ENGH 302-SN2, Summer 2015
Paper #1 (print and post)

For Saturday June 13th, write a 2-3 page paper (typed and double spaced) on what you see as a particularly important person, idea, system or device in the history of computing covered in Isaacson's The Innovators, chapter 2 (The Computer) and/or chapter 8 (The Personal Computer).  Post your paper to the blog before class and bring a print copy to hand in.  Describe in detail the person, idea, system or device and cover: 

• what the idea was and why it was important and how it was different from ideas already in circulation OR
   
• how the device or system was designed and functioned, who developed it and when, what need(s) it met, how it was different from the alternatives available at the time and why it was important OR
   
• What the person or persons did, what ideas, systems or devices they introduced, and why their contributions were important.    

You can cover both a person and an idea/system/device (Engelbart developed NLS).  Be explicit about the criteria you are relying on to establish its importance.  Note crucial dates and make sure to be specific about who did what, how a system or device worked, etc. and cite pages in Isaacson (or the part number/name of The Machine episode) as your source.  Note that Isaacson is a biographer, so he tends to organize each chapter around the people involved but he also provides you with good material on ideas, processes and devices so you can organize your paper around those as well as people. 

Conclude your paper in a new paragraph by proposing a research question you could ask if you to write a longer paper on the person, system, device or idea (SLO-4).  As you are working on this part of the paper, read Hacker, pp. 91-2 on choosing a focused, challenging, and grounded research question.  This question could be is could be the beginning of your work on the final research paper but you will have other options more closely tied to your major.  Since several of you only posed a very brief and undeveloped question in your paper of June 13th, if you revise the paper for after break (July 11th) develop the question further in a new concluding paragraph to your paper where you show how the question follows from your account of the system, person, idea or device and how this account opens up interesting areas for further inquiry.    

For now, this is not a research paper per se--although you should draw on the assigned reading and cite/quote specific pages from Isaacson--but an exercise in finding an interesting topic/issue to explore in the history of computing and making an argument/developing a thesis on its importance.  Make sure to set out your thesis on why your selection is important somewhere near the beginning of the paper. Remember that a thesis (taking a position, answering a question) for an argumentative paper must be arguable, interesting, manageable, and specific.  Do not try and cover too much since this is a short paper and I expect you to include specific details and citations. 

You must cite at least two sources in your paper (Isaacson's The Innovators AND The Machine That Changed The World Part I, Part II or Part III) and include at least two quotes or paraphrases with in-text citations and a Works Cited/References page (SLO-5).  Note that the Waxy.org pages for The Machine include text summaries and references and mouse-over circles for jumping to particular sections of the documentary.  See Diana Hacker's Re:Writing 3 to review citation formats as well as Diana Hacker's Pocket Style Manual, the print writing handbook for the class.

• For how to cite The Machine That Changed the World (TV program on Web) on your Works Cited (MLA) or References (APA) page, see Hacker, p. 161, #59b (MLA) or pp. 213-14 #53b (APA).   
  
• For how to cite The Innovators, on your Works Cited (MLA) or References (APA) page, see Hacker, pp. 150-51 (MLA) or pp. 205-6 (APA).    
  
• For how to use in-text citations tied to your Works Cited (MLA) or References (APA) page, see Hacker, pp. 124- (MLA) or pp. 185- (APA).   
  
• Make sure to study carefully the Sample Papers in Hacker, pp. 170-173 (MLA) or pp. 222-229 (APA) and format your papers consistently according to one of the models.   
  
• You can also use Chicago (Hacker pp. 231-269) or CSE (Hacker pp. 271-286) for your papers, but I will not be going over these formats in class so you are more on your own if you chose one of them and therefore should only use it if you have already been trained in that format.      

In-class peer review:  during class, exchange print copies of your first paper and read your fellow student's paper through once.  Then turn to the blog post version of the paper and use the comment feature of the blog  to leave feedback on your fellow student's work.  Re-read the paper and begin with a general comment on the strengths and weakness of the paper and then answer the following questions:

1. Does the paper describe in detail the person, idea, system or device the author has chosen to write on and cover:
   • what the idea was and why it was important and how it was different from ideas already in circulation AND/OR
   • how the device or system was designed and functioned, who developed it and when, what need(s) it met, how it was different from the alternatives available at the time and why it was important  AND/OR
   • What the person or persons did, what ideas, systems or devices they introduced, and why their contributions were important. 
2. Are there any sections of the paper that wander from the main point(s) or aren’t tied to it with transitions? Be specific and suggest ways the author could tie his or her points together better.  Should some points be cut because they are irrelevant (with or without better transitions)? 
3. Are their any additions that would benefit the paper?  Do any points need elaboration or more evidence?
4. Does the paper note crucial dates and is it specific about who did what, how a system or device worked, etc.?
5. Does the paper cite pages in Isaacson AND cite part number/name of The Machine episode) as sources?
6. Does the paper include at least two quotes or paraphrases with in-text citations and a Works Cited/References page.  Do signal phrases introduce the quotes or paraphrases and are they integrated into the author's own point or argument?  Are the in-text cites and the Works Cited (MLA) or References (APA) pages done properly?  Review the sample papers in Hacker as you work on this point. 
7. Does the paper conclude with a final paragraph proposing a research question that could structure a longer paper on the person, system, device or idea?  Before you comment on the research question, review Hacker, pp. 91-2 on choosing a focused, challenging, and grounded research question.