B652: Computer Models of Symbolic Learning
Spring 2007
Homework 3: Project Progress Report

Due electronically as a pdf file before class on Wednesday, Mar 28. Submission will be via oncourse.

This assignment involves writing a brief synopsis of your final project topic (with any revisions made during investigations since hw2), your progress to this point, and your plans for the final month's work. Again, the purpose of the assignment is to help clarify the goals and plans of your project and enable me to give useful feedback, and you're encouraged to discuss your plans and ideas freely before your submission.

Only one writeup needs to be done per project group, and this homework may be submitted by either student in a 2-person group (please be sure to include both names for two-person projects). The writeup should be 250-500 words (the equivalent of one or two double-spaced pages).

Some hw2 submissions were in fairly final form; some were more tentative. If your submission was in fairly final form, it's fine to refine portions of that text for the abstract here.

Points to Address

Please include:
  1. Your name(s) and the final project title.
  2. A final one-paragraph abstract summarizing the key question(s) you're addressing. This should be your final topic. As requested in hw2, this "should make clear what you are investigating/modeling, what AI methods you intend to use, and the intended I/O behavior of the system, and the problems you would like the work to address. It should also mention (1) why the problem is important, (2) what you expect to be the hardest part, and (3) what you expect to demonstrate or learn from the project."
  3. A very brief synopsis of progress so far (e.g., for a background literature search, what you've found in the literature that's relevant and how your approach relates, that you've coded module A, etc.)
  4. A very brief statement of what needs to be done.
  5. For group projects, how the project effort will be divided.
  6. A brief sketch of what you've learned so far, especially key issues or questions about your topic which you've found most interesting or difficult. For difficulties, how do you plan to address them?
  7. Any other questions/comments you have on the project.

Please let me know if you have any questions, and I'm looking forward to reading your report!