Research question
State exactly what you want to find out, not only what you intend to build.
Research guide
Engineering versus research
Building something useful is valuable. Research adds a question that can be answered with evidence and judged against a stated baseline.
What changes
| Engineering project | Research project |
|---|---|
| Builds a solution. | Answers a question. |
| Shows that the thing works. | Produces evidence for a defensible finding. |
| Tests the implementation. | Compares a method, result or intervention against a baseline. |
| Leaves a useful artefact. | Makes a contribution that others can test, challenge or reuse. |
Evidence
Define the data, experiment, simulation, observation or approved feedback that can answer the question.
Baseline
Name the current process, simple method, existing model or comparison condition.
Contribution
State what another researcher or engineer could learn, examine or reuse.
Before the next discussion
Bring one draft research question, the evidence you can realistically access, a baseline comparison and the contribution you think the work can make.