1. More ideas for research projects
Inspired by game technology
Wouter van Toll

2. Examples of themes Simulation of...
Fluids (youtube.com/watch?v=ureGelZPi3o)
Soft bodies (youtube.com/watch?v=5L5PD2hlYzI)
Flocks (youtube.com/watch?v=M028vafB0l8)
Cloth (youtube.com/watch?v=YFLvA1aOZkw)
Bipeds with muscles (youtube.com/watch?v=pgaEE27nsQw)
...
Anything that moves by integration over time

3. Examples of topics
Assuming a simulation is realistic: use it to answer “real-world” questions
How much force can a bridge handle using different types of material?
How high should impact be for the Earth to fly out of orbit?

4. Examples of topics 2. Compare different time integration schemes
How does it affect precision/error?
How does it affect computation time?
3. Compare different parameter settings
Compare different implementations
e.g. CPU versus GPU
5. Compare different spatial data structures
e.g. for nearest-neighbor queires

5. Two approaches (at least)
First choose a theme, then a topic
First choose a topic, then a theme
Pretty much any combination is valid
Theme + topic  research question

6. Research question In (e.g.) SIGGRAPH publications:
“How can we simulate [...] realistically?”
“How can we simulate [...] in real-time?”
Too ambitious for your project ;)
Common pattern for this course: “What is the effect of [...] on [...]?”
But other options are allowed; discuss!