Research Essay

The major research assignment will be a scholarly review of one of the following topics:

• Interactivity
• Virtuality
• Attitudes towards technology
• Ethical issues in cyberspace
• Aesthetic issues
• Anything else (with approval from instructor)
  

The final research should consist of 2500-3000 words, using at least eight sources with proper documentation and citation, and a screen-based structure (it should not be a single scrolling screen).

Consider your audience for this assignment to be other interested students and researchers. Since this project will be placed online, it will be available to others (via Google and other search engines) within a few days of posting. Consider the following questions:

• Who would be interested in this topic (that is, who would be searching for it)?
• Why would they be interested in this topic?
• What can you tell them that they don't aleady know (that is, why should they read your research project)?

Also consider your purpose:

• What are you trying to get across to this audience?
• Are you trying to inform?
• To persuade?

Putting your topic together with your audience and purpose brings you to a preliminary thesis:
" (This topic) is important to (this group) for (these reasons)."