Preparing to present a paper

Questions that will help organize your preparation, but may apply variably to different readings:

• What is the key question that drove the research?

• What is the main finding?

• What is the model assumed in the paper?

• Did they include experimental results? If so:

  • do the experiments support the claims?

  • what additional experiments would help make the result make more sense?

  • how broad are the experiments, are the context-specific or general?

• Is there an analytical result? if so:

  • do the conditions for the proof make sense?

  • are they realistic?

  • what questions do you have about the proof?

You may plan to use slides if that make you more comfortable or you can show the paper itself. You may also show other materials if appropriate and you can seed the day’s notes.