82 lines
4.0 KiB
Markdown
82 lines
4.0 KiB
Markdown
# Paper presentations
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In groups of two you will lead one lecture, presenting a few related papers and
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guiding the discussion. We will have presentations most Wednesdays and Fridays.
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Please sign up for a presentation slot by **Monday, September 9**; see the
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[calendar](../schedule/lectures.md) for the topic and papers for each slot.
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## Presentation tips
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Research papers are written for a very specific audience, different from (and
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much narrower than) our class. Papers published in conferences---most papers in
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computer science---are also subject to tight page limits and are typically
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extremely condensed; many key things are left unsaid. (Here is a useful
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[guide](https://web.stanford.edu/class/ee384m/Handouts/HowtoReadPaper.pdf) to
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reading papers.) When presenting a paper in class, you should not try to cover
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every last detail in the paper. Instead, you should try to unpack the paper so
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that it is easier to understand, expanding on the motivation, adding examples,
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comparing concepts across papers, etc.
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Here are a few specific things to keep in mind when presenting a paper.
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- **Make sure the high-level picture is clear.** Make sure to explain the
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problem the paper is trying to solve, the setting, and as much of the
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motivation behind the paper as possible.
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- **Don't spend the whole time presenting technical details.** For instance, it
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is probably not interesting for the class to spend the whole presentation
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talking about the technical details in a single proof.
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- **You don't have to present the whole paper.** It is simply not possible to
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present every detail in the span of one lecture. For some papers, it may not
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even be possible to present each main contribution. Focus on the one or two
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most important contributions (as decided by yourself). If the paper first
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discusses a "core" or "basic" version, and then later adds on a bunch of
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advanced extensions, *focus on the core version*.
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- **Give as many examples as you can.** Most research papers are extremely
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condensed, and do not have nearly enough examples. Present as many examples as
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you can. Your examples don't need to be drawn from the paper---small examples
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are the most useful, as simple as possible.
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- **Keep the class background in mind.** Our class has students from a variety
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of backgrounds; try to keep this in mind. It's better to briefly explain a
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technical term if you are not sure everyone knows what it means. You should
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assume that everyone in the class has basic familiarity with the paper (say,
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assume everyone spent about 30-45 minutes reading the paper before class).
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## FAQ
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- **How should presenters prepare?**
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The presenters should meet with me **one week before** their presentation to
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discuss an outline of what you will be presenting.
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- **How long should presentations be?**
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Each presentation should be at least **60 minutes**, leaving the remainder of
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the time for a wrap-up discussion. It's fine to be a few minutes under, but if
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you think you will finish more than 5 minutes early you should cover more
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material.
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- **Can we use visual aids?**
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You can use the chalkboard and/or slides for your presentation.
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- **How should non-presenters prepare?**
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**Before** every presentation, all students are expected to read the papers
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closely and understand their significance, including (a) the main problems, (b)
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the primary contributions, and (c) how the technical solution. Of course, you
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are also expected to attend discussions and actively participate in the
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discussion.
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- **We wanted to present about XYZ, but another group is presenting!**
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While we will try to accommodate everyone's interests, we may need to
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adjust the selections for better balance and coverage. Consider picking a
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different topic---maybe you'll learn something new!
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- **Can we present other papers instead?**
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If you want to present different papers on the same topic, or change the topic
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entirely, please talk to me first. Note that the papers have been selected to be
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related and focused on a specific topic. There is an additional list of
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suggested papers [here](../resources/readings.md).
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