Schedule
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EventDateDescriptionCourse Material
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Class09/08/2023 09:45
FridayIntroductionPre-class Work:
- Create a slide to introduce yourself, answer survey
- Read and answer questions about:
In Class: [slides]
- Meet the G1 cohort
- Discuss shared worries + implied assumptions about expectations
- What is research? What skills are necessary to do research? What is this seminar about?
- A brief guide to Harvard, and chat with G2s
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Class09/15/2023 09:45
FridayHow to skim a research paperPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Read The PageRank Citation Ranking: Bringing Order to the Web
- Summarize the paper, reflect on your strategy for reading the paper
In Class: [slides]
- Why think about self-regulated learning
- How to read a research paper
- Practice skimming papers: (don’t read before class!)
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Class09/22/2023 09:45
FridayHow to do a literature searchPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Read Et al. for all: Citations as a Tool for Racial Equity, Inclusion, and Justice and answer reflection questions.
- Reflect on your own literature search strategy
- Bring a problem statement for a current/previous research project
In Class: [slides]
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Class09/29/2023 09:45
FridayFellowshipsPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Skim the fellowship advice from Harvard and by MIT (click on left-pane links).
- Peruse the list of fellowships compiled by John Girash, by CMU, and by NC State
- Watch The Craft of Writing Effectively by Larry McEnerney and answer reflection questions (suggestion: organize a watch party with peers in the SEC).
In Class:
- Discussion of effective scientific writing
- Panel with the SEAS Graduate Writing Advisor Suzanne Smith, and with Ph.D. students (TBD)
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Class10/06/2023 09:45
FridayHow to read a theory paperPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Review How to read a research paper
- Spend one hour reading and trying to get as much as you can out of Negative-Weight Single-Source Shortest Paths in Near-linear Time. Note that the paper is far too long to read entirely in one hour; use strategies like those from the paper-reading guide to figure out where to focus your attention and try to get as much value as you can in the hour. In particular, start with the introduction and try to understand what are the main contributions of the paper (both the high-level takeaways and the precise theorem statements), and then selectively delve into the technical sections as needed to improve your understanding and/or according to your interest.
In Class: [slides]
- Reflect on your own strategy reading more theoretical papers
- Practice new strategies on Lower bounds for maximal matchings and maximal independent sets
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Class10/13/2023 09:45
FridayCommunication in Collaborative Environments (Verbal)Pre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- In this class we will discuss and practice how to update your advisor(s)/collaborator(s) on recent progress. Please come to class with a topic in mind – a project (e.g. current or past research project, a hobbie, etc.) that you have worked on but haven’t yet completed. The topic should be reasonably technical (your fellow classmates should only have a partial prior understanding of the topic).
- Reflect on your own strategies for updating collaborators on progress.
In Class: [slides]
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Class10/20/2023 09:45
FridayFaculty PanelPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Read What triggers imposter phenomenon among academic faculty? A critical incident study exploring antecedents, coping, and development opportunities.
- Answer reflection questions, and think of questions to ask the faculty.
In Class:
- Faculty panel about their expectations of students and experiences as students, as well as about their experiences as faculty
- Guests: Professors Sitan Chen, Finale Doshi-Velez, and Krzysztof Gajos.
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Class10/27/2023 09:45
FridayStudent-only Panel: Debugging Unhealthy Self-expectationsPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Read Pages 1-10 of Dealing with Social Isolation to Minimize Doctoral Attrition – A Four Stage Framework and answer reflection questions.
In Class: [slides]
- Panel on debugging unhealthy self-expectations with: Daniel Garces, Daniel Halpern, Hongjin Lin, and Eura Shin.
- Special note: no faculty present
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Class11/03/2023 09:45
FridaySelf-organization and time-managementPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Reflect and identify a least one way that your current self-organization system is successful and one way that it can be further developed.
- Think through and list out your commitments for this semester (or next)
In Class:
- Guests: Meaghan Fallano, Assistant Director for STEM Support at Harvard Academic Resource Center (ARC).
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Class11/10/2023 09:45
FridayCommunication in Collaborative Environments (Written)Pre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Follow this template in preparing a written “research report”, following the structure discussed here.
In Class:
- Workshop research reports with peers.
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Class11/17/2023 09:45
FridayStudent-only Panel: Managing Advising RelationshipsPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Read:
- How to make the most out of your Ph.D: A guide from current to incoming students
- Graduate Student Adjustment to Academic Life: A Four-Stage Framework (Note: the words competent/incompetent in the article are technical jargon from the learning and cognition literature. As such, you should not interpret them using their colloquial meanings; we instead encourage you to think of these terms more as novice/expert).
- Answer reflection questions, and think of questions to ask the panel
In Class: [slides]
- Panel on managing advising relationships with: Zana Buçinca, Abhishek Sharma, Jakob Troidl, Anna Trella, and Lily Xu.
- Special note: no faculty present
- Read:
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Break11/24/2023 00:00
FridayThanksgiving Break -
Class12/01/2023 09:45
FridayA Systemic Perspective on Academic Culture: Feedback Cycles in Academic CulturePre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Watch The Pursuit of Collective Intelligence, by Professor Radhika Nagpal
- Reflect on the past semester
In Class: [slides] Discussion about,
- How our societal misconceptions about science hinder us from creating an inclusive community that performs useful science
- How can we break positive feedback cycles that reinforce these misconceptions?
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Break12/21/2023 00:00
ThursdayWinter Break -
Class01/26/2024 09:45
FridayCommunication with General Audiences, pt. 1Pre-class Work:
- No pre-class work!
In Class: [slides]
- Learn how to present your research to general audiences
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Class02/02/2024 09:45
FridayCommunication with General Audiences, pt. 2Pre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Prepare a 5-min presentation (with slides) about your current research project, or a project you’ve worked on before, or a research paper you enjoy. Assume a general CS audience (e.g. your CS 290 classmates, who come from a variety of subdisciplines within CS!).
In Class:
- Practice presenting to your peers
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Class02/09/2024 09:45
FridayMoral and Professional Responsibility in Computing (Embedded Ethics) -
Class02/16/2024 09:45
FridayPower Dynamics in Scientific CommunitiesPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Read two of the articles below:
- IBM and the Holocaust: The Strategic Alliance Between Nazi Germany and America’s Most Powerful Corporation
- The Punch-Card Conspiracy
- How human-centered tech can beat COVID-19 through contact tracing
- Funding Black and Latinx community institutions is the key to vaccine equity
- We Need More, Not Fewer, Collaborations With Tech Companies
- The Promise of the Sharing Economy among Disadvantaged Communities
- Answer the reflection questions on canvas.
In Class:
- Guest: Professor Mary Gray
- Read two of the articles below:
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Class02/23/2024 09:45
FridayStudent-only Panel: Effective Research PracticesPre-class Work:
- TBD
In Class:
- Student panel with panelists TBD
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Class03/01/2024 09:45
FridayDiversity, Equity and Inclusion + Faculty PanelPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Read:
- Answer the reflection questions
In Class: [slides]
- Analysis of the above cases and of barriers to participatory design using formal frameworks
- Guest: Dr. Weiwei Pan
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Class03/08/2024 09:45
FridayThe Paper Review Process / How to Critique a PaperPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Read:
- Answer reflection questions
- Sign up to read and review one of three papers (spend < 1hr on this)
In Class: [slides]
- Discuss, what makes a “good” vs. “bad” review?
- Simulate the reviewing process (e.g. the roles of the area chairs, meta-reviewers, etc.)
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Break03/09/2024 00:00
SaturdaySpring Break -
Class03/22/2024 09:45
FridayMental Health in AcademiaPre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- Watch:
- 1:15-14:50 and 36:05-45:45 of Professor Sapolsky’s lecture on depression
- Why Do Depression and Anxiety Go Together?
- Read: pages 18-15 from Harvard’s Report from the Task Force on Managing Student Mental Health
- Answer the reflection questions
In Class:
- Guests: Olivia Fitzpatrick and Daniel Coppersmith
- Workshop on mental health
- Special note: no faculty present
- Watch:
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Class03/29/2024 09:45
FridayIntroduction to Teaching, pt. 1Pre-class Work: (instructions on canvas)
- TBD
In Class:
- TBD
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Class04/05/2024 09:45
FridayIntroduction to Teaching, pt. 2 -
Class04/12/2024 09:45
FridayLife after the PhD Panel: Academia, Industry, and Beyond -
Class04/19/2024 09:45
FridayHow to Craft a Research Agenda + Conclusion