E0261 Database Management Systems

Research Paper Reading Guidelines

Here are some guidelines about how to read the research papers that are part of the course material:

First, skim through the paper quickly once and try to get a feel for what the paper is trying to do and what are the techniques being used to solve the problem.

Second, read the paper again in more detail and see if the paper makes logical sense in terms of achieving its goals.

Third, read the paper a third time in depth and see if you can (a) pick holes in the arguments, or (b) look at the problem differently, or (c) see it leading to further interesting problems.

Finally, answer the question - "Did I like the paper or not?" in terms of "Did the problems and ideas excite/interest me or bore me to death?".

Also look at these pdfs (pdf1 (P. Fong), pdf2 (A. Stent)) for more detailed tips on reading research papers.