February 27 (Monday)- Begin Writing Project with instructions.
For your writing project, you have two (2) deadlines and many possibilities for topics.
Investigate and Research your topic with library and internet resources. Write, revise, revise, revise...
Here is some advice from the UA Libraries and others on how to:
· Evaluate information you may find on the Internet.
· Avoid plagiarism in your note-taking and writing.
· Use journal articles and the popular press in your research.
· Use one of the more powerful scientific search engines, Web of Science (you will need to be logged onto UA computer to access Web of Science), also Google Scholar.
You should properly cite and reference all sources of information you use to write your paper, including facts, figures, tables and images. See this link for required style for in-text citations and end-of-text references- they are closest to APA style.
Your deadlines are:
March 21 (Wednesday)- Topic, Title, Outline (example1, example2) and References due
Turn in (due by class time) a typewritten/printed (not by hand); location to be turned in will be announced in class [D2L dropbox or hard copy in class].
(1) Statement of topic (a few sentences on [a] what your topic is about, [b] why you chose it, and [c] why it is important)
(2) An imaginative and compelling title of your paper (make sure it contains the topic of your paper)
(3) Outline containing a sufficient number of points to reveal your approach and emphasis, and that you have actually spent some time working on this.
(4) Properly Formatted list of at least 8 RELEVANT* references from web, books, journals, magazines that you have found that relate to your scientific topic (for web sources, give full web address that would allow others to find it exactly). [*RELEVANT web references are needed, not superfluous references with little or no relevant content]
TAs may be willing to
read full (or partial) draft of you paper and comment on it if you can turn it
in at this time.
April 11 (Wednesday)- Final Paper is due
Turn in (due by class time), location to be turned in will be announced in class [D2L dropbox or hard copy in class]:
Typewritten final paper (including Bibliography):
(1) At least Two but not more than Three typewritten pages of text introduced with your title and followed by bibliography. Any tables, pictures, figures are not included in the 2-3 page text requirement; they need to be labeled as “Table 1” (with caption), “Figure 1” (with caption), etc, and in the text you should refer to them at the appropriate point in your narrative.
(2) Double-spaced (not 2½ - or triple spacing); 12-point font type; 1-inch margins all around. If printed copy is requested, on one-side of page only
(3) If printed copy is requested, attach your Topic/Title/Outline/References paper that was returned to you after it was graded. If you are requested to submit to D2L, your Topic/Title/Outline/References paper will already be in D2L and available to us.
Topics:
You are free to come up with your own topic related to our course as related to global environmental change. Usually, the more specific the topic, the more manageable it will be. Some possibilities follow:
1. Standard term paper topics (perhaps related to something in which you are interested and want to find out more beyond the treatment in lecture/Mann-Kump/Mackenzie). Examples of topics that could be investigated in the context of global environmental change:
Little Ice Age compared to modern climate
Medieval Warm Period compared to modern climate Carbon sequestration
Alternative energy (e.g., wind, direct solar, geothermal, tidal, etc) Carbon credits & trading
Melting of mountain glaciers Energy efficiency
History of the “
Global Change and disease Modern extinctions
Variability through time of solar output (sun & climate change) Sea Ice and climate
Destruction of coral reefs Changes in permafrost
Current state and trends of polar bear populations Clathrates (methane hydrates)
Volcano effects on climate Nuclear energy alternative
How is global temperature measured? Is it accurate? A specific invasive species
Renewable bioenergy (e.g., ethanol, biodiesel, etc) Collapse of fisheries
Recycling: energy and resources “Green Revolution”
The state and future of the
The state and future of the Antarctic ice sheet Pollution and albedo
Agriculture 5000-8000 years ago and its effect on climate Population projections 2100
Isotopes in ice cores as climate indicators Solar cells
Biological indicators of climate change (e.g., wine, flowering, etc) Auto mpg standards (CAFE)
Worldwide biomass burning for heating and cooking Younger Dryas and THC
CFC’s and global change borehole temperatures
Hydrogen economy Wildfire
Trend in intensity and frequency of Pacific hurricanes (typhoons) Oil shales and tar sands
What is a Nobel Peace Prize and did A. Gore really meet its criteria? Megadroughts
Proxies of past climate change (e.g., tree rings, ice cores, pollen, sediment cores, etc) “Ozone hole”
IF A TOPIC IN WHICH YOU ARE INTERESTED IS NOT IN THIS LIST, PLEASE CHECK WITH INSTRUCTORS TO SEE IF IT IS ACCEPTABLE.
2. Non-standard term paper topics, for those who might prefer an option that allows you to take greater advantage of your creativity:
A. Devise a birthday card with 5 global change-related environmental milestones (time line) for the lifetime of someone at least 30 years old (but less than 100). You would show mock-up card and your term paper would explain and support your choice of the milestones.
B. Develop a time capsule that will contain materials/items representing the 5 most important things you would want someone 100 years from now to know about global change in 2012. Your term paper would explain and support your choice of materials/items.
C. Describe the 5 most important things you would like all people in the world to know about global (environmental) change today. Your term paper would explain and support your choices.
D. Investigate and write about “carbon offsets” perhaps including analysis of how much they would cost you individually, your family, your city or your country.
E. Put on your salesperson hat and make a persuasive and seemingly supportable argument to advocate one of the following:
Rising atmospheric CO2 is good
Melting of ice caps is good
Eutrophication (cultural) is good
Tropical rain forest deforestation is good
Rising sea levels are good
Global warming is good
Your ultimate goal for D would be to write a narrative that reads like a Chamber of Commerce brochure and makes your ASSIGNED specific advocacy seem attractive, i.e., you will write a well-crafted, interesting, rosy, and plausible-as-possible description/advertisement that will “sell” your advocacy, using whatever real facts or selective usage of facts (your strong command of global change topics can really help you in this, BUT YOU CANNOT “MAKE UP” FACTS).