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Topic 1.1 of Introduction to Research

What Research Actually Means

The six tests real research has to pass, research's four underlying objectives, and how to tell them apart using the WannaCry timeline.

~30 min total·4 quadrants of structured content

By the end of this topic, you will

Distinguish research from information-gathering, compilation, and casual browsing
Apply the six tests -- controlled, rigorous, systematic, valid and verifiable, empirical, critical -- to judge whether a claim counts as research
Identify which of the four research objectives (describe, explain, predict, control) a given question is asking
Evaluate a security-related claim for which of the six tests it is most likely to fail

Quadrant 1 · e-Tutorial

Video lectures and walkthroughs

Quick Bite

Quadrant 2 · e-Content

Articles and case studies

research-methodology

What Research Actually Means

Reading five blog posts and summarising them is not research. Here is the actual bar -- six tests a study has to pass, four objectives it can serve, and a WannaCry timeline to practice telling them apart.

9 min read

Quadrant 3 · Web Resources

Downloadable material and curated external links

Web resources coming soon.

Quadrant 4 · Self-Assessment

Test your knowledge — earn a certificate on first pass

Assessment coming soon.