You will turn in five 1-page reading responses in the course of the semester. Each of these papers paper forms an intelligent response to the readings and discussions in this class, or to a lecture in the series "Toward greater inclusivesness: women and underrepresented minorities in science and engineering." A paper may contain a critical discussion of the text of the week, a comparison of positions taken in two or more texts, an exploration of an anthropological concept we discussed in class, or an exposition of an anthropological approach to science. If you choose to respond to one of the evening lectures, your paper should include a thoughtful summary and a commentary; ideally yur paper makes a connction between the lecture and an idea or topic we discussed in class. It may be useful to coordinate with your research team and write individual papers that are relevant to the team project. Papers are typed and double-spaced; you cite your sources and provide bibliographic information according to an acknowledged format for footnotes and references (such as the style conventions for the sciences CBE or social sciences APA; again, coordinate with your team and use the same format from the beginning if you want the papers to be of use for your final team report). While the papers are a response to readings and class discussions, you are expected to develop an argument that goes beyond the scope of what has been discussed in class and to give some evidence of your independent thinking.
In
all writing assignments you should keep in mind the following. You
seek to persuade your reader of your argument. Be certain that
your writing is organized around an argument or thesis; this argument should
be interesting and provocative; also be sure that you have the materials and
information to support it. Refer to Hacker A
Writer's Reference (pp. 79-81) to refresh your memory on how to craft
a thesis. In each paper, you must incorporate and refer to at least one of
the texts (books/articles/chapters) we read in class. References should conform
to an acknowledged style format (again, see Hacker).
The
following summarizes what I expect to find in a paper:
1. The paper addresses a topic you care about
2. The paper makes sense and addresses the topic of the course in a thoughtful manner.
3. You choose your words carefully, using them effectively and concisely; you have proofread the paper several times, and have asked yourself if every one of your sentences is necessary, contributes to your argument, and conveys what you want it to say.
4. The paper is concrete and concise and uses examples.
5. The paper is built around a provocative and insightful thesis, entails a clear argument, and effectively expresses an opinion or makes a point.
6. Your writing mobilizes reliable resources and is built upon verifiable information; it avoids speculation or rampant fantasizing.
7. This information is made trackable and traceable; you give the reader access to your sources by painstakingly referencing them.
8. Your prose is carefully checked and corrected for grammar, spelling, punctuation, and flow of the argument. When in doubt, consult Diana Hacker’s A Writer’s Reference.
9. The paper ends with
the works cited; use an established reference format, for instance CBE
or APA
as described in Hacker (1999, section M). Hacker also provides a proper way
to reference electronic sources (1999, pp. 339-341).
Responses
should adhere to the required length: 1 page, double spaced, reasonable margins,
fontsize 12. Be sure to include your name, course number, paper title, references.