the research should include speculation on where the state-of-the-art will be in the near future for one of the following technologies. the paper should include a description of the state-of-the-art in your technology, a discussion of where the sources that you read believe the technology is heading in the near future, and a discussion of how this technology will affect the choices you would make if you were making purchase recommendations for a client. Although there is room for personal opinion in your paper, you must justify your conclusions. you should narrow your research to some specific technical aspects related to the subject.
Details on the Individual Research Paper:
1. Length and Style: The body of an analytic research paper should be at least 10 pages in length (but not more than 12 pages) and typed using the APA Guide. Student projects distill fundamental issues, discuss the various available solutions, discuss the benefits and limitations of the available solutions, and provide a new solution and justification. Student papers must state a thesis, and based on the research, attempt to prove or disprove that thesis. An adequate literature search will include a few books and journal articles (or other relevant documents). A search of Internet documentation is required. Students should develop a conclusion which synthesizes the literature in such a way as to demonstrate new knowledge.
Guidelines for the format of the paper are as follows:
- The paper should be 10-12 pages of text in length. (This minimum and maximum length should not include the title page, separate figures and tables, or the list of references);
- The paper should include a one-paragraph abstract, an introduction, and a conclusion – think as if you were writing for a professional journal;
- The paper should use the APA (7th Edition) format.
2. Due Date: The finalized Individual Research Paper is due for submission at the end of Week 12.
3. Evaluation Criteria and Feedback: The litmus test of a good research project is: “Does my research project provide the professor with new insight on my topic?” Feedback for the paper will be provided along with the final grade.
The grade for your paper will be determined using the Individual Research Paper rubric. (See Content > Rubrics)
4. Standards for Papers: (Repeated from the UMGC Policies Entry.) Effective managers and leaders are also effective communicators. Written communication is an important element of the total communication process. The Graduate School recognizes and expects exemplary writing to be the norm for course work. All individual and group papers must demonstrate graduate-level writing ability and comply with the format requirements of the Publications Manual of the American Psychological Association 7th edition. Careful attention should be given to source citations, a proper listing of references, and the presentation of tables and graphs. Format and graphics, however, are not always transmitted well over the Internet: there are dozens of ways in which hardware, software, and networks may be incompatible. A student may mail an additional copy of his/ her research paper to the professor by Postal Service when graphics present a problem.
5. Policy and Academic Integrity (Plagiarism): (Repeated from the UMGC Policies Entry.)
Plagiarism is the intentional or unintentional presentation of another person’s idea or product as one’s own. Plagiarism includes, but is not limited to the following: copying verbatim all or part of another persons written work; using phrases, charts, figures, illustrations, or mathematical or scientific solutions without citing the source; and paraphrasing ideas, conclusions, or research without citing the source. Students can avoid unintentional plagiarism by carefully accepted scholarly practices. Notes taken for papers and research projects should accurately record sources of material to be cited, quoted, paraphrased, or summarized, and papers should acknowledge these sources in footnotes. The possible penalties on plagiarism include zero or a grade “F” on the work in question, a grade “F” in the course, suspension with a file letter, suspension with a transcript notation, or expulsion.
Some notes about plagiarism:
As we all know, plagiarism occurs when an author copies or paraphrases someone else’s work and presents it as their own without citing the original author. Most accidental cases of plagiarism encountered at UMGC arise when: (1) a student forgets to include a reference for source material; (2) a student loses track of sources and forgets to cite a reference or two (or cites the reference incorrectly); (3) a student “pastes” information from the Internet directly into a paper thinking that since there is no author, the source does not need to be cited. All of these cases more often than not occur when a student gets into a “time crunch” and gets sloppy or desperate. So plan ahead and be careful as you prepare your paper. Remember that penalties for plagiarism can be quite severe – ranging up to dismissal from the program. Also be aware that the resources available to instructors for detecting cases of plagiarism are growing quite sophisticated. Additional information on UMGC policies in this area is available under Academic Policies in our course Syllabus.
Also note that any graded assignments must be entirely each student’s own work and original for this course. Work prepared for other courses or use of material obtained for this course from other students, past or present, is expressly prohibited and can result in a grade of zero for an assignment and/or course failure.