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CM50261: Research seminar

[Page last updated: 04 August 2021]

Academic Year: 2021/2
Owning Department/School: Department of Computer Science
Credits: 3 [equivalent to 6 CATS credits]
Notional Study Hours: 60
Level: Masters UG & PG (FHEQ level 7)
Period:
Semester 1
Assessment Summary: CW 100%
Assessment Detail:
  • Coursework 1 3rd Pass Review and Participation (CW 60%)
  • Coursework 2 Participation and small paper reviews (CW 40%)
Supplementary Assessment:
Like-for-like reassessment (where allowed by programme regulations)
Requisites:
Aims: The aim of this unit is to introduce students to research in computer science in general and the department more specifically to allow them to place their studies in a wider context and to prepare them for choosing their dissertation project.

Learning Outcomes: After successfully completing this unit, student will be able:
1. Summarise and critique computer science research papers
2. Distinguish various research themes in computer science and highlight broad research aims within
3. Determine which research area they would like to work in for their dissertation.

Skills: Presentation skills (T/F,A), Peer marking (T/F,A), Research skills (F), Communication (T/F,A), Critical thinking (T/F,A).

Content: At the start of the semester students will be divided into small groups. Each group will will be assigned a research paper to read and study. The available papers will be from a wide range of computer science areas and present state-of-the-art research.
The content of their assigned research paper is the starting point for students to explore that a particular research stream. For their presentation students will need to demonstrate an understanding of the context of the work, the research methods used in this area of computer science, critique the validity, rigour and the ethical integrity of the paper within the context of its research domain.
Towards the mid/end of the semester this paper and its wider context will be presented to the class. For each presentation, two other groups (who have been assigned different research areas) will be asked to prepare questions for the presenting pair.
In the weeks preceding the presentations, members of the department will be invited to give a talk about their research topic and the types of MSc projects they supervised in the past.

Programme availability:

CM50261 is Compulsory on the following programmes:

Department of Computer Science

Notes:

  • This unit catalogue is applicable for the 2021/22 academic year only. Students continuing their studies into 2022/23 and beyond should not assume that this unit will be available in future years in the format displayed here for 2021/22.
  • Programmes and units are subject to change in accordance with normal University procedures.
  • Availability of units will be subject to constraints such as staff availability, minimum and maximum group sizes, and timetabling factors as well as a student's ability to meet any pre-requisite rules.
  • Find out more about these and other important University terms and conditions here.