Topic Proposal for Term Paper - In order to show understanding on network-related issues, each student is expected to complete a paper on a relevant network topic of the students choosing and interest. For this assignment I would like to see your topic in a written proposal with a brief abstract. An abstract is defined as a formal document that clearly describes what you will write the paper on. You may be suggested to revise your topic after your submission is reviewed.

Please choose a FOCUSED topic that is specific enough for a term paper/project.

You have two options for the assignment.

Option 1: Research Paper

This paper can be a review paper that comments on current solutions on a specific topic, or a research paper that proposes your own opinions/solutions. You don't have to implement an application for this option. However it is fine if you wish to conduct experiments on the topics discussed. As a general rule, papers that incorporate your own comments/opinions will normally receive higher grades.

Potential topics for both options include (but not limited to) the following. Your choice of the topic is usually more specific than any of these topics.

- Performance evaluation
- Addressing & location management
- Mobility models and systems
- Quality of Service
- Wireless protocols
- Routing & multicast
- Congestion control
- Scheduling & buffer management
- Multimedia protocols
- Network applications & services

- Network architectures
- Switches & switching
- Network design & planning
- Traffic analysis & control
- Network management
- Web performance
- Peer to Peer communications
- Network Security
- Denial of Service
- Firewalls
- Intrusion detection
- Security Protocols

Some premier journals and conference proceedings in the field were listed in the course syllabus. You are required to explore useful reference papers using NSU's electronic library. IEEE, ACM, and Springer databases are good resources that can be accessed in the e-library.

For more information please visit
http://sherman.library.nova.edu/e-library/index.php?action=subject&col=n&cat=cis (NSU student ID is required to access the resources).

Click on "ACM Digital Library", "IEEE/IET Digital Library", or "SpringerLink" -> enter your credentials, then you can search by key words/author/titles/names of journals or conferences. You will have full access to copyrighted articles published by the three organizations.

Option 2: Programming Project
Students who want to do a programming project instead of a paper should submit a written project proposal. Your programming project can substitute for a paper only if your project proposal meets my approval prior to November 13. If your programming project proposal is not approved, plan to submit a paper proposal and prepare to write a paper.

You can visit sourceforge's website for a list of sample networking applications (http://sourceforge.net/directory/communications) that you may be interested in. Although you may not be able to implement a full-featured system as those shown on the website due to time constraints, an operational prototype is required for final submission.

Additional Requirements

Your proposal should be a formal document that consists of a typed one-to-two page summary of your proposed topic. Although your proposal does not need to present any conclusions, it should clearly and concisely describe the focus and a plan of your paper/project. Make your proposal as specific as possible.

Your topic proposal should contain the following parts:

1. A title of the topic.
2. A description of the paper/project you wish to work on.
3. A rough outline of the structure of your final report.
4. A list of references that your work will be based on. For a research paper, this list should contain at least 5 academic publications.

Follow the APA style for all citations and references. More information about APA can be found at the following websites.

NSU Library: http://nova.campusguides.com/apa

Purdue University: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

Official APA website: http://apastyle.org/

Note that this proposal is your first attempt to locate a concrete research topic, and you have chances (before the cut-off date) to make revisions and improve your grade. I will respond with suggestions based on your proposal submission and indicate whether your proposed topic is good. In some cases, I may suggest a different topic, or ask you to write a new proposal. You can make required changes by the cut-off date of November 13 to improve your grade on the topic proposal. Based on my past experience, in very few cases the proposal can be done in a single iteration.

The paper/project report itself is due on December 11. It should have no less than 15 pages, double-spaced and not counting the title page, table of contents, bibliography, or any figures. For a research paper, it should include a bibliography of no fewer than five sources that appear as references in the body. Your paper/project report should use headings and sub-headings to reflect

its structure. Please proofread your paper/report carefully to ensure that it contains no spelling or grammatical errors. It should conform to the standards of academic integrity described in the graduate catalog and the course syllabus.

Additional Suggestions

1. It is not appropriate to write on a very broad topic such as network security, cryptography, multimedia network protocols, wireless protocols, etc. Keep in mind that this is just a short term paper that should fit into a limited time period. You can actually find a textbook for most of these topics. Please choose a topic as specific as possible.

2. A review paper usually should include multiple (>=5) references. I would like to see references from referred conference proceedings or journals. IEEE, ACM, and Springer databases are widely used by the research community. References such as Wikipedia can be used at the early stages when you explore a topic, but you are discouraged from using them since the information are generally considered volatile for scientific papers. Usually you should summarize different resources instead of reiterating the exact words. It is also important to show your ability on critical thinking - I wish you include as many comments (in your own words) as possible.

3. It is fine to choose the programming project option for the assignment. Generally this option needs more efforts than a research paper option. You can implement something new or simulate the functionalities of existing applications - please make your choice clear in the proposal. You will need to deliver a working prototype in your final submission. The functionalities of this prototype need to be briefly discussed in the proposal.

4. Please note if you cite the exact words from references, you need to use quotation marks on both sides. The paper may be considered plagiarism for failing to do so. You should also pay attention to the use of enough citations so that a reader can separate your work from others easily. For more information on the integrity policy please refer to the course syllabus and CEC's Graduate Catalog (http://cec.nova.edu/documents/catalog.pdf).

5. If you plan to propose your own solutions on an existing problem, that would be great. Try your best and you may end up with a publication based on your course work. I will be happy to assist you during the process.

6. Please note that for all references and citations, you need to follow the APA format style. This is a requirement by CEC. Failing to do so may lead to the loss of points on your submission.