as part of research Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Quantitative vs. Qualitative Research  Qualitative research is the use of non-numeric techniques Main approach: discovery; understanding, non-statistical extrapolation to similar circumstances/ investigative; qualitative data is more 'rich', time consuming, and less able to be generalized. Outcomes: “This is a new way of solving our problem”  Quantitative research uses statistical, or numerical analysis to generate results Main approach: analysis; causal determination, prediction, generalization of findings, statistical, findings are conclusive; quantitative data is more efficient, able to test hypotheses, but may miss contextual detail. Outcomes: “This solution is (N)% better” Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Flavours of Research Theoretical research Develop new theories Outcomes can be theorems, models, analyses of existing research Engineering research Develop better mechanisms to improve current practice Outcomes can be system architectures & prototypes, code libraries, knowledge bases, ontologies, hardware specifications… Experimental research (Scientific process) Evaluate a theory/mechanism – usually via implementation and testing Include human factors and system behaviour Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Experimental Research Human factors Surveys (questionnaires, interviews) Experimental results (lab tests, field studies, case studies) Measurements and opinions (quantitative and qualitative results) System Benchmarks Test programs & measurements Comparative analyses Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Experimental Computer Science ECS is the creation of, or the experimentation with, nontrivial hardware and software systems ECS process:  Form a hypothesis  Construct a model and make a prediction  Design an experiment and collect data  Analyze results Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Experimental Computer Science  Theory- is a possible explanation based upon many facts and reason.  Hypothesis- is an educated guess that precedes an experiment.  Model- is a simplified representation of a system or phenomenon with hypotheses required to describe the system or explain the phenomenon, often mathematically.  Experiment is a test, trial or tentative procedure policy. is an operation carried out under controlled conditions in order to discover an unknown effect or law, test or establish a hypotheses. 13 Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

 Research Process Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Research life cycle Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India Problem identification Literature survey Perform research Research Evaluation Researcher knowledge Redefine problem

Researcher Researcher is one who creates new knowledge (PhD students, PG level students, Industrial projects …) A good researcher has Expertise and depth in the chosen area necessary for finding problem, solution approach, goodness,… Problem finding ability: Critical reading of literature, building perspective. Solution exploring ability Ability to write and present work/ result Committed, self motivated, and punctual Early research has greater scope in future Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Problem identification (initial) Problem identification perhaps the hardest Requires critical thinking; depth in the area. Think to define a “doable” problem, which is interesting and whose solution has a potentially wide impact. Should be an area you’re interested in. Thinking to see problems like: Gaps/ missing in framework/ process/ architecture… Repetitive behavior that’s slightly different (and can be generalized) Manual solutions (that can be automated) Inelegant solutions in terms of efficiency, performance, applications … Need for a new approach Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Literature Survey Literature survey is the search of previous work Process of ◦ Reading, taking notes, organising, documenting ◦ Start with general, broad, textbook works ◦ Move toward specialized, narrow, recent papers Review literatures using digital library resources (e.g.,online databases such as ACM, IEEE, Elsevier, industry reports, popular magazines) WWW search (e.g., Google), CiteSeer… Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Literature Survey You need to determine: Has this work been done previously? What similar work has been done leading up to this point? How is any previous work distinguished from what I’m planning to do? What group of people will be positively impacted by the research? 19 Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Redefine problem Based on literature survey, need to redefine problem Main focus on precisely identifying:  Problem  Possible solutions Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Perform research Provide yourself with infrastructure Do the Work (elaborate ideas and get results) Do theoretical, engineering, experimental research… Develop opinions Look for better ways of solving problem Discuss, brainstorm Reevaluate as you proceed Spent large block of time for research Discuss & work regularly with team/ Supervisor Need to document as a backup Maintain day-to-day thoughts Keep an updated task list Write up your work Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Research evaluation The Impact and significance of the new idea Impact is time dependent that can be estimated by measures like no. of downloads, uses, readers,… Significance is largely determined by the research community Quantitative evaluation Test your prototype What improvements exist over currently available alternative? Qualitative evaluation What can you do now that couldn’t be done before? What are the benefits of your solution? Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Compare with others’ similar work Follow experimental process using hypothesis approach. Form a hypothesis Construct a model and make a prediction Design an experiment and collect data Analyze results Publish or show your results to the research community or society Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India Research evaluation Cont…

 Writing a research paper Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Why bother to write well? Because it is one of the most valuable life-long skills Most CS careers require writing: Research - proposals, research notes, literature surveys, paper reviews, conference and journal papers, theses Industry - code comments, documentation, reports, memos The purpose is communication not obfuscation Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Purpose of writing paper Communicate your idea to your peers To infect the mind of your reader with your idea, like a virus [Simon P. Jones, Microsoft Research, Cambridge] Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Types of papers White paper Authoritative report or guide helping readers to understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision Poster paper Way of giving a paper at a scientific meeting Research paper Formal report that contains an original idea and evidence to back up your idea. Survey paper Concludes the survey of current research Position paper An essay that presents an opinion about an issue Case report Report of the success / failure of the followed practices Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Necessity of Publication Measuring the significance & impact Ordinance requirements for PhD degree Promote research Improve your research Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Where to publish? Conferences (Refereed like IEEE/ ACM conferences, Not refereed….) Journals (Archival, magazine…) Workshops (pre conference workshops, regular workshops …) Transactions (IEEE, ACM…) Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

What constitutes a good journal? Impact factor – average number of times published papers are cited up to two years after publication. Immediacy Index – average number of times published papers are cited during year of publication. Peer Reviewed- process of subjecting an author's research work to the scrutiny of others by experts. Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Measurement of Research Citation analysis is defined as the evaluation and interpretation of the citations received by articles, scientists, universities, countries and other aggregates of scientific activity, used as a measure of scientific influence and productivity [Smith, 1981]. Some popular citation analysis are: ◦ Index Copernicus Value (ICV) ◦ Science Citation Index (SCI) ◦ h-index 31

Scientific misconduct Gift Authorship Redundant Publication Plagiarism Fabrication (Showing results without experiment) Falsification Conflict of Interest 32 Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Structure of a research paper Title Abstract Introduction Background & the problem [Literature survey] Related work My idea & the details [approach, methods…] Experiments Results & discussion Conclusion & future work Acknowledgements References Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Title Compose a title that is simple, attractive and accurately reflects the research work Phrases to avoid: Investigation, Study, Novel, Facile etc. Avoid Acronyms that are known only to specialized community Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Abstract It covers Problem statement State why it’s an interesting problem [Purpose of research] What your solution achieves [methods & results] Say what follows from your solution [Conclusion] Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Abstract Keep it short, simple & informative Write the abstract last Avoid – Too much background or methods information – Figures or images – References to other literature, figures or images – Abbreviations or acronyms Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India Cont…

Introduction Introduction describe the problem Set the scene & motivate High level view of what others have done and why it’s inadequate In this paper… Paper organization Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Background & the problem Background Background is a review of information the reader will need to understand your paper It is the survey of the whole paper, and therefore forward reference every important part Limitations in the existing work Sometimes, it is merged with introduction section Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Related work Related work Related work is what other researchers have done (similar algorithm, process, architecture, tools …) To make my work look good, I have to make other people’s work look bad Related Work: later is better [Kent Beck] Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

My idea & the solution Describe your idea, then Defends your idea, showing how it solves the problem, and filling out the details Details with examples, diagram, cases etc… Point out issues that are being addressed in the present work. Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Experiments Divide this section into Experimental setup (the platform, processor, OS, language, compiler, compiler optimizations Methods, Characterization, Measurements, Data analysis Describe the test suite Can follow ECS process Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Results and Discussion Describe the results in table/ graphs (Summary of data) Discuss how your data compare or contrast with previous results. Show the evidence for claims in introduction part (analysis and comparison, theorems, measurements, case studies…) Interpret the result Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Conclusion & future work Include major findings followed by brief discussion on future perspectives and/or application of present work to other disciplines. Most important! Do not claim more than you did Do not generalize from one study or result Do not claim that because it worked well on a few test cases that it will work well on all test cases, all platforms and for all inputs! Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Acknowledgements Remember to thank the funding agency and Colleagues/scientists/technicians who might have provided assistance Remember Authorship and their order (vary) Give credit where it is due Credit is not like money [Kent Beck] Giving credit to others does not diminish the credit you get from your paper Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Citations The styles vary for different journals Example: IEEE Style  Journal - Author(s). “Article title”. Journal title, vol., pp, date.  Conference - Author(s). “Article title.” Conference proceedings, year, pp.  Book - Author(s). Book title. Location: Publishing company, year, pp.  Book Chapter- Author(s). “Chapter title” in Book title, edition, volume. Editors name, Ed. Publishing location: Publishing company, year, pp.  Standards/Patents - Author(s)/Inventor(s). “Name/Title.” Country where patent is registered. Patent number, date.  Electronic references- [Reference of type: Journal/ Book/ Paper …]  Available: site/path/file [date accessed]. Citing in the text – [2] [3, 15] Other styles are ACM, Elsevier, Harvard … Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Publication review process Completion of research Preparation of manuscript Submission of manuscript Assignment and review Decision Revision Resubmission Re-review Acceptance Publication Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

What to do for rejected paper… Do not get discouraged Every review is gold dust [MIR Labs] Be (truly) grateful for criticism as well as praise Read every criticism/ comment as a positive suggestion and improve your paper Thank them warmly. Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Writing style  Speak directly to the reader Author/ Coauthors: I/ We ou The reader: You You & the reader:We Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Writing style  Prefer Active voice rather than Passive voice BAD:It can be seen that... GOOD: We can see that... BAD: By removing an item from the list during each iteration, it is guaranteed that the loop will terminate. GOOD: We remove an item from the list during each iteration of the loop; thus, the loop is guaranteed to terminate. Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Writing style  Present tense is stronger than Past & Future tense BAD: In this research work we wanted to … GOOD: The goals of our research work are to … WEAK: In this paper, we will show… STRONG: In this paper, we show that … Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Writing style  Which vs. That that identifies the object about which you are speaking The car that is speeding down the road is about to crash into a pole. which provides further info about the object The car, which is speeding down the road, is about to crash into a pole. Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Writing style Every term must be defined at its first use. Try to keep illustrations (i.e., example, diagram, cases… ) in each page. Keep single contextual detail in a single paragraph and paragraphs must be connected. Keep paragraphs shorter (Max 10 lines) Use colon, semicolon, commas as and when required. Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

 Writing a research report Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Thesis Vs. research paper  A research report is to present the results of your research, what you have found.  A thesis is a research report that shows an original contribution to knowledge  Reports enable further exploration of ideas.  Research paper is a piece of your research work whereas thesis is the compilation of research papers and reports. Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Thesis title and domain The right topic will be interesting to you, complex, and compelling (R. M. Reis 1999) Broad problem + special focus Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Writing a PhD thesis Front matter Title Page Acknowledgements page Abstract Table of Contents List of Tables List of Figures Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Writing a PhD thesis Body of the report Introduction (background, motivating problems, research gap, importance and relevance) Literature review Methodology & research work [Chap 1…N] Experiments & Results Discussion Conclusions & Future work End matter Appendices Reference list Contributions Main References 57 Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

 Preparing research presentation Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Research presentation Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India Explain the research problem and its importance Explain the research setting & environment Explain what you did and why Explain the result Conclude

Research career Time consuming (requires 4 to 5 years) but a lot of growth after completion. Academics (teaching & research) Council of Science & Technology Many MNCs have established research labs e.g. TCS, IBM, Microsoft, Infosys, Lucent, Motorola, Intel etc. Govt research centres CAT, IUC, STPI etc. IIT, IIIT, IISER, NITTR, Universities, …as a Researcher Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

References Day, RA. “How to write and publish a scientific paper,” 5th edition, Oryx Press, Hall, JE. “Writing research papers (and getting them published) Benos, D., Reich, M. “Peer review and publication in APS journals.” Dr. U. Suman, SCS&IT, DAVV, Indore, India

Thanks! 62