MCIS 625: Computer Graphics
Winter 2004

TERM PAPER

Instructor: Dr. Michael Laszlo
Handout date: Tuesday, January 13
Proposal due date: Sunday, February 8 via ESET category Paper Proposal
Due date for paper: Sunday, March 21 via ESET category Term Paper

Here is a description of the paper for this course. Your formal paper proposal is due by February 8 and the paper itself is due by March 21.

The Paper
The paper should be about computer graphics, but otherwise the choice of topic is not constrained. The topic can be in the area of computer graphics for information managers, graphics-based applications, graphical user interfaces, basic methods in raster graphics, techniques in 3D graphics, or some other area of computer graphics.

Here is a list of possible paper topics:

• Discuss principles used in the design of Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs).
• Present the history of GUIs.
• Discuss applications of virtual reality (VR).
• Discuss the technology used in VR.
• Discuss the evolution of VRML, and its implications for the future of computing.
• Forecast the impact that computer graphics, or a specific graphics-based technology, will have on work and play in 20 years (or 50 or 100 or 200 years).
• Discuss methods for presenting quantitative data.
• Describe how graphics can be used to lie or misrepresent.
• Describe how graphics-based application programs of a particular type work (e.g., graphical browsers, desktop publishing programs, paint programs, spreadsheets).
• Present the specifications for a particular graphics file format (such as JPEG, MPEG, GIF, or PostScript), discuss its advantages and disadvantages, and describe the kinds of graphics for which it is best suited.
• Describe one or two of the compression schemes used by various graphics file formats (e.g., run length encoding, Huffman coding, area coding, transform coding).
• Describe some graphics language, such as PHIGS or OpenGL. Include code fragments in your discussion.
• Describe in detail a particular 3D modeling scheme (e.g., constructive solid geometry, boundary representations, Bezier surfaces).
• Describe in detail a particular hidden surface removal method other than z-buffering (e.g. list priority sort, area subdivision).
• Describe how ray tracing works, and how it achieves such effects as reflection, refraction, texture mapping, and shadows.
• Describe three or four different color models, and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using each.
• Discuss the physiology of human vision.
• Survey computer animation languages.
• Describe in detail how a particular computer graphics effect is achieved, such as morphing, textures, fractal terrain generation, or particle systems.

This list is intended to provide suggestions. You can choose to write about any topic on the list, or a modified version of some topic, or a combination of topics, or some topic not mentioned here at all.

The paper should be between 15 and 18 pages in length, not including figures. Here I am assuming double-spaced pages in 12-point font. Be sure to include references at the end of your paper and to cite these references in the body of the text. Also, proofread your paper carefully before submitting it. Although I do not require the paper to conform to a specific format such as APA style, I do expect the writing to be clear and grammatical.

The paper should be your own work, in your own words. Any excerpts from other sources must be fully cited. See the policy paragraphs for more information on what constitutes original work.

The Paper Proposal

Your paper proposal should consist of a working title and an annotated outline. The outline partitions your paper into sections, typically between five and eight in number. Each section may be further partitioned into subsections, but this level of detail is not required for your proposal.

The first section, which should be titled Introduction, summarizes the paper as a whole and describes its purpose and structure. For each section (including the Introduction), write one or two paragraphs presenting the main idea(s) of the section and the content it will cover. It is these paragraphs that make your proposal an annotated outline. The describing paragraphs should be integrated into the outline; this example shows the structure I have in mind. You may also include references at the end of your proposal although this is not required (references are of course required in the paper itself).

During the second week of February, I will respond with suggestions based on your paper proposal. In extreme cases, I may suggest a different topic or ask you to submit a different paper proposal.

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