CIS 203. Introduction to Artificial Intelligence
Project Guideline
Introduction
The purpose of the project is to improve the students' ability to do research,
as well as to give the students a chance to explore various Artificial
Intelligence topics in more depth. The form of the major result can either
be a paper, a program, or a combination of the two. No matter what form
is chosen, the project must be based on previous research results, but
also include original ideas. Possibilities include (but not are not limited
to):
- Proposing a new idea,
- Evaluating an existing theory or program,
- Using existing software to solve a novel problem,
- Developing a program to address an AI issue (Prolog is preferred).
Similar to typical research environments, the project consists of the following
major stages: (1) topic selection, (2) reference search, (3) research and
development, (4) writing, (5) presentation and review.
1. Topic selection
Selecting a topic is often the most crucial part of a project. To make
such a decision, several factors should be considered:
-
The importance of the topic. Does it have theoretical or practical value?
Does it provide a good training opportunity?
-
The suitableness of the topic. Do you have the proper background knowledge
to solve this problem? Can you finish it within the required time?
-
The current status of the topic: What has been done on this topic? What
can you add to it?
A brief report is required to justify your choice, by answering the above
questions, as well as roughly describing your plan for the project.
Final version of the reports will be put onto the project website, so
that the class will know who is doing what.
2. Reference search
After a topic is selected, you should continue to search the web and the
library to learn more about the topic. Of course, if you find that someone
has done exactly what you plan to do (or has proven that it cannot be done)
and you have nothing to add, then you have to go back to stage one to find
another topic.
Finally, the most relevant references should be listed in your final
project report.
3. Research and development
The requirement for this stage is the simplest: reading, thinking, asking,
discussing, writing, and coding!
4. Writing
If you choose a "writing" project, then the research paper is everything.
No page limit or format restriction is set, but you should try to make
the paper easy to read and understand. If you choose a "coding" project,
you still should write a simple report to describe what the program does
and how to run it. Besides, proper documentation in the code is required,
as always.
Both the draft and final version of the reports will be put onto the
project website. During the presentation and review period, you can freely
revise your report. The grade will be given only to the final version.
5. Presentation and review
An oral presentation class before an optional part of the project. Even though,
such a presentation often improve the quality of the final results.
The exactly time will be determined later, according
to the number and nature of the projects.
Each student will be assigned two reports to review. For each, you need
to read the report draft, try the code (if any), attend the presentation,
and finally write your comments.
Grading
Teamwork is allowed and encouraged, under the condition that each team
member's responsibility in the project is clearly specified in advance
and summarized at the end, so that credits can be assigned properly.
The grade of the project will be divided into the following factors:
- Topic selection report (1-2 page): 10%
- Paper or program: 80%
- Two reviews (1-2 page each): 2 * 5%
- Oral presentation or demo: extra credit possible for exceptional presentation