Doing Research in Computer Science - Capstone

Doing Research in Computer Science

1. Doing Research in Computer Science

2. Session Outline
•Purpose of Thesis Projects
•What is Research?
•Research Methods
•Actors in the Project
•The Process
•Choosing a Subject Area
•The Thesis Proposal
•Assessment Criteria

3. Purpose of Thesis Projects
•A thesis project can be viewed as serving
the following purposes:
–Learning More
•The project is an opportunity to study an area in
greater depth
–Stepping Stone towards Securing a Job
•View the project as a preparation for working life
–Stepping Stone towards Graduate Studies
•Explore a research problem and learn about the
research process

4. Purpose of Thesis Projects
•A thesis project in school also serves two
other goals:
–Educational
•A test to show that you have mastered previously
attained knowledge and skills and know you can
apply them to a more realistic problem
•The project should
1)Develop your critical thinking
2)Enhance your ability to work independently
3)Increase your understanding of how to use and
appreciate the scientific method
4)Develop your presentation skills, both oral and
written

5. Purpose of Thesis Projects
•A thesis project in school also serves two
other goals:
–Research
•You will deepen your understanding of the subject
area and
•Contribute to the common knowledge and
understanding of the subject area
•To attain this goal, your project must have aspects
that are original

6. What is Research?
•In an academic context, it refers to:
–The activity of a diligent and systematic inquiry
of a subject area
–The objective of which is to discover or revise
facts, theories and applications
–The goal is to discover and disseminate new
knowledge
–Therefore, its overall goal is to reduce or
eliminate uncertainty in what we know

7. What is Research?
•What is a CS research?
–Allen Newell and Herbert Simon (1975 ACM
Turing Awardees) characterized Computer
Science as
"...an empirical discipline, in which each new
artifact, e.g. a program, can be seen as an
experiment, the structure and behavior of
which can be studied."

8. What is Research?
•What is a CS research?
–Computer Science is concerned with a number
of different issues seen from a technological
perspective
•Theoretical aspects, such as numerical analysis and
data structures and algorithms
•How to store and manipulate data
•The relationship between different pieces of
software
•Techniques and tools for developing software

9. What is Research?
•What is a CS Research?
–It is defined as being focused on the
improvement and use of theories and principles
in computing for the development of software
systems
–A CS solution should make use of an approach
(or approaches) that has been demonstrated to
provide or has the potential to provide a
measurably optimal (best) solution
–An improvement to an approach may also be
introduced and subsequently proven

10. What is Research?
•What is an IT Research?
–An Information Technology capstone project is
more focused on the recommendation of an
infrastructure and its implication on other
systems
–It is more centred on the use and the
development of an emerging software product,
software framework and/or architecture with
the use of new technology

11. What is Research?
•CS Thesis vs IT Project
–Both are concerned with the notion of a
solution to a problem
–Computer Science is more concerned with the
novelty of the solution
–Information Technology is more concerned with
the use of an emerging software product,
software framework and/or architecture

12. What is Research?
•Example. Passenger Route Advisory System
–It is the problem of providing real-time route
guidance information to commuters
–The route suggestion consists of a variety of
transportation modes available in a city such as
walking, PUJ and taxis

13. What is Research?
•Example. Passenger Route Advisory System
–Computer Science
•The research may be centred on the formulation of a
localized problem as a multi-criteria, multi-modal
transport network
•It seeks an optimization approach such as
evolutionary algorithms or particle swarm
optimization that will best fit the problem
•Thus, a CS research may dwell on the use of either or
both approaches as the researcher sees fit.

14. What is Research?
•Example. Passenger Route Advisory System
–Information Technology
•The problem may or may not be formulated as a
multi-modal transport network
•The research can then focus on the use of a web
mapping interface and on the architecture that will be
used in the system
•Should the model be 2-tiered or 3-tiered? Peer-to-
peer or client-server? Should it be made a mobile
service, a web service or a desktop application?

15. What is Research?
•Areas of Originality
–According to Cryer (1996; as quoted by Hustadt,
2009)
•Exploring the unknown – Investigate a field that no
one has investigated before
•Exploring the unanticipated – Obtaining unexpected
results and investigating new directions in an already
existing field
•The use of data – Interpret data in new ways
•Tools, techniques, procedures, and methods – Apply
new tools/techniques to alternative problems and try
procedures/methods in new contexts

16. What is Research?
•Which among the following is a CS research?
1.What are the critical elements that shape the
organizational changes associated with the adoption
and use of CASE tools?
2.What features do software developers want from OO-
CASE tools? How well do current OO-CASE tools meet
these needs?
3.In this paper, the meta-CASE system KOGGE will be
described. In order to illustrate the KOGGE approach, it
will be shown how KOGGE was used to implement a
CASE tool supporting the object-oriented method BON.

17. Research Methods
•A method represents the means, procedure or
technique used to carry out some process in a
systematic way.
•It is an organized approach to problem-solving
that includes
1.Collecting data
2.Formulating a hypothesis or proposition
3.Testing the hypothesis
4.Stating conclusions that can later be evaluated
independently by others

18. Research Methods
•Quantitative methods have their origin in
natural sciences
–The scientific concern is with attaining an
understanding of how something is constructed,
how it is built or how it works
–Repeatability of experiments and testing of
hypotheses are vital to the reliability of the results
–Its goal is to develop models, theories and
hypotheses pertaining to natural phenomena

19. Research Methods
•Qualitative methods have their roots in social
sciences
–Its primary concern is understanding an area,
rather than producing an explanation for it
–Typically used in specific social contexts
–It is often associated with fieldwork and analysis in
a limited number of organizational settings
–As humans and organizations change, the pre-
condition for the study and the analysis change
–Repeatability of experiments may not be possible

20. Actors in the Project
•The three main actors in the project
–The student
–The supervisors (moderator and adviser)
–The panelist

21. Actors in the Project
•The Student
–The student is the one who moves the project
forward
–Without the student's initiative and
commitment, the work will not progress
satisfactorily
–Supervisors expect a high level of commitment
from their students

22. Actors in the Project
•The Responsibilities of the Student:
1.Plan and discuss the topic and timetable of the
project with the supervisors
2.Maintain progress according to the agreed
schedule
3.Keep systematic records of work completed
4.Make sure to submit written material to the
supervisors in time to allow for discussion and
comments
5.Write up and submit the report within the time
limit

23. Actors in the Project
•The Responsibilities of the Student:
6.Address and respond to criticism, guidance and
suggestions
7.Be informed about and respect any regulations
and considerations
8.Drive the project forward and initiate discussions
9.Inform supervisors of any problems and
difficulties
10.Prioritize and organize work in such a way that it
represents best efforts
11.Submit to supervisors written material that is well
in form

24. Actors in the Project
•The Student
–Although supervisors point out problems and
errors in your written work, they will expect
that you proofread your own text
–Remember that your adviser is a busy person
with limited time
–If your work is well-structured, carefully-
proofread and clearly written, the adviser can
spend more time on substance

25. Actors in the Project
•Multiple Students
–All project members are held equally
responsible for the outcome of the project
–It is good for both students and supervisors
that students are allocated distinct problems
in the project

26. Actors in the Project
•The Supervisor
–Normally skilled in carrying out projects in the
particular subject area
–Knowledgeable about the methods relevant to
and accepted in the subject area
–Helps you choose and define the boundaries of
the topic to be studied
–Helps you ensure that your project can be
completed in time

27. Actors in the Project
•The Responsibilities of the Supervisor-
Moderator:
1.Inform you of the instructions for carrying out a
thesis project
2.Inform you of assessment criteria and the expected
standard
3.Discuss dates when your work should be handed
in, presented and discussed
4.Provide guidelines for how to report the project

28. Actors in the Project
•The Responsibilities of the Supervisor-Adviser:
1.Discuss what is expected in terms of how you should
work together
2.Give guidance concerning the nature of research,
relevant literature and sources, and research methods
3.Inform you with relevant regulations and issues
4.Help ensure that your project can be completed within
the allocated project time
5.Meet you regularly and discuss the progress
6.Request that you hand in written reports within an
agreed time
7.Inform you of any inadequacy with respect to progress
or the quality of the work

29. Actors in the Project
•The Supervisor
–It is important to stress that the supervisor is
not expected to undertake major editing or
revision of a draft report

30. Actors in the Project
•The Panelist
–The person who assesses your project, either
continuously or summatively
–There are two typical roles an examiner can
take:
1.Quality evaluator
2.Quality assuror

31. Actors in the Project
•The Panelist as Quality Evaluator
–Focuses on a result-oriented approach
1.The quality of the work based on the
contributions made
2.The complexity of the problem
3.The usefulness of the solutions
4.How well presented is the work
–During the project, there is no project-related
communication between the panelist and
yourself nor between the panelist and the
supervisors

32. Actors in the Project
•The Panelist as Quality Assuror
–Reviews material produced at different
checkpoints in your project
–Enables the panelist to gain a deeper
understanding of your project
–Takes on a more process-oriented view
–May give feedback to you and/or your
supervisor regarding the strengths and
weaknesses

33. Actors in the Project
•The Responsibilities of the Panelist
–Scrutinizes your work and points out its
strengths and weaknesses
–Decide if you pass or not and set your grade
–Test criteria that are commonly used include:
•Level of creativity in the process
•Ability to analyze and reason in different situations
•Clarity in written presentation
•Oral presentation skills and ability to defend work
•Relevance and originality of the problem and topic

34. Choosing a Subject Area
•Start Early
–Finding and choosing a subject area is a task
that benefits from being initiated well
–Start thinking about possible subject areas
early
–Let the decision regarding the chosen area of
study be refined incrementally
–Also familiarize yourself with important
sources of information

35. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Which subject area to choose is a decision only
YOU can make
–Some factors to consider:
•Motivation. Strive to choose a subject area
you are most interested in
•Necessary Skills. Do not choose a subject area
in which you have failed courses.

36. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Focus your interest by identifying a problem
within the subject area
–Some ways to identify a problem within a
subject area:
•Ask yourself what you would like to do within a
particular area
•Read the literature
•Ask potential advisers
•Ask companies and organizations

37. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–After finding a problem, investigate whether it
is worthwhile to explore
–Try to write down arguments for why it is
worthwhile
–Ask yourself what type of project you would
really like to do
•Descriptive Project (IT/IS)
•Theory-oriented Project (CS/IT/IS)
•Applied Project (CS/IT)
•Comparison of Theory and Practice (IS)

38. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Descriptive Projects (IT/IS)
•The aim is to categorize and compare previous
works within a subject area
•The objectives may include
1.Categorizing previous work
2.Selecting comparison criteria
3.Comparing previous works with respect to
comparison criteria
•This is useful when you want to identify how a
subject area has evolved over time

39. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Theory-oriented Projects (CS/IT)
•The aim may be
–To extend an already existing theory
or model (CS)
–To extend an already existing software (IT)
•The objectives may include
1.Identifying the details of the extension
2.Introducing the extension to the original
theoretical model
3.Comparing the original theoretical model with
the extended version

40. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Theory-oriented Projects (IS)
•Another may be to compare the support for
business rules in two different data models
•The objectives may include
1.Selecting comparison criteria
2.Analyzing the two data models with respect to
the comparison criteria

41. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Applied Projects (CS/IT)
•Often deal with conducting experiments and
building proof-of-principle implementations
and gathering experiences from them
•The aim is to gain experience from
implementing an algorithm
•The objectives may include
1.Setting up a simulator
2.Testing and analyzing the results obtained
3.Suggesting improvements to the algorithm

42. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Comparison of Theory and Practice (IS)
•Projects with combined theory and practice
may contrast the theory with current practice
in companies
•The objectives may include
1.Selecting companies or organizations
2.Selecting comparison criteria
3.Investigating the details of the theory with
respect to the comparison criteria
4.Investigating how companies or organizations
work with respect to the comparison criteria
5.Comparison of the results obtained from (3)
and (4)

43. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Applied and Theory-oriented Researches
•The theory-oriented type of research requires a
preliminary expertise on the model that will be
studied and extended
•Applied projects require a preliminary knowledge
on the context where an approach is to be
applied

44. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Theory-oriented Researches
•“An Enhanced Hungarian Algorithm for the Taxi
Assignment Problem” by Hao & Reyes (2008)
•“An Optimized Byte Pair Encoding for String
Matching on Compressed Text” by Olivar, Passion
& Yap (2010)

45. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Applied Researches
•“A Statistical Machine Translation Approach to the
Normalization of the Tagalog Texting Language Using
Moses” by Moreno, Nacorda & Velez (2010)
•“Association Rules Discovery in the Course Timetabling
Problem” by Cruz, Lumancas & Romuar (2011)
•“A Role-Playing Game (RPG) Based on the Traditional
Game of Patintero” by Gido & Leong (2011)
•“Using Decision Trees to Evaluate Student’s
Performance” by Crame, Enriquez & Fernandez (2011)
•“An Expert System for Basketball Coaching Using a Fuzzy
and Opponent Classifier Approach” by Chingkaw, Gealon
& Sacay (2011)

46. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Applied Researches
•“Forming Student Groups Using Bees Algorithm” by
Ablazo, Bonga & Viscayno (2012)
•“Prediction of Length of Stay of Dengue Patients through
Bayesian Networks” by Buntag, Uy & Villas (2012)
•“A Rule-Based Machine Translation Approach for the
Translation of Manobo to English Using Apertium” by
Ang, Sarmiento & Tubera (2012)
•“Word Prediction Using Recurrent Neural Network For
Stroke And Cerebral Palsy Victims” by Acharon, Sta. Rita
& Viray (2012)
•“Emotion Analysis Using Knowledge-Based Artificial
Neural Networks And Emotional Keyword Dictionary On
Detecting Depression” by Amoguis, Arcilla & Tan (2012)

47. Choosing a Subject Area
•How to Choose a Subject Area
–Identify 1 to 2 Broad Problem Areas (BPA).
•In the next 1 hour, write a brief description of the
problem area that you think is interesting to solve in a
PowerPoint slide.
•At the onset, also write down the possible CS areas
that you know of that might be useful in solving the
problem.

48. Choosing a Subject Area
•Subject Areas in Computer Science (based
on CHED CMO. # __ )
–Software Development and Theory
•Mobile Computing (Theory-
oriented/Applied)
•Expert Systems and Decision Support
Systems (Applied)
•Game Development (Applied)
•Image/Signal Processing (Applied)
•Natural Language Processing (Applied)
•Computational Biology (Theory-
oriented/Applied)

49. Choosing a Subject Area
•Subject Areas in Computer Science (based
on CHED CMO. # __ )
–Software Development and Theory
•Graphics Applications (Theory-
oriented/Applied)
•Cloud Computing (Applied)
•Parallel Computing (Theory-
oriented/Applied)
–Foundations of Computer Science
•Automata and Formal Language (Applied)
•Data Structures and Algorithms (Theory-
oriented/Applied)

50. Choosing a Subject Area
•Subject Areas in Computer Science (based
on CHED CMO. # __ )
–Foundations of Computer Science
•Programming Languages (Applied)
•Modeling and Simulation (Applied)
–Human-Computer Interaction
•Usability (Theory-oriented/Applied)
•Affective Computing (Theory-
oriented/Applied)
•Emphatic Computing (Theory-
oriented/Applied)

51. The Thesis Proposal
•The paper must contain the following chapters:
1.Introduction
1.1 Background of the Study
1.2 Problem Statement
1.3 Objectives of the Study
1.4 Significance of the Study
1.5 Scope and Limitations
2.Review of Related Works
3.Research Design and Methodology
4.Theoretical Background
Bibliography

52. Assessment Criteria
•General
–Relevance of chosen topic
–Originality of chosen topic
–Significance of findings
–Degree to which the work is the student's own
•Report
–Clarity of presentation
–Consistency between parts of the report
–Degree of insight
–Ability to differentiate between other's thoughts and
own
–Ability to handle references and citations
–General stylistic impression

53. Assessment Criteria
•Defense
–Degree of insight apparent from arguments to
support claims and conclusions
–Degree of insight apparent from responses to
questions
•Other
–How the student performed as opponent
–Fulfillment of deadlines and other formal
requirements

54. Doing Research in Computer Science
•Reference
Berndtsson, M., Hansson, J., Olsson, B. & Lundell,
B. (2008). Thesis Projects A Guide for Students
in Computer Science and Information Systems
2
nd
Edition. London: Springer-Verlag.