Course code TPT03
Course title Scientific Research Method : Techniques, Models and Practices
Institution TELECOM ParisTech
Course address Telecom ParisTech - 46 rue Barrault - 75013 Paris
City Paris
Minimum year of study 4th year
Minimum level of English Good
Minimum level of French None
Key words Research Methodology, Fundamentals of Scientific Investigations
Language English
Professor responsible Prof. Patrick BELLOT
Telephone +33 (0)6 75 06 58 67
Fax +33 (0)1 45 81 71 58
Email bellot@telecom-paristech.fr
Participating professors

Prof. Patrick BELLOT, ENST, Paris, France.

Prof. Vu DUONG, Senior Scientific Advisor, Eurocontrol Experimental Centre, Brétigny-sur-Orge, France.
tél. :    +33 (0)1 69 88 76 31   
fax :     + 33 (0)1 69 88 69 51  
email :    vu.duong@eurocontrol.int
Number of places Minimum: 10, Maximum: 50, Reserved for local students: 15
Objectives Scientific Method is fundamental in scientific and technological research. Lectures introduce to graduate students, with research orientation, to the models and practices of scientific investigations: how to define a research topic, perform literature review, identify research hypothesis; how to conduct the scientific investigation; and how to write scientific papers as well as graduate dissertations.
Programme to be followed Through theoretical lectures and classroom exercises, the course aims at introducing to:
- the different characteristics of the typical procedures and models related to the selection and the execution of a scientific research topic,
- the models and techniques to help research students solving the practical problems often encountered in scientific investigations,
- the understanding of the practices of scientific research: why and how a research topic is defined; how to write a research proposal; how to formulate or to model a research problem; why and how to set up an experiment and to perform data analysis; how to write scientific papers; and ethical considerations in scientific research.

Contents: 10 lectures of 3h.
-Lecture  1 : Introduction to scientific research and overview of scientific method,
-Lecture  2 : Developing fundamental aptitudes in scientific research,
-Lecture  3 : Formulating a research problem – Defining research hypothesis,
-Lecture  4 : Refining a research problem – Review of literature and bibliographic search,
-Lecture  5 : Conducting scientific investigation – Observational and Experimental methods,
-Lecture  6 : Modeling and Simulation – introduction to Computational Mathematics,
-Lecture  7 : Design of experiments – practical rules for controlled experiments,
-Lecture  8 : Statistical analysis – parametric tests and non-parametric tests,
-Lecture  9 : Guidelines for writing scientific publications and dissertations,
-Lecture 10 : Ethical considerations in scientific research.

Prerequisites General physics and mathematics.
Course exam Assignments:
1. Critical review of a research paper – to accomplish at Lecture 10.
2. Individual paper describing the state-of-the-art of a selected topic (literature survey and literature map) – to accomplish four weeks from the end of the lecture.

Grading Policy :
Reviewing paper: 25% + literature survey: 75%
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