rotw said:
Think the OP is just asking for suggestions, should be helped.
I understood what the OP asked, and I disagree with you. I'm a former college professor; please reread my post and that of MacGyverS2000 above - I agree with that post too. Part of becoming a researcher is the ability to identify research-worthy projects.
Graduate students have plenty of resources; they do not need to be asking for help here. Those that can't figure out a research topic need mentoring from their faculty on how to determine one
(here's some ideas for the OP as to how to go about it), e.g., building on faculty research, tackling an unsolved problem you encountered while working in industry, getting really familiar with the current research in the leading journals in your field, looking for value-added research based on "future work" discussions in the papers of others, researching recent patents in your field, interacting with people at academic or trade conferences, in professional societies, or at companies to find out problems they have, etc.
Asking a generic question in a shotgunning fashion on a website like the OP did is unlikely to lead to an appropriate research topic. If the OP had said that they were looking at a specific problem and wondering if it was appropriate, I would have been inclined to let the question stand without my earlier response.
Those that still can't figure out a topic after being mentored do not belong in graduate school.
xnuke
"Live and act within the limit of your knowledge and keep expanding it to the limit of your life." Ayn Rand,
Atlas Shrugged.
Please see FAQ731-376 for tips on how to make the best use of Eng-Tips.