The Thompson Handbook gives a good outline of the research process that we should follow. We have already analyzed and decided on the subject we want to cover for the white paper project. The next steps will involve reviewing tests that discuss the topic and considering the elements of the issue of renewable energy. We will first want to find out what has already been said and proposed as a solution. Another important thing to gain from these texts is the knowledge of whether people are satisfied with the state of these text’s solutions.
After those preliminary steps are taken, the research will involve tracking the names of people associated with renewable energy, finding credible internet sources that discuss both sides of the issue, and also finding specialized texts that review the issue.
Some specific things that the Thompson Handbook suggests to do while researching are to keep a record or journal of the work that you can look back on later to refresh your memory or check where you got certain information. It also suggests to write down quotations that you would want to use on 3X5 cards that are easy to sort into different subtopics.
Specifically, we will also want to have technical data that can be interpreted by the reader. First, we will have to establish a datum for the numbers. We will tell the readers how much a typical energy source. Since we will be reporting in kilowatt hours of energy, we will explain this measurement system and relate it to things that they use in their home or office. For this, we will be using many government websites because these are often the most credible.
Another aspect of research that I hadn’t thought of until reading the Thompson Handbook was which way we are going to site the resources we use. In other words, we’re going to have the research the way research is cited for this project. There are several citation and research guides mentioned in the Handbook that we will look over and decide which to use.
unrealistic R12
I like the idea “to keep a record or journal of the work that you can look back on later to refresh your memory or check where you got certain information” that you state from the handbook. Although, it seems to me like a wordy way to say open a word doc or take some notes. I think the reading this week kind of comes off self-glorifying in terms of researching things. I know that certain things that may seem unnecessary work really well for some people but I just don’t see how in most situations that “writing down quotations that you would want to use on 3X5 cards that are easy to sort into different subtopics” would be helpful. It just seems to me like research should not need that type of intense organization when you could just use a paper or word doc. Just my thoughts.
Shane
3x5 cards
I've always had the same problem with 3x5 cards ... there was never enough room, it felt unnecessary, and I had a horrible tendency to lose them rather easily. However, as you suggest, Shane, a word document works really well for me. I found that putting the bibliographic entry for the source in whatever format I was going to ultimately need it in (e.g. MLA, APA, etc.) and then putting notes underneath helped me a lot for when I got ready to actually write. I usually only type quotes if I know I'm going to put quotes into my paper, because then I haven't really wasted anytime doing so, since I can just copy and paste what I want later. Although I only started using this approach once I was forced to for some project a few years ago, I've used it ever since. I'd encourage you to try it once and see if you can make it work for you.
Kristin
Taking Notes
I have never liked taking notes using 3x5 note cards. I was forced to take all my notes on them once for a debate and by the end of the project I had somewhere in the neighborhood of 500+ note cards. At that point trying to sort through them, or even keep them all together was more trouble then it was worth. Since then I have tried to keep most of my research notes on computers in word docs or other software that allows me to save the research by either the site I found it on, or by the topic its about. This way of researching has always worked much better for me then trying to write things down on note cards.
Patrick Griffin
pgriffin@purdue.edu