Department of Physics, Unit Catalogue 2007/08 |
PH30074 MPhys project preparation |
| Credits: 6 |
| Level: Honours |
| Semester: 2 |
| Assessment: CW60OT40 |
| Requisites: |
| In taking this unit you cannot take PH30075 |
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Aims: The aim of this unit is to enable MPhys students to carry out background reading and planning, thus providing a foundation for their final year project and an insight into the practice of research.
Learning Outcomes: While taking this unit the student should: * research thoroughly the background to the project using academic journals, textbooks and computer-based resources; * present a seminar on the topic of their final year project; * produce a plan for their project. Skills: Written Communication T/F A, Spoken Communication T/F A, Numeracy T/F A, Information Technology T/F A, Working as part of a group T/F, Project planning/management T/F A. Content: Bibliographic skills Use of bibliographic tools (Web of Science, Google Scholar) and management of information (Endnote Web). Identifying and obtaining sources that pre-date online databases. Searching patents. Case studies of recent growth of new fields in physics and methods of assessment of the impact of research. Literature review for the proposed project. Communicating physics to a non-specialist. Project planning Defining a research problem. Common concepts, e.g, 'aims', 'objectives', 'milestones', 'feasibility', 'risk management', 'incremental' versus 'adventurous' and identification of these within a project. Recognising and responding to the requirements of a research sponsor. Estimation and justification of resource requirements. Critical path analysis. Estimation of timescales; making plans for the monitoring and reporting of progress; time management and multi-tasking. Representation of project plans (Gantt charts). Preparing and communicating project proposals and outcomes to (i) sponsors, (ii) peers, (iii) the general public. Peer review process. Ethical issues in research Nature of research; uses of research. Recordkeeping and transparency. Data Protection Act. Health and Safety legislation. Acknowledgement of assistance, shared authorship; plagiarism and fraud. Intellectual property and ownership of results. Publication versus patents; the process of obtaining patents. |