GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY
DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE
CS 700 - RESEARCH METHODOLOGY IN CS
Fall 2024

Wednesday 4:30-7:10 PM, Innovation Hall Room 132

Prof. Sanjeev Setia
setia at gmu.edu
703-993-4098

DESCRIPTION

Prerequisites: Admission to PhD in CS or PhD in IT programs. Topics include an overview of the research process for PhD students, research integrity issues, and quantitative models and methods in experimental computer science. Techniques for the use of analytic and simulation models, design of experiments, hypothesis testing, and statistical analysis of data are presented. All incoming CS PhD students are required to take this course in their first year in the program.

READINGS

Textbook: David Lilja, Measuring Computer Performance: A Practitioner's Guide,  Cambridge University Press, 2005. ISBN: 05216-4670-7.

Other recommended books:

1. Raj Jain, The Art of Computer Systems Performance Analysis, John Wiley, 1991, ISBN: 0-471-50336-3. 
2. Dror Feitelson Workload Modeling for Computer Systems Performance Analysis.Cambridge University Press, 2016. ISBN: 978-1-107-07823-9
3. P. Cohen, Empirical Methods for Artificial Intelligence, MIT Press, 1995.
4. I. Miller, J. Freund, R. Johnson, Probability and Statistics for Engineers, Sixth Edition, Prentice Hall, 2000, ISBN: 0-13-014158-5. 
5. Averill M. Law and W. David Kelton, Simulation Modeling and Analysis, McGraw Hill, 2000.

COURSE OUTLINE

The following topics will be covered (not necessarily in the order below):

• Overview of Research Process for a PhD student
• Research Integrity and Ethics
• How to find a research advisor
• How to find a research topic
• Preparing for an academic or industry career
• Experimental Techniques for CS researchers
• Measurement Tools & Techniques
• Introduction to Simulation & Emulation 
• Statistical and Quantitative Methods for CS research
• Summarizing Measured Data
• Comparing Alternatives
• Regression Techniques
• Design of Experiments
• Characterizing Measured Data
• Introduction to analytical modeling

All CS faculty will be invited to give research overview talks to the class. The faculty research talks will be scheduled multiple times a semester (with perhaps all the faculty working in an area giving talks on the same day). 

All incoming PhD students are required to take CS 701 - Research Experience in CS during their second semester. Students will be matched with faculty for CS 701 during the course of the semester in CS 700.

GRADING

The grade for the course will be based on the following components: (i) Homework Assignments (50%) (iii) Mid-term exam (30%) (iii) Term Project (20%)

OFFICE HOURS

Tuesday 2-3:30 pm, Room 5305, Nguyen (Engineering) Building

HONOR CODE

GMU is an Honor Code university; please see the Office for Academic Integrity for a full description of the code and the honor committee process, and the Computer Science Department's Honor Code Policies regarding programming assignments. The principle of academic integrity is taken very seriously and violations are treated gravely. What does academic integrity mean in this course? Essentially this: when you are responsible for a task, you will perform that task. When you rely on someone else's work in an aspect of the performance of that task, you will give full credit in the proper, accepted form. When in doubt (of any kind) please ask for guidance and clarification.

ACCOMMODATIONS FOR DISABILITIES

If you have a documented learning disability or other condition that may affect academic performance you should: 1) make sure this documentation is on file with Disability Services (https://ds.gmu.edu; ods@gmu.edu; +1-703-993-2474; SUB I Suite 2500) to determine the accommodations you need; and 2) talk with me to discuss your accommodation needs.

PRIVACY

Students must use their GMU email account to receive important University information, including messages related to this class. See https://mail.gmu.edu for more information.

DIVERSITY

This class seeks to create a learning environment that fosters respect for people across identities. We welcome and value individuals and their differences, including gender expression and identity, race, economic status, sex, sexuality, ethnicity, national origin, first language, religion, age and ability. We encourage all members of the learning environment to engage with the material personally, but to also be open to exploring and learning from experiences different than their own.

This class abides by the GMU anti-racism statement.

NOUNS AND PRONOUNS

If you wish, please share your name and gender pronouns with me and how best to address you in class and via email. I use he/him/his for myself. You may address me as Prof. Setia in email and verbally.

OTHER USEFUL CAMPUS RESOURCES

• Writing Center: https://writingcenter.gmu.edu; +1-703-993-1200; Robinson Hall A114
• University Libraries: Ask a Librarian
• Student Support and Advocacy Center (SSAC): https://ssac.gmu.edu/; +1-703-380-1434; Student Union Building (SUB) I, Suite 3200
• Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS): https://caps.gmu.edu/; +1-703-993-2380
• University Policies: The University Catalog, is the central resource for university policies affecting student, faculty, and staff conduct in university academic affairs. Other policies are available at https://universitypolicy.gmu.edu/. All members of the university community are responsible for knowing and following established policies.
• GMU Academic Calendar