Problem Solution on something of Significance that I Approve Spring 2023
Reading: First of all, read the Basting chapter on research in Adios, pages 249-254 in connection with Problem Making page 109.
Minimum Sources: You will probably need notes from at least 8 sources to do this paper but a minimum of
3 periodicals such as professional journals (search engines through the library), magazines such as The New Yorker (google their site), Newspapers (the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, London Times have their own indexes so google them);
1 book (electronic through the library is OK),
Either an interview with someone professionally involved in the subject or a documentary film (PBS, National Geographic, Netflix, etc.) See Kanopy through OCC Library
Works Cited List. Rough Draft vs Final Draft. Look at Purdue MLA formats for doing a Works Cited for each work you take notes from. For the rough draft only, put a code next to every source. (These will disappear in the final draft.) Also, later you will only include the sources you used in the paper for the final draft and later put them in alphabetical order by the first item of the MLA entry, which is usually the author’s last name unless there is none. The final draft must use the minimum sources.
Label every note: Each note should be complete enough so that you understand the worth of the note over a year from now but each note should be only one idea or key detail. That way each note can leave its original context and mix with other sources. Every note you write down needs three items attached to it: (a) a code on it that connects to the source on the rough draft Works Cited page,
(b) the letter P or S to denote whether it is part of a problem or solution, (c) the page number if there was one. No matter what its original context, every note needs to be able to float away and be used outside of its original context depending on how you organize the paper. I will grade on your integration of various sources.
What to look for when taking notes: Don’t decide too quickly what the problems and solutions will be. As you research and get more interested in one thing over another you can refine your search. You will need two clusters of problems, each followed by a cluster of solutions to those problems. That gives the paper 4 parts, at least 4 paragraphs. Each problem part might be about only one big problem (if it is complex) or a cluster of interrelated problems. Remember, one way to intensify a problem is to do research on a related item that does not have the problem your subject has; this makes the reader wonder how your item finds a solution. Study “Intensifying” in the Problem Solution chapter. This opens up other things to research. You need at least 150 notes or more for this paper even if you use only half of them.
Rough Draft: As you develop and organize the rough draft, every time one of your notes enters the paper, immediately do an in-text parenthetical citation. Do not go back and do them later or you waste a lot of time. Purdue has details on what goes in the parentheses but it basically is the first item on the Works Cited page. Remember you are giving credit to every source even though you are writing the information entirely in your own words and style.
Final Draft: Once everything is organized and cited, then you will go back and make the writing really lively. No boring research papers or you start with a C. That means every line will be part of a Flow, Pause, and Fusion system with lots of thesaurus use. See above for the final Works Cited page. Cross out 20 words for more interesting words from the thesaurus.
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