Section 2: Systems and Security

Week	Day	Date	Topic	Paper Milestone
1	Tue	Aug 27	Introduction [slides]	Intro Survey
Pair Presentations
2	Tue	Sept 3	Open-Source Software [Wu and Lu 2021]
3	Tue	Sept 10	Passwords [Weir et al. 2010]	M0 - LaTeX Exercise
4	Tue	Sept 17	Facial Recognition  [Sharif et al. 2016]
5	Tue	Sept 24	Permissions  [Reardon et al. 2019]	M1 - Topic Proposal
6	Tue	Oct 1	Spectre   [Kocher et al. 2019]
7	Tue	Oct 8	AI Code Assistants  [Pearce et al. 2022]	M2 - Bibliography
8	Tue	Oct 15	Fall Break
Individual Presentations
9	Tue	Oct 22	(Non)Private FL [Boenisch et al. 2023],   Poisoning GenAI [Shan et al. 2024]	M3 - Annotatated Bib
10	Tue	Oct 29	Fuzz Testing [Liang et al. 2014],   Phishing Detection [Kumaraguru et al. 2009]
11	Tue	Nov 5	Secure Deletion [Reardon et al. 2013],   Fingerprint Recovery [Ni et al. 2023] ,   Anomaly Detection [Feng et al. 2024]	M4 - Intro + Outline
12	Tue	Nov 12	Pacemakers [Halperin et al. 2008],   Cars [Koscher et al. 2010],   PhishBots [Roy et al. 2024]
13	Tue	Nov 19	Peer Reviews	M5 - Full Paper Draft
14	Tue	Nov 26	Children′s Apps [Reyes et al. 2018],   Robust Anomaly Detection [Goodge et al. 2020]
15	Mon	Dec 3	Device Fingerprinting [Formby et al. 2024]   Smart Contracts [Ruaro et al. 2024]	M6 - Final Paper
16	Tue	Dec 10	Final Paper Presentations

Throughout this semester, you will read 12 assigned research papers. To help you engage with these readings and prepare for class discussions, I will ask you to submit a reading reflection each week. The format of the reflection is up to you---it can be written essay, a powerpoint slide dec, a video, or an audio recording---but it must include the following:

• A one or two sentence summary of the paper.
• A deeper, more extensive outline of the main points of the paper. This may include assumptions made, methods used, arguments presentedd, data analyzed, and conclusions drawn.
• Any limitations or extensions you see for the ideas in the paper.
• Your opinion of the paper, including the quality of the ideas, its potential impact, and any thoughts or opinions on the subject matter.
• 1-3 questions you have about this paper.
• How long you spent on this reflection (including time spent reading the paper).

This reflection shouldn't be super-long. For example, a written reflection should be 1-page (single spaced). A video or audio should be about 5 minutes. You do not need to complete a reading reflection for the weeks you are presenting.

How to read a research paper. When you read a research paper, your goal is to understand the scientific contributions the authors are making. This is not easy, despite the deceptively short appearance of most published computer science papers, and it may require going over the paper several times. Expect to spend multiple hours to read a paper.

Here are some general guidelines for how to read a research paper (adapted from Michael Mitzenmacher's advice on how to read a research paper):

• Read critically: Do not assume that the authors are always correct. Instead, be suspicious. Are they solving the right problem? Are there simple solutions the authors don't seem to have considered? What are the limitations (including those the authors might not have noticed or admitted)? Are the assumptions the authors make reasonable? Did they gather the right data and did they appear to gather it in the right manner? Did they interpret the data in a reasonable manner? Would other data be more compelling?
• Read creatively: It is always easier to tear something down than to build it up. Reading creatively involves harder, more positive thinking. What are the good ideas in this paper? Are there other applications or extensions? Are there improvements that might make important practical differences? If you were going to start doing a research project from this paper, what would be the next thing you would do?
• Take notes: I like to print research papers and take notes in the margins, but you can use whatever style you prefer. If you have questions or criticisms, write them down as you are reading so you do not forget them. This will save you a lot of work later!
• Summarize: After the first read-through, try to summarize the paper in one or two sentences. You'll have to do this for the assigned readings, but I recommend also doing this for the other papers you read for your course paper.
• Compare: If possible, compare the paper to other papers. You may not have the context to do this for the assigned readings, but when you are reading research for your final paper it will be helpful to compare each paper you read to the other papers you have read.
• Don't over do it: It is fine if you do not fully understand all of the technical details in all of the papers. This is normal and expected. It's also ok to occassionally skim some of the papers, as long as you understand the core material. You are never expected to read information in an appendix.

During the first half of the semester, each of you will present a research paper with an assigned partner. This presentation should be approximately 30 minutes and will be followed by a discussion. Your paper, presentation date, and partner will be assigned during the first week of class after you complete the intro survey.

During the second half of the semester, each of you will give a solo presentation on a research paper of your choice selected from the bibliography for your final 190 paper. This presentation should be approximately 15-20 minutes and will be followed by a brief discussion.

For your each presentation you must:

• Schedule a pre- and post- meeting: You should contact me at least 7 days before your presentation with a list of all times that work for you (and your partner, for the pair presentation). For the solo presentation, you must also select a paper and get it approved by me at least 7 days before your presentation.
• Prepare for the pre-meeting: This includes reading the paper (see guidelines above about how to read a research paper) and preparing a draft of your presentation slides.
• Pre-meeting: Meet with me to discuss your presentation. This meeting should take place no later than the Friday before your presentation.
• Submit your presentation: Submit the final slide deck for your presentation by 11:59pm the night before your presentation. These slides should include any revisions discussed during our meeting.
• Give your presentation! Your pair presentation should be approximately 30 minutes long, and your solo presentation should be 15-20 minutes long. Both presentations should include:
  • The motivation for this paper and what research problem they are investigating.
  • A review of any key technical background people need to understand the core concepts of this paper.
  • The methodology used in this paper.
  • The key results of this paper.
  • 2-3 discussion questions. At least one of these questions must be technical and at least one of these questions should reflect on societal/ethical/cultural issues.
  You should then plan to lead a class discussion about these questions and about the paper (and the topic) in general.
• Submit your post-presentation reflection: What did you like about your presentation? What would you do differently if you were to present the same topic again? What did you think of the questions and/or discussion? Did anything unexpected come up?
• Post-meeting: Meet with me to discuss and debrief how your presentation went. This meeting should take place 1-3 days after your presentation

Your presentation will be evaluated on the following concepts:

• How clear and coherent was your presentation?
• How easy were the slides to follow?
• Was the presenter poised and engaging?
• Was the presentation duration within the expected range?
• Did the presentation conclude with discussion questions?
• How well did the presenter facilitate discussion and answer questions?

See the final paper page for details about the final paper milestones and requirements.