Final Reports
As a group you will be submitting two reports. The first is the Preliminary Report and the second is the Final Report (see Syllabus for due dates). The Final Reports are more substantial than the Preliminary Reports, including more sections and much more detail
The Final Report should be 6-8 pages in length (not including the references), and should be clear and concise. Do not just copy and paste sections from you Preliminary Report. By all means use it as a building block, however, in the process of modeling, you will often find that your original ideas and goals will change as you begin to understand the project further.
This Final Report must contain the following sections:
Tittle Page
Include a title, the names of your group members and the date of submission. The tittle should be concise and informative.
Abstract
This should be 100-200 words. The abstract of your Final Report is the problem, model, methods, and results in a nutshell (a small nutshell; think pistachio rather than walnut). This is quite possibly the most important part of the report! Although this is the first part of the report, it is best when written last.
Problem Statement
State the problem you wish to solve. No, this is NOT a regurgitation of the project options. Restate, in your own words, what question is asked, why it is asked, and why it is important. If at all possible, include a picture or diagram of what you wish to accoplish or address. All pictures or diagrams must be discussed in the text. Again, this should NOT just be copied from your Preliminary Report. Cut and paste at your own risk!
Model Design
Describe the mathematics, physics, implementation, etc. of your model. This should be the general equations and notions, not the detailed caculations. Include a picture or diagram if appropriate. Don't just include any picture though, it must be relevant to the model and spend some time discussing it. I reiterate: cut and paste at your own risk.
Model Implementation or Details of Analysis
This is the nitty gritty of your work. Here you should include some details of your calculations or a pseudo code if applicable. Remember, science (and yes, mathematics is a science) should be reproducible. You needn't include every trivial detail, but imagine you are explaining this to someone who will be taking this course next quarter. A reasonable person should be able to reporduce your work from your Final Report and your references.
Discussion
Discuss your results and relate them back to the problem statement. Here you can discuss any weaknesses of your model (note: if you discuss weaknesses, also discuss how you might address them in the future!). However, do not be too negative. Talk about what you have discovered and what you have learned. Here you can also make recommendations for further testing of your model.
Conclusion
Sum up and conclude. Tie up any loose ends and comment about the good parts of your solution/model. This should be a quick summary and a graceful exit.
References
YOU MUST INCLUDE REFERENCES. Even if you are citing websites, you must cite!!! You may use any accepted style (e.g. http://www.liu.edu/CWIS/CWP/library/workshop/citation.htm).