Reading, Reviews & Presentations

This course is a seminar, which means:

  • You read the papers before class
  • You contribute to discussion
  • You review papers
  • You present a paper

Here is what that entails.


Reading & Pre-Class Questions

Each week includes several required papers labeled:

  • Background — foundational context
  • Question — requires answering a pre-class question
  • Review — requires deeper reading and critique

Before each class, you must answer a short question on Canvas for every
Question or Review paper for which you are not the assigned presenter or reviewer.

These are graded for comprehension — short but thoughtful answers are enough.

Helpful resources

  • S. Keshav, How to Read a Paper, CCR 2007
  • M. Hanson & D. McNamee, Efficient Reading of Papers in Science and Technology

Writing Reviews — WINE 2025 Mini-Conference

The class runs a small program-committee–style process using:

WINE (We do INternet Experimentation) 2025
HotCRP: https://northwestern-ise25.hotcrp.com/

You will:

  • Write several conference-style reviews
  • Evaluate originality, significance, clarity, and methodology
  • Participate in a PC meeting to discuss and “accept/reject” papers
  • Lead discussion for at least one paper as a reviewer

Suggested reading for reviewing:

  • M. Allman, Thoughts on Reviewing, SIGCOMM CCR 2008
  • T. Roscoe, Writing Reviews for Systems Conferences, 2007

Reviews are expected to look like standard systems/IMC/NSDI/SIGCOMM reviews: a short summary, strengths/weaknesses, and a clear recommendation with justification.


Presenting Papers

Every student will present at least one paper.
Presentations are typically 15–20 minutes plus discussion.

A good presentation demonstrates:

  • Understanding of the problem
  • Clarity about the methodology
  • Awareness of limitations
  • Ability to explain why the paper matters
  • Critical insight beyond regurgitating the text

Helpful guides

  • M. Ernst, Advice on Giving Talks
  • S. Peyton Jones et al., How to Give a Great Research Talk

Slides should be posted to Canvas before class.


Participation Expectations

You’re expected to:

  • Engage with questions during discussion
  • Challenge assumptions
  • Offer alternative explanations
  • Connect papers across weeks
  • Bring your own research experiences into conversation

What you get out of a seminar is strongly correlated with what you put in.