Overview
As a culminating activity in this class, each student has the choice to either complete a take-home final exam, or to independently research a topic of current interest relating to the internet. If you choose to write a research paper, then you will present the fruits of your research as a 4-6 page paper (1000-1500 words) and in an oral presentation to the class. All research topics must be approved in advance; if a student has not submitted an approved topic by the deadline then she must take the final instead.
Your paper should be created as a web page hosted on your course account and clearly linked from your index page. For most topics it will be appropriate to include images and figures found during your research, and to include hypertext links to your sources/references where available. Although the grading will be based primarily on content, you should use what you have learned about paragraphs, headings, and other HTML elements to create an attractive and structured look to your paper as you would for any research paper.
Dates
- Beginning of class on Wednesday, 3 February: Choice of topic (on Moodle)
- Wednesday, 9 March: Oral presentations to class
- 5:00 PM on Friday, 11 March: Written paper / final exam due (on Moodle)
Submit all written work via Moodle.
Possible Topics
A good topic will focus on a specific aspect or application of the internet, and will include some discussion of technical material at its heart. You may explain how some technology works, discuss the current state of development and/or current uses, comment on where research advances may lead in the future, and discuss possible societal consequences of this technology (which are likely to be both good and bad in each person's point of view) A non-exhaustive list of possible topics is:
- Blogs
- Wikis and/or Wikipedia
- Social networking
- Social bookmarking
- Internet access in the developing world
- Internet censorship
- IPv6
- Virtual private networks
- Internet voting
- Network neutrality and/or government policy towards the Internet
- Spam prevention
- Bot-nets
- Rootkits
- Massively multiplayer online games
- Online communities
- Internet gambling
- Cloud computing
- Wireless standards
- Wimax
- OLPC wireless network
- Distributed transient network
- Video-on-demand
- Internet telephony
- Internet TV
- Alternate reality games
- Online privacy laws
- Internet commerce & regulation
- YouTube
- Instant messaging
- Internet on mobile devices (iPhones, etc.)
- Phishing
- Encryption technology
- Ethernet
- The Smith LAN
Paper Structure and Guidelines
Your paper should adhere to the conventions of good expository writing. Include an introduction that prepares the reader for the ideas that you will present, and end with a conclusion that puts them into perspective. Organize your paper so each idea flows logically to the next idea, with connecting phrases as required. Please use formal and correct English, and clearly attribute ideas and quotations that are not originally your own. If you have trouble with any of these points, please seek help either from the instructor or from the Jacobson Center.
Your paper must do more than simply summarize what you read in the references. While most of the facts you include will necessarily be summarized from your research, you should also think about the topic on your own. Develop your own ideas about where research may lead in the future, potential applications for the technology, and the possible societal consequences. Since you are not an expert in the topic you have selected you are not expected to contribute a lot of original thoughts for the topic. Nonetheless, you should synthesize some of the ideas you read, talk about with others, and think through on your own, into at least one or two new ideas for your paper.
For the presentation, please try to construct a narrative from your paper that you think the class will find interesting and informative. Do not neglect the how-it-works aspect. Students are encouraged to prepare visual aids that will enhance their presentation.