Skip to main content

I'm writing a short research paper on Hiroshima and the Atomic Bomb. I'd like to write about Obama's visit to Hiroshima May 2016. I can't think...

The first thing you want to consider is whether you are writing a paper about the US bombing of Hiroshima or about Obama's decision to visit Hiroshima. These are really two distinct topics (the bomb, after all, was dropped before Obama was born). 


Next, you need to consider the genre of your paper. An expository paper generally does not have a thesis, as it simply recounts information. An argumentative paper is the type of paper that has a thesis statement. The thesis is the point which the paper is arguing. A good thesis is a point where there are plausible arguments on both sides of the question. You could not argue about the date the bomb was dropped, for example, as there is a single correct answer (August 6, 1945). 


Your idea of comparing and contrasting the Pope's speech to Obama's has good potential. You might argue the thesis that many of the differences between their speeches could be attributed to the difference in their positions, with one being the leader of a world religion and one being the leader of a nation with constitutionally mandated separation of church and state. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Is there a word/phrase for "unperformant"?

As a software engineer, I need to sometimes describe a piece of code as something that lacks performance or was not written with performance in mind. Example: This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. Based on my Google searches, this isn't a real word. What is the correct way to describe this? EDIT My usage of "performance" here is in regard to speed and efficiency. For example, the better the performance of code the faster the application runs. My question and example target the negative definition, which is in reference to preventing inefficient coding practices. Answer This kind of coding style leads to unmaintainable and unperformant code. In my opinion, reads more easily as: This coding style leads to unmaintainable and poorly performing code. The key to well-written documentation and reports lies in ease of understanding. Adding poorly understood words such as performant decreases that ease. In addressing the use of such a poorly ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Is 'efficate' a word in English?

I routinely hear the word "efficate" being used. For example, "The most powerful way to efficate a change in the system is to participate." I do not find entries for this word in common English dictionaries, but I do not have an unabridged dictionary. I have checked the OED (I'm not sure if it is considered unabridged), and it has no entry for "efficate". It does have an entry for "efficiate", which is used in the same way. Wordnik has an entry for "efficate" with over 1800 hits, thus providing some evidence for the frequency of use. I personally like the word and find the meaning very clear and obvious when others use it. If it's not currently an "officially documented" word, perhaps its continued use will result in it being better documented.
Post a Comment
Read more