Picking a Subject

On-line Research Writing: English 102
Professor Gary Parks (gparks@shoreline.edu)
Shoreline Community College
Shoreline, WA, USA

Picking a Research Subject

Before reading this assignment description, you must read the Major Research Paper assignment. Also, here are some definitions you need to know.

A research subject is the broad area of knowledge you will research.

A research topic is a more focused area of knowledge within the subject area.

A hypothesis is a tentative thesis related to the topic. A hypothesis needs to be verified with research. It is expressed in the same way as a thesis, but is not yet supported by findings in a paper.

A thesis is one or more sentences in the paper representing its primary findings or main idea.

For example, information overload is a subject. Further thought-work might lead to the more focused topic of advertising aimed at young adults (since advertising is one form of information overload). From this, the writer might fashion a hypothesis based on some preliminary assumptions: Car advertisements use a variety of techniques to target young adults. If this hypothesis is supported by the research, the paper's hypothesis might end up being: Car advertisements use images of sexuality and success as well as implied threats of social exclusion to influence young adults. However, it is very common for the student writer to find, after doing some research, that in the time and space limitations of this research project there is not enough useful information available about car advertising. In this case, the paper's final thesis might need to take a slightly broader focus: Advertisers use images of sexuality, excitement, and success to influence the overall buying patterns and credit commitments of young adults.

Definitions and explanations of subject, topic, hypothesis, and thesis are also presented as required reading in Part One of Writing Research Papers, where they are described in greater detail.

Assignment Description: This assignment will help you select a subject area from the choices given below. You will write a short paper (150 to 300 words) indicating your current interests, experience, and knowledge in the chosen subject area. No research is necessary--just write about what you know on the subject from observation, experience, prior study, and other means.

The subject you select is important. For one thing, you will need to use--i.e., stay within--the same subject area when you select your paper's topic later in the quarter.

Some topics related to subject areas explored in this assignment are reflected in the middle chapters of Technopoly, especially Chapters 5, 6, and 7. . If you wish, you may read ahead or skim these chapters for ideas. However, it is not required that you read these chapters before completing this assignment, and it is not required that you use content from them.

The questions listed for each subject area are provided to help stimulate your thinking. They are not meant to limit what you explore. Please don't try to answer all these questions in the "Pick a Subject" paper! Use them as needed to help generate ideas.

Here are the subjects from which you must choose:

Information Overload -- How have technological developments affected the frequency and flow of information we receive? Are we overloaded with information? Is the information we receive relevant? Useful? Have news programs become pure entertainment, or do they provide useful information? Are statistical/numrical measurements such as statistics, the stock index, etc. over-used? What is the effect of advertising bombardment? How is today's information-driven society shaping human thought and beliefs? Are we being manipulated? To what extent? Does information technology create winners and losers? If not, why not? If so, why, and what can we do about it?
Technology and Health -- In what ways has technology improved or worsened human health? What can be done about the problems? How can successes or strengths of medical technology by maximized? Are concepts of health derived from or related to technology in any way? Has medicine become too systematized or market-driven? Does medical technology create winners and losers? Should unhealthy people be made "healthy" with expensive technology? Why are medical approaches such as herbal medicine or acupuncture distinguished so clearly from "modern" medicine? Do medical practitioners today pay more attention to chemicals, machines, statistics, and processes than to people?
Computers and Culture -- How have computers and computer networks changed human thinking, behavior, and lifestyle? What has been gained? What has been lost? What elements of culture or human behavior gain or suffer from computer use? What kinds of social changes have computers brought about in communication? In education? In entertainment? In the economy? What are the disadvantages in these areas? Is computer technology creating winners and losers, or furthering social stratification? Have we become too dependent on computers? Do computers limit social skills and physical activity to a damaging degree? Why or why not?
Technology for Special Populations -- What technological devices and systems are focused on people with specific needs? What are the special needs that technology can assist with? What technological breakthroughs have enabled various populations of people who are differently abled, or of a particular age, or have a particular unique need? What are the cutting edge technologies in assisting people with physical handicaps or particular perception or processing tendencies in order to accommodate them and help them live a normal life if our society? How are these technological advantages distributed? How have such devices altered the "ecology" of culture?

Feel free to do any brainstorming, freewriting, etc. necessary to make yourself feel comfortable with the subject area selected, but do not send your pre-writing with the assignment. It is important to put some work into your early thinking on this topic because once you submit this assignment, you cannot change the broad subject area for your paper. Of course, there are hundreds of possible topics within each subject area.

The short paper you write for this assignment can remain broad in focus, though you should include examples and details for any assertions. Later, of course, you will focus to a topic and thesis for your research paper. On the other hand, if there is a particular aspect of the topic area that you would like to focus on now (for example, the use of artificial organs under Technology and Health), that's fine too.

Purpose: This assignment gets you started on the research writing process by helping you identify a subject area of interest to you. It helps you identify what you already know about the subject area, as a starting point for further inquiry. It also provides the instructor a writing sample.

Criteria: The paper must be between 150 and 300 words. Although as a research paper checkpoint it will not receive in-depth commentary from the instructor, it should reflect exit-level Eng 101 writing skills. Papers which are drafty (unfinished) or over or under in size will be returned to be finished and docked points. An example of satisfactory work on this assignment from a previous student is available upon request--contact the instructor. This assignment cannot be revised after it is evaluated.

Format / How to Submit: Submit by course message to instructor. You may either put it in the body of the message (preferred), or as an attachment if it is a Word, text, or rtf document (.doc, .txt, or .rtf at the end of the filename). The attachment function for course messages is under the composition box; browse your way to the file.