Optional Readings Due Tuesday May 2, 2023, 11:59 PM AoE
Each lecture has one or more optional reading assignments. During the semester, you must complete at least two optional readings and do an associated task. Most optional readings are research papers from the software engineering literature: the idea is that you will do a deeper dive on two topics that interest you. If you’re not sure how to approach reading a research paper, there are resources to help you.
Some optional readings have a specific task associated with them; if you choose one of those, complete the task and then submit the result on Canvas. If there is no task associated with an optional reading, the task is to write a one-page reaction to the paper that explains what you have learned and submit that to Canvas. (Note that one page is the maximum: it would be wise to use as much of it as you can. Do not use a font smaller than size 10.) There is no required format for your reaction, but you might consider including any or all of the following:
- a one or two paragraph summary of the key points of the paper
- a list of the paper’s strengths: what did the paper do well, scientifically?
- a list of the paper’s weaknesses: what did the paper do poorly? Did it makes claims you didn’t believe?
- a description of how this paper might be useful to a software engineer working in industry (be sure to be specific)
- a description of how you might apply a lesson from the paper to your own work, now or in the future
When you submit an optional reading task, be sure to include in your submission the title of the optional reading.
One optional reading is due ~50% of the way through class (this semester, by the end of the day on March 11, which is at the beginning of spring break). The other is due at the end of the semester (this semester, on the last day of courses for the semester, which is May 2). For the first optional reading, you aren’t restricted to readings that are associated with lectures earlier in the semester: you are always welcome to read ahead.