or, How to Write a Hypothesis

1. A Survival Guide to the Transfer Viva
or, How To Write a Hypothesis
R. Southern1
1National Center for Computer Animation Bournemouth University
CDE Conference, 2014

4. What is research?
Arts and Humanities Research Board (2000). Guide to the
Research Grant Scheme.
1 Define a series of research questions or problems that will be
addressed in the course of the research. Define its objectives...
2 Specify a research context for the questions or problems to be
addressed...
3 Specify the research methods for addressing and answering
the research questions or problems...

5. The Engineering Doctorate
What is an EngD?
An Engineering PhD

6. The Engineering Doctorate
What is an EngD?
An Engineering PhD
+ solid industrial base

7. The Engineering Doctorate
What is an EngD?
An Engineering PhD
+ solid industrial base
+ additional taught element.

8. The Engineering Doctorate
What is an EngD?
An Engineering PhD
+ solid industrial base
+ additional taught element.
Qualitative difference from a standard PhD?
1 Thesis can consist of portfolio of work — less emphasis on
overarching narrative than traditional PhD

9. The Engineering Doctorate
What is an EngD?
An Engineering PhD
+ solid industrial base
+ additional taught element.
Qualitative difference from a standard PhD?
1 Thesis can consist of portfolio of work — less emphasis on
overarching narrative than traditional PhD
(that’s it)

10. The Engineering Doctorate
What is an EngD?
An Engineering PhD
+ solid industrial base
+ additional taught element.
Qualitative difference from a standard PhD?
1 Thesis can consist of portfolio of work — less emphasis on
overarching narrative than traditional PhD
(that’s it)
Implications
Research quality must be equivalent to a PhD =⇒ You must
make a contribution to general knowledge

11. Section 2
The Transfer Viva

12. How would you convince them to buy your widget?

13. The Report
Whats in it?
an introduction
a literature review
a research plan
progress to date
conclusion
references1
1
According to the BU guidance

14. What is the examiners job?
From the BU guidance for a transfer examination, a candidate will
be recommended to continue if:
Good progress of the research project providing evidence of
further work to doctoral level, including the potential original
contribution to knowledge within the candidate’s chosen field
of study.
Good personal qualities, skills, strengths and abilities to
undertake to doctoral level research...
Engagement with the professional and research skills...

15. What is the examiners actual job?
An examiner must assess
Is your work is going to lead to a sufficient contribution to
knowledge?
Have you done enough to date?
Did you write it?
Examiners are grumpy, busy people, so...

16. What is the examiners actual job?
An examiner must assess
Is your work is going to lead to a sufficient contribution to
knowledge?
Have you done enough to date?
Did you write it?
Examiners are grumpy, busy people, so...
present your work in a way that makes our job easy!

17. So, what should actually be in the transfer report?
a statement of research intent, or hypothesis,
a contextual analysis of the research problem,
evidence that you have made progress on this research
direction,
a viable plan outlining your remaining goals and how you will
achieve them.

18. The Event
The Exam
Common (but not necessary) to give a short presentation to
highlight key achievements which may not be clear from text.
Answer detailed questions about your report for an hour or
two.
Hear outcome.
Possible Outcomes
1 Pass subject to some level of corrections completed within
some timeframe.
2 Resubmit and re-examine.
3 Recommend register for Lesser Degree or Withdraw.

19. Audiences differ
Academics or Practitioners?
Science, Engineering, Education or Arts-based Researchers?

20. Audiences differ
Academics or Practitioners?
Science, Engineering, Education or Arts-based Researchers?
Try to prepare report and tailor question responses by
considering what they want to know.
Know Thy Audience!
Tip: look at publications in their area.

22. Definitions
A hypothesis is
a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of
limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation, or
a proposition made as a basis for reasoning, without any
assumption of its truth, or

23. Definitions
A hypothesis is
a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of
limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation, or
a proposition made as a basis for reasoning, without any
assumption of its truth, or
a 1-sentence summary of your research that your (savvy) gran
can understand, that:
identifies the problem domain,
outlines your approach/method/new concept, and
defines evaluation criteria.

24. On testability
The great tragedy of science – the slaying of a beautiful
hypothesis by an ugly fact. (Thomas Huxley)
Two components of testability
a scientific hypothesis must be falsifiable: one can identify a
possible outcome of an experiment that conflicts with
predictions deduced from the hypothesis.
it must be reproducible by a competent research group.

25. On testability
The great tragedy of science – the slaying of a beautiful
hypothesis by an ugly fact. (Thomas Huxley)
Two components of testability
a scientific hypothesis must be falsifiable: one can identify a
possible outcome of an experiment that conflicts with
predictions deduced from the hypothesis.
it must be reproducible by a competent research group.
Identify the falsifiable case
A robotic terminal device (hand) can be designed an fabricated
that will mimic the natural hand with sufficient fidelity to permit
exploration of strategies to orchestrate its use.

26. On testability
The great tragedy of science – the slaying of a beautiful
hypothesis by an ugly fact. (Thomas Huxley)
Two components of testability
a scientific hypothesis must be falsifiable: one can identify a
possible outcome of an experiment that conflicts with
predictions deduced from the hypothesis.
it must be reproducible by a competent research group.
Identify the falsifiable case
A robotic terminal device (hand) can be designed an fabricated
that will mimic the natural hand with sufficient fidelity to permit
exploration of strategies to orchestrate its use.

27. Why reproducibility?

28. The Hypothesis and your Examiner
What examiner is looking for
Defines research context, tells us why research is important
Identifies the thing you’re going to do
Tells us why your method is better than previous approaches
Details how you will test and evaluate your method.

29. The Hypothesis and your Examiner
What examiner is looking for
Defines research context, tells us why research is important
Identifies the thing you’re going to do
Tells us why your method is better than previous approaches
Details how you will test and evaluate your method.
Purpose of the hypothesis
For your transfer viva this defines your research trajectory.
For your final viva this gives the examiner a benchmark to
assess whether you achieved your goals.

30. Evolution of a hypothesis
If we knew what it was we were doing, it would not be
called research, would it? (Albert Einstein)
Your initial hypothesis is probably wrong!
Rewrite your hypothesis at each doctorate milestone!
This is not cheating: you’re exploring the unknown.

31. Section 4
Contextual Analysis

32. What you learned in school

33. What you learned at University

34. Your contribution

35. What makes a good literature review?
The topic of another workshop!
Basic rules of thumb:
Check out Critical Thinking: An Exploration of Theory and
Practice, Jennifer Moon

36. What makes a good literature review?
The topic of another workshop!
Basic rules of thumb:
1 Never make an unsubstantiated statement!
Check out Critical Thinking: An Exploration of Theory and
Practice, Jennifer Moon

37. What makes a good literature review?
The topic of another workshop!
Basic rules of thumb:
1 Never make an unsubstantiated statement!
2 “Group and discard” literature — don’t drill down into details
of a technique that aren’t directly relevant.
Check out Critical Thinking: An Exploration of Theory and
Practice, Jennifer Moon

38. What makes a good literature review?
The topic of another workshop!
Basic rules of thumb:
1 Never make an unsubstantiated statement!
2 “Group and discard” literature — don’t drill down into details
of a technique that aren’t directly relevant.
3 Contribute to knowledge — classification systems? benchmark
criteria?
Check out Critical Thinking: An Exploration of Theory and
Practice, Jennifer Moon

39. What makes a good literature review?
The topic of another workshop!
Basic rules of thumb:
1 Never make an unsubstantiated statement!
2 “Group and discard” literature — don’t drill down into details
of a technique that aren’t directly relevant.
3 Contribute to knowledge — classification systems? benchmark
criteria?
4 Don’t be afraid to link your approach into literature review,
e.g. “This differs from our approach because...”.
Check out Critical Thinking: An Exploration of Theory and
Practice, Jennifer Moon

40. Section 5
Your Trajectory

41. The Ideal Progress Trajectory

42. Your Actual Progress Trajectory

43. The Transfer Viva

44. What makes the examiners job easy?
Provide:
The Start point (context)
The End point (hypothesis)
The work to date
A plan of how you will get from where you currently are to the
End
Work to date
Make clear
what part of contribution is yours (vs result of team work)
what has been published to date and where
how the work relates to your research trajectory.

45. Section 6
Summary

46. Summary

47. Summary
1 Know thy audience!

48. Summary
1 Know thy audience!
2 Make examiners job easy! Provide:
Testable hypothesis
Clear context of research problem
Your progress to date
Your plan for competion

49. Summary
1 Know thy audience!
2 Make examiners job easy! Provide:
Testable hypothesis
Clear context of research problem
Your progress to date
Your plan for competion
3 Never make and unsubstantiated statement!