WOLLO University
College of Engineering
School of Electrical & Computer Engineering
ECEG 4341- Research Methods and
Presentation
Lec-3: Management aspect of Research and Development (R&D)
works and outputs
By : Tadesse Y.
Email: tadesseyalew91@gmail.com
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Contents
 Discussion
forums and participants roles
 Participation
in and/or coordinating forums
 Management
of finalized, active and prospective R&D works
 Intellectual
Property Rights (ownership) and means of
protections
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Discussion forums
Discussion forums used
 When there are intractable and painful issues.
 When the problem is largely undefined.
 To update knowledge.
 To share skill and experience.
 Forums may be
 Live in auditorium (seminars, workshops, panel discussions,
symposiums and conferences).
 live online (such as teleconferencing, chatting)
 Off-line (through interaction with written material using methods
such as e-mail, bulletin board).

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Cont’d…
 Seminar
small group of students at a university, etc. meeting to discuss or
study a particular topic with a teacher.
 seminars may be:- (course or research)
Workshop
 period of discussion and practical work on a particular subject,
when a group of people share their knowledge and experience.
 Symposium
 Small conference for discussion of a particular subject.

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Cont’d…
panel discussion
 group of people chosen to take part in a discussion, debate , quiz
etc. with an audience (especially of listeners to a radio or TV
program).
 Conference
 Is a meeting (usually large) for discussion or exchange of scientific
views.
 Alternative definitions:
 Meeting for lectures and discussion:
 Meeting for serious discussion:
 Meeting of representatives of organizations:

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participation in and/ or coordinating
forums

Some aspects you need to consider when participating in live discussion
forums
 asses and know the background of the audience.
 have more than sufficient background knowledge on the specific topic
you are to present.
 be well prepared and support all presentations/ arguments with facts
and evidence.
 be well capable of written and oral presentation in the language used.
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Cont’d…
 always concisely and clearly articulate and present/pose your
points.
 focus on issues rather than personify matters,
 respect moderators and participants
 be time sensitive
 be well dressed, good looking, emotionally stable and have
sufficient loudness
 be capable of using necessary facilities (microphones, PC’s and
LCD projectors)
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Coordinating a discussion forum (in a group or individually)
 identify
 list
and clearly articulate the specific topics of discussion
and invite sufficient number of capable professionals and
audience.
 Prepare
and set the program

time and place schedule of activities

duties and responsibilities of coordinators and participants
 Disseminate
/ post the program schedule before sufficient time.
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Cont’d…

prepare an attractive and focus capturing poster to be posted.

arrange a convenient and sufficient venue with all required facilities.

make prior arrangement of necessary financial provisions related to the
forum

Distribute “Thanks Letter” to presenters/ trainers and panelists in
particular and all other participants in general.
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Management of finalized, active and prospective R&D works
Documentation mechanisms of R&D works
Journals:
a)

magazine or periodical, especially one published by a specialist or
professional body for its members.
b)

Magazine:
periodical publication issued at regular intervals, usually weekly or
monthly, containing articles, stories, photographs, advertisements, and
other features,

Page size is usually smaller than that of a newspaper but larger than that of
a book.
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Cont’d…
c)
Transactions
 proceedings
(the published records) of a learned society (in which
reputed researchers/ experts have document their R&D works).
d)
Proceedings

published records of a meeting or conference (in which active R&D
outputs are documented.
e)
Newsletter:
 printed
report or letter that contains news of interest to a specific group,
e.g. the members of a society or employees of an organization, and is
circulated to them periodically.
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Cont’d…
Periodical:
 magazine or journal published at regular intervals, especially
weekly, monthly, or quarterly.
g) Bulletin:
 newsletter issued by an organization or institution.
h) Equipment manuals:
 book that contains information and instructions about the operation
of a machine or how to do something.
i) Books:
 published work of literature, science, or reference, or a work
intended for publication.
f)
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Sources of Scientific information

Primary sources
 New research results
 Published Reports of research results
 Examples :- Scientific journals or magazines, Proceedings of scientific
meetings, Patents, Technical reports, Dissertations, Student theses

Secondary sources
 Reports about results
 Commentary on or review of new results
 generally not by the original researcher.
 Examples:- Monographs, Manuals, books; Survey and/or tutorial papers Some
journal article, Lecture notes, Dictionaries, Handbook
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Cont’d…

Characteristics of Primary sources
 Provide
the most up-to-date information.
 Written for
 Not
the expert reader.
easy to read/comprehend
 Require
a given level knowledge to understand and benefit from them.
 Contain
the building blocks for further research.
 May
be used for checking whether your results have been published by
others already.
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Cont’d…

Characteristics of Secondary Sources

Good as starting point if area is new for you.

Useful to overview primary literature, which is normally cited
as reference.

May provide results from other related disciplines

Usually contain comprehensive literature lists.

Often provides an assessment of primary sources.
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Cont’d…

Properties of Typical Sources
 Journal
paper
◦ Exact and qualitative good research result.
◦ Published after strict review by other experts.
◦ May be results a few years ago.
 Conference paper
◦ Less strict review.
◦ May be results are a few months or at most a year ago.
◦ Can hear the author’s talk directly in the meeting.
 Book or book chapter
◦ Written by experts.
◦ Gathers and explains previous results by experts.
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Cont’d…

The life of a scientific paper (article)
1. Conducting research and getting results that are publishable
2. Writing a paper
3. Sending the paper to journal editor
4. Reviewing of the paper
5. Decision about publication
6. Revision of the paper
7. Re-review
8. Backlog of journal (Queuing for publication)
9. Printing and publishing article
 (The process from 2 to 9 month may take more than the time
taken for 1)
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Cont’d…

How to stay up-to-date
 Read the main journals regularly
 Attend scientific meetings
 Newsletters in the particular field
 Contents Direct (Elsevier)
 Surf the web
 Professional societies
 Personal contacts
 Seminars, etc.
 Monitoring big figures and literature
 Who are producing leading edge results?
 News results gather around big figures
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Intellectual Property Rights (ownership) and means of
protections

Intellectual property is divided into two:
a) Industrial property
patents (inventions)
 Product patent, process patent
industrial designs
utility models
trademarks
service marks, commercial names and designations
b) Copyright
 literary and artistic works such as novels, poems, films, musical works,
photographs, drawings, paintings, and architectural designs.
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Group Quiz #1
Time Allowed:- 30Minutes
Explain in detail about
1.
Research
Proposal
Abstract
Hypothesis.
2.
and
(3pts.)
Differentiate between research goal and
research objective. (1pts.)
3.
what is the difference between
Qualitative research and Quantitative
Research? (1pts.)
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