term paper

PHY313/CEI544 Fall 2001 Term Paper

You can get guidance on writing from the writing center (Anne -- am I right? if so, how do students make contact?) A great web site for guidance on writing is Paradigm on Line writing assistant. For example, if you are unsure how to citesources, this page will lead you to a discussion and examples.

For PHY 313 students, 20% of the course grade will be based on a short essay (20%), which expands
on one of the in-class writing topics, or can be on another topic if approved in advance by the instructor (due December 4).

For CEI 544 students, 30% of the course grade will be based on a term paper in the form of a critical essay (30%) about some scientific conflict, event, or claim, on a subject pre-approved by the instructor (due December 4).

Please choose a topic and clear it with me by October 23. A short email, or a note handed in during class, will be fine. If you discuss it with me after class, be sure to follow up with a note or email; otherwise I will forget the conversation.

Choose a topic where the science interests you or else a topic where the conflict interests you. If you do the former, then there should be at least a part of the paper which explores the social aspect of the science. For example, if you choose a topic in Greek science, this gets a little hard, because we don't necessarily know a lot about the social context. However, sometimes we do. For example, Plato's scientific ideas would be an acceptable topic, but then the essay should go into the question of why the citizens of Athens executed Plato's teacher, Socrates.

The term paper is a research paper, meaning that you are not just reporting someone else's idea of a scientific controversy, but analyzing several points of view and, if you wish, presenting your own analysis about whose position holds up best.

It is OK for two students to choose one topic, and then divide it into two subtopics. You can work together provided the two essays are independent, with recognizably different aspects and arguments.

You will make your life easier if you choose a narrowly defined subject. For example:

stem cell research. This is not narrow enough, but you could start here. You should spend part of the essay defining stem cells and why researchers want to use them, but you should narrow the focus when you get to the controversy. You might want to compare the position of the Pope with the position of the director of the NIH, for example. Or the position of one congressman with the position of another.
genetic engineering. This is also very broad, not ideal. You should look beyond the views of non-scientific commentators to find what some actual scientists have to say (not that their views have necessarily any more validity, just a different kind of validity.)
cryptography. This is getting better. Should mathematicians be forced to keep their discoveries in this area secret? Government agencies prefer not to be confronted with unbreakable codes.
The Tuskegee Syphilis Study. There is not enough moral ambiguity to make this one ideal, but that's not an absolute reason to avoid it.
The EPA vs GE: PCB's in the Hudson River. What is PCB anyway? How dangerous is it? This one has some ambiguity!
Earthquake prediction
Nuclear power versus other forms of power generation

There are good stories every week in the NY Times, Science Magazine, Nature, etc. Make it fun. Pick a good story. Your grade will improve if I enjoy reading it.