English 320, web-based Class

Lesson for Week 9: Day 2

9:2

Your assingment for today was to . . .

Write a final draft of your discourse-in-your-field paper. Compose the letter of transmittal, the title page, the table of contents, and the abstract. Send the final draft of all materials to me as an email attachment and to read Lannon's discussion of documents and project cycles. If you need a couple more days to complete the paper, that's okay, but you should start doing the reading for this lesson now.

Today, we introduce the next assignment, reflect on project cycles, and discuss searching materials archived in a library.

You should have read Lannon's discussion of documents and project cycles for today. I don't have much more to say about these kinds of documents, but I do want to explain my strategy of working these documents into the class. You have already thought about project cycles a couple times in this course--you composed a Gantt chart to control the project of the course itself, and you wrote a to-do list for the discourse-in-your-field paper. For this assignment, however, we're going to step up the documentation expectations governing the project, but we're going to reduce the number of "daily assignments," which were designed to walk you through the first large paper a step at a time. Don't worry, the only real difference for this assignment is that instead of a to-do list or a Gantt chart, I want a proposal and a technical brief. Look at these links to find out what is expected. A full project cycle would also call for at least one progress report and a project evaluation report, but we will include only one progress report with this project.

Searching Archived Information

I hope you are beginning to understand that the common thread holding the assignments together in this class is rhetorical invention. We are exploring a number of different ways that writers in professional situations generate material: qualitative research (interviews and discourse-based interviews), quantitative research (surveys), analysis (rhetorical analysis). Now we are turning our attention to the area that most of us think of when we hear that we have to write a "research paper." I'm using the word "archive" here in a very broad way to mean "a place or collection containing records, documents, or other materials of historical interest." Most libraries have an "archives" area where materials of local historical interest are kept. But in this lesson, I simply refer to archived material as any stored texts, whether they are electronic or paper. I am, however, focusing on library research rather than web search in this lesson because good research should not rely entirely on web materials. The library is likely to have more reputable information.

Normally, we think of a research paper as something that comes from the process of going to the library and gathering written material on a subject. That's what I mean when I refer to searching archived material. The problem is that library science and the storage of information is changing very rapidly as more and more material is being digitized made available as electronic documents. We're going to look at how we do electronic searches using library databases.

The first thing you need is access to library databases. If you have not activated your library account at NDSU yet, you need to do that first. Go to the NDSU library site, http://www.lib.ndsu.nodak.edu/. You'll see a "log in" button near the upper lefthand corner of the screen. If you have activated your account, you can get in, but if you haven't, you can't. This process is a little confusing; in fact, I needed a librarian to walk me through it, so you probably will too. Call Circulation 701-231-8888, and tell them that you need to activate your account, or else come in to the library and activate it.

We're trying to get to databases, so, assuming you now have an activated account and that you have logged in, you will see a link to databases in the banner of the website (in yellow). You can click on that, and then select databases by subject or by title (see fields on the right side of your screen). If you select a subject like agriculture, a new page comes up with a list of databases available, and you can tell whether or not you can access them online from home because such are marked with triangles to the right side.

I selected Agricola and that brought me to a search page. I typed GMO in the search field and clicked on Start Search. That generated 54 articles, and I clicked on a line that said "display." That brought me to a page listing several articles citations and their abstracts (this is what an annotated bibliography looks like, by the way). The first article listed is "Regulatory and associated political issues with respect to Bt transgenic maize in the European union," and I saw that it is in J-invertebr-pathol. Orlando, Fla. : Academic Press. June 2003. v. 83 (2) p. 107-109, and I also see that the full text is available online (see note right below abstract).

When I clicked on full text option, I came to a page that has an alphabetical table to search journals, J-invertebr-patholis already in the search box at the top. When I submitted the search, I saw that the journal name appeared below the table, so I clicked on it to bring up a list of volumes and issues. I selected 83.2 and got a list of articles in that issue, and then I scrolled down to the article I was after. I was happy, because an html version of the article popped up, but I could have clicked on the pdf option. I copied and pasted the article into Word to save for my research files, and then a changed it into a pdf version to show you.

Here's another path I took. I logged into my library account. Then I clicked on E-Journals near the bottom of the page. I knew I wanted to look for AgBioForum, so I clicked on A in the table, and then scrolled down through the journal names until I came to AgBioForum. I clicked on it, and then clicked on back issues. Then I clicked on Volume 7, Number 4 (2004), and a great table of contents came up. It turns out that issue is devoted to international studies of GM reception. The full articles pop up easily. Here's the URL for that issue, but I don't know if you need to go through our library portal to get it or not (I think not)s: http://www.agbioforum.missouri.edu/v7n4/index.htm. You can do more advanced searches, and you can certainly look at other databases. For instance, I went back to the opening page on the NDSU library site and scrolled to the bottom. There I saw links to JSTOR and to InforTrac. These are both heavily used databases. Clicking on JSTOR, I came to their front page and clicked on Search Journals. That brought me to a search page that allows me to combine concepts or words and to select whether or not I want full texts. I typed in GMO in the first box and contamination in the second box (the preceded by "AND") and I left the full text option on at the right. I then scrolled down to check areas that I thought might be useful: Botany, Business, Ecology, and Sociology. Then I scrolled down and clicked on Begin Search. I got three results. To get more, I scrolled down to the bottom of the page and clicked on Modify Search. That brought me back to the search parameters page, where I clicked on advanced search. I didn't know how to do this, so I clicked on Tips on the top tool bar. I learned that I can put a plus sign to get plurals, so I changed my search terms to ("GMO+" AND "contamination"), scrolled down and clicked on opinions as well as articles, and clicked Begin Search. I got six this time. I found one that I wanted:

Genetically Modified Crops and Hybridization with Wild Relatives: A UK Perspective (in Review)
A. F. Raybould; A. J. Gray
The Journal of Applied Ecology, Vol. 30, No. 2. (1993), pp. 199-219.

So I clicked on Download came to a page that gave me options and I selected the low quality PDF option. And here it is in a low resolution PDF version (it's plenty big, so I'm glad I didn't save it as high quality).

I don't know a lot these kinds of searches, and this lesson is only meant to introduce you to the process. Always ask librarians for help if you need it. They're experts at these things. For the topic of GMOs, I would contact Alan Stevens, Life Science Librarian, 701-231-7965. He is really good at this process.

One more kind of electronic document I have just recently begun to use is the electronic book. If you go to http://www.netlibrary.com/, you'll see a search engine. If you are on campus sometime, you can set up an account with Netlibrary and use it at home. If you are on campus, you'll see on the right side of this page a section called "Your Library" and underneath it you see North Dakota State University. Above that are some blue links, one of which is "Create a Free Account." Click on that one and fill out the webform--it's easy. Then you can search Netlibrary from home and read books online (but you have to set the account up while you are on campus).

Finally, let's not forget that libraries still have physical documents, books and journals. If you go to the library's homepage, you'll see a link named NDSU Catalogue. If you click on that, you'll come to a search page that allows you to search the library's holdings. Food biotechnology in ethical perspective. I typed in "genetically modified foods" and got 27 hits, all but two of which look pertinent. Sometimes you'll find that books have been put on reserve. For Spring 2004, Alan Stevens put several books on GMOs on reserve for this class. To check reserves, I went back to the search page in the catalogue and clicked on the course reserves radio button and then Go. I then typed sullivan in the "for what" box and that brought me to a list of 13 items. I doubt that the books put on reserve in Spring '04 are still on reserve. Here is a list of some of the books on GMOs in the NDSU library. Here is a website containing PowerPoint presentations from the 2005 NDSU BioTech Conference.

When you are gathering materials that look promising, it's a good idea to create a list of sources, and, as you read them, to record the gist of the article or book. This process can lead to the creation of an annotated bibliography. The syllabus for this web class calls for annotated bibliography with introduction (20 pts.; due 10.2). If you haven't seen one before, here is an example of an annotated bibliography, an older one on assessing writing programs and classes. Notice that it has the full citation and then a brief summary for each entry--that's all an annotated bib is.

Finally, I've linked a page here that shows the the research and writing process I went trough to write a paper about transgenic wheat. I hope it will serve as an example of how to go about writing this kind of paper.

Your Assignment for next time is to . .

In preparation for the next lesson (on rhetoric and public issues), read Young, Becker, and Pike on Rogerian arguments (http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/ndsu/dasulliv/readings/young_rogerian.htm). Continue reading Dinner at the New Gene Cafe,chapter 14.

Write a proposal (here's a very brief proposal, and here's a better, more complex proposal written for Dr. Birmingham in another class). Also attatch a technical brief (a permission proposal is written to a person who has authority to approve a project; a technical brief is a document used by a writer or writing group to size up the task--it isn't aimed at an outside reader). In yor porposal I want you to answer these questions (but I don't want you to list them and answer them--just make sure they are answered in the report somewhere).

• Who are you as a writer for this project? That is, what role are you playing?
• Who are you writing to? Who commissioned you to do this research (not me--either create a believable audience or write to a real one). This paper should not be aimed at me, the teacher, or at the undefined audience of the college classroom.
• What is the exigence that has brought this research and writing project into being (again, not the class--either create a situation or write into a real one outside class).
• What do you hope to convince the reader(s) to do?
• What resources (be specific) have you already gathered to support this writing project? Where do you intend to look to find more (be specirfic). You should have leads to specific sources drawn from the sources you already have.
• What arguments (in summary form) do you plan to make?
• What structure, genre, medium are you planning to use? Why? What makes you think these are the best for the situation? This does NOT have to be an argumentative student essay; in fact, I would prefer that it is something else, perhaps a brochure that points to a website (it would probably take both in this case because a brochure is too short); a speech text with an accompanying Power Point to be given to a specific audience on a specific occasion; a report written to a local organization or commission that has requested information on a particular topic.
• What is your schedule for this project--be specific?
• If you are working in a team, who is doing what?

The proposal must how that your project and paper meet the constraints of the assignment. If you are still seeking for a way to narrow your topic on GMO's consider some of these links as possible areas for research (and always keep the rhetorical situation in mind):

• Should states regulate GMO releases? (If you pick this one, you might take on the role of a trusted assistant to one of the state senators and draw up a report or gather a portfolio of materials for the senator. The portfolio would have enough material so that the senator could make a sound call, but the portfolio would also have a report by the assistant summarizing the issue, the materials, the arguments. The report would also recommend a position to the senator and suggest ways of either proposing or resisting laws.)
• What boundaries should be placed on GM experiments? (You might imagine that you work for a state agency in a state like Vermont that has passed restrictions on GMO planting. You could imagine that you have been tasked with the job of drawing up regulations that will be open to public comment before they become policy. To do this, you would have to investigate the real legislation that has been passed so that you know that you are working within its guidelines. The regulations would also have a transmittal report in some depth, explaining the parameters of the legislation, the pattern of the regulations, and the justification for them in light of the legislation.)
• Is it a good idea to raise corn with pharaceuticals in them? (You might imagine that you are a scientist responding to (rebutting) the scientific report linked here. The publication would probably appear in a journal--for simplicity sake, let's say Science--although actually getting published in Science is very difficulty. Nevertheless, you could then study articles in Science to see their structure, their citation system, and their methods of argument. Then you could imitate the form of those articles to make your article appear as though it belongs in that journal or forum.)
• Should NDSU sign more contracts to develop more GMO crops? (You might take on the role of a consultant hired to counsel President Chapman on the issue, imagining that he has asked for a full report on the political issues involved and the state constituents. Here you might want to look at documents put out by the NDSU Extension Service here at NDSU and at material put out by the NPSAS group of organic farmers. Here to is a news release about the Dakota Resource Council (DRC) seeking information about NDSU Research Foundation's agreements with Monsanto.
• Can the public be convinced that GMOs have health benefits? (You could develop education materials to distribute, trying to convince the public that GMOs have health benefits, or you could generate material debunking those claims. These materials would be for the public and would require a covering, transmittal report to the agency funding the educational initiative--you can make it up--explaining the materials and why you think they are effective.)
• Is it too late to change farming trends in relying on GM seeds? (If you think it isn't you might take on the role of a local social activist and draw up a plan for "educating" the public and putting pressure on the farm economy. If you did that, you might have to imagine that you are a member of a local activist group and that your audience is that audience. Or you might create "public information" materials as though you worked for a social action group--materials that you want to distribute.)
• Was the USDA Animal and Health Inspection Service justified in approving the release of Roundup Ready alfalfa? Is the Western Organization of Resource Councils action in trying to block this release (see email from WORC) something to support or ignore? This paper would require getting in touch with WORC to find out more about their campaign. To create a rhetorical situaion, you might develop material supporting WORC's campaign or a white paper supporting APHIS for distribution to members of National Farmers Union, perhaps as material for their website.
• Is the issue of bovine growth hormone (rGBH) now settled? If not what are the issues presently? Imagine that you have been commissed by some rich rancher (let's say he's a Ted Turner type) who has decided that he might as well milk a few cows and get some money out of the cows. He or she has asked you, the trusty assistant, to write a white paper that has a lit review in it that answers the questions above. You, however, always wishing to go beyond the call of duty, decide to make the white paper an appendix to a feasibility report (see lesson 10.2, "the evaluative stance") in which you compare using rGBH to stimulate milk production with keeping the herd free of rGBH. The feasibility report should recommend one or the other. Your criteria for determining the issue should include profit, the health of cows, likely consumer market, possible effect on reputation, etc.
• Is Monsanto a company that should be praised because of its progressive thinking and philanthropic work, or is it a company that should be blamed because of its policies and research agenda. See Monsanto Fund, Monsanto vs. Farmers, Percy Schmeiser's website, the Organic Consumers website, Ethical Investing, Monsanto Sucks and other websites (simple google Monsanto and you'll find plenty of material about this controversial company). Here you might imagine various rhetorical situations: perhaps the issue of NDSU's relationship with Monsanto (4th bullet above) has become a hot issue on campus, and you are invited to be a panelist for a public forum debate about Monsanto and NDSU. Each panelist has been given ten minutes to state their position, and some have developed visual support (PowerPoints or charts or overheads), and you decide to do the same. You have to take on side or the other. Or perhaps, if you are working in a group, you could imagine that two of you represent the pro-Monsanto side of the panel and two represent the con side, and you can set up dissoi logoi speeches about Monsanto. Or maybe your student organization (maybe a biology or agriculture student organization) is thinking about writing a grant proposal to Monsanto to get money to help support your organization. You can develop speeches exhonerating Monsanto and advocating that the group go ahead and request money, or attacking Monsanto and agruing that the group should not. Or you might decide to do a rhetorical analysis of Monsanto-sponsored websites and anit-Monsanto websites. What arguments do they make? How do they use images? How to they create images of themselves?

Seeking Agreement on Civic Issues

1. Project proposal and tech brief; due 10.1
2. Annotated bibliography with introduction; due 10.2
3. Outline of paper; due 11.1
4. Progress report; due 12.1
5. First draft; due 13.2
6. Final draft; 15.1

Start research and collecting materials for your annotated bibliography. Here is an example of a annotated bibliography from several years ago in another class. Here's another annotated bib done in this class.

Finally, here's another PowerPoint, one given by Phil McClean, in English 320 on March 11, 2004. Take a look at it. We may return to it for analysis some other time.

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