Next in about 200-300 words, I want you to narrow your list down to one or two and think through why these might be a good choice for you to research. Make sure think about how you are going to get be able to research the topic i.e. what type of observation might you be able to do; who could your interview; where could you look for articles, journals, magazines, etc? Then quickly discuss what you already know about the topic. What interests you about it to continue researching it for six-eight weeks?
**This brainstorming session should lead you into your research proposal which is due next week; thus, you want to be specific and clear in your response to this post.
Topic ideas:
ReplyDelete-Why is there such a big difference between men and women sports? I am interested in this because I have played sports all my life. Also, mens sports have a much larger fan base than women sports.
-Why CSI? I am interested in why crime shows such as CSI, Law and Order SVU, criminal minds, etc. are so popular. I have seen these shows and they can be very dark and twisted so I am curious why people are naturally interested in them.
-Stigmas against mental illness: I really liked the movie Silver Linings Playbook and I think it brings up a good point about why diseases of the mind are not considered in the same classifications as diseases of the body.
-Should fitness be a mandatory class in college? the freshman 15 is a well known phenomenon, should colleges have requirements for students to take fitness classes like in grade school and high school?
-Is technology moving too fast? Has technology surpassed human interaction already? At what point will technology be going too far or has that point already come?
I know we didn't have to respond to these, but your idea on stigmas against mental illness sounds really cool!
DeleteResearch idea
ReplyDeleteMy research idea is to do a survey about interest in rock climbing at DU in hope of shifting the currently climbing wall use for little kids birthday parties to more students oriented. I would also get the records for the profit DU makes form these parties then would create a proposal to give up that profit in exchange for, hopefully the interest and sense of community it would gain.
Is transitioning the rock-climbing wall in the fitness center to becoming more student oriented both valuable for DU and the students?
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ReplyDeleteTopics:
ReplyDeleteChild soldiers – how they’re used and what are the consequences
World Peace – is it achievable or is it a myth.
The news – effects of manipulating the general idea and is it working?
New energy – new types of energy and will they be able to replace the types of energies we have.
Myths throughout history – are they just myths or were they misconceived
Lucid Dreaming – how to achieve it and what’re its consequences
Video Games – the effects of video gaming on the world, the good and the bad.
Modern Art – When art is not art anymore?
Here are a few research ideas I've thrown around in my head:
ReplyDelete1.) Has U.S. policy towards Al Qaida been successful?
2.) Do fast food restaurants deserve the blame for America's obesity?
3.) Is Post-Abortive Syndrome a myth?
4.) Is prostitution a result of personal choice or forced enslavement?
5.) Do women earn less money then men?
Topic Ideas
ReplyDeleteHow does gun control affect violence? Coming from Chicago we had over 500 murders in the city alone last year and roughly 400 of them were committed with a firearm. Chicago also has some of the most strict gun laws in the country.
How does violence in video games and movies affect children? There have been many arguments recently regarding how violence in video affects younger children because it corrupts them, but is this actually true? I have grown up playing violent video games so I think it would be interesting to research how much of a role these games actually play.
How does a sport affect critical thinking skills? Is there a difference between athletes who are active in one or many sports and those who have not played a team sport in the past? As an athlete I have read articles about which sports have the best critical thinkers and I am curious if there is a difference among others.
For my research project I have brainstormed numerous ideas that interest me.
ReplyDelete1. How commuter student life differs from a school where most of the students live on campus.
2. How does the amount of credit hours a student is taking affects their overall grades.
3. Do more females participate in Greek life or male? If so/not, why?
4. What is the fascination with supernatural shows?
5. Do students that participate in a sport or alternate extracurricular activity get better or worse grades?
6. Is the amount of sleep a student gets proportional to their academic success?
I am excited to write about one of these topics because they are so closely related to my own life. I already know a great deal about these topics because these issues and questions are prevalent on the campus I live.
These topics directly relate to me because they all have to do with college students. I will be able to interview a multitude of students on campus in order to get multiple perspectives and a variety of cultures/ athletes/ greeks/ or people with differing majors. I will have easy access to information and data collection. Because DU stresses “inclusive excellence” I hope to obtain a representative pool of data from the surveys and interviews that I administer. These topics will allow me to get a better grasp of the college life and what causes certain stigmas or theories to be put into place.
-Video Gaming – I am a gamer and I understand the types of gaming, I might be able to extend this into sexism and guys vs girls in gaming. This is a topic I greatly enjoy and I feel would be very fun to explore
ReplyDelete-Religion and raising kids in an environment of two different religions- Very present in current life and I have multiple people I can speak two. A much more serious one that I have seen people break up over.
-Success of relationships/ now and then- Same as the second one, very apparent in now a day relationships. I am currently in one and it seems like an interesting one to explore
-Religion and Relationships- How important is it to people and how much of an impact can it have on people and their lives. My girlfriend and I are both of separate religions.
-Gaming and productivity of school- Can gaming have an impact on schoolwork even in small amounts? Is it possible for the adverse to be true? I am a gamer and a student and have been for quite some time now.
When looking over the list, the two that sound the most interesting are probably the 1st topic and maybe the 4th/2nd. The 1st one is a lighthearted one that I would greatly enjoy both doing research on and collecting evidence of. The other two I am debating are both serious topics that have a large impact especially in today’s society. While the first would be more fun, the other would be more informative and might even draw better results by which I mean they will have more research to work off of. For both topics I would be working with surveys and/or interviews and possibly even observations. For the religion topics I know this area has been covered in great depth in some magazines or articles that could provide adequate research on the topic. These two topics, though varying greatly, are two things that mean something to me and I could easily feel drawn to them. This desire is one of my key terms in writing that I defined in that the writer needs to feel a purpose in writing and researching, I am hoping that by doing this I will hopefully push myself farther to get the research and to write the paper.
Topics Ideas:
ReplyDeleteFeminism in popular culture: (Do people recognize it? Like it?)
Feminism has become a dirty word in our society, but it shouldn’t be! Researching how it is represented and perceived through pop culture characters would give me a stronger grasp on why the ideology is rejected… and hopefully how to make it more accepted.
The effects of PhotoShop and imagistic culture on perceptions of beauty:
Photography is something I’ve loved for as long as I can remember. The editing process, however, is something I’m always a little leery toward-- I don’t like that images can be altered to the point of fabrication.
Tomboys in popular culture:
I grew up as a tomboy, but I didn’t really consider myself rebellious or anything; it was just what I was. I’d like to research how deviant gender performances are represented in pop culture to see how they are set straight or “fixed.”
Steve Jobs and unconventional success:
Working for Apple has basically turned me into a worshipper of this guy, and his life is incredibly interesting. His world views weren’t typical for CEO-type business men, so I’d like to explore how his nontraditional approach worked toward his success.
Reactions to significant medical issues (cancer, terminal illness, life-altering disease, etc.):
Dealing with my own medical issues has been extremely transformative. But what’s particularly interesting is how different people can take the same diagnosis and either shut down completely, or absolutely blossom. I’d like to explore why this is.
Adrenaline Junkies:
I’ve been called one of these before (and I’d self identify as one too), so I want to know why this hormone is addictive-- especially for some, but not others.
Appropriation of masculinity and the “man box” (anti-essentialism):
The societal definitions of femininity are incredibly limiting for women, but definitions of masculinity confine men just as well, even though it’s less recognized. Violence, toughness, emotional strength… none of these are ingrained in the male sex. They’re gendered attributes.
ADD/ADHD: I would talk about the number of medicated children under a certain age. What teachers think about their medications, what students think about their medication and what parents think about medicating kids.
ReplyDeleteAlternative Energies: I would briefly describe the different types of alternative energies that could be a viable option to replace fossil fuels. My paper would probably be specifically about solar panels however, how they work, why they are a good option and why they aren’t being implemented in todays society.
Autism: talk about how the amount of children born with autism in the past couple of years, studies as to why autism has blown up in the past couple of years, what the government does to help people with mental handicaps.
Internet making people stupider: the age old question is society smarter because people have the answer to any question only a touch away.
Are cell phones good for society: talk about how people are too engaged by their cell phones, does it hurt social lives.
The topic I really want to write about is Attention Deficit Disorders. I want to complete research on this topic because I have been diagnosed with ADHD and I still feel as though the only difference between me and the average student is that I cannot sit still. I also know a couple of people who also have ADHD or ADD and are medicated for it. I would like to know about what they think about and attention disorders and whether or not they believe they actually have it. In this paper I would like to cite both sides of the argument. Experts who believe it exists and that all the kids who have ADD or ADHD should be medicated along with the experts who refute that every kid diagnosed actually has it.
Coral Reefs and the destruction of them. Scuba diving and snorkeling have always been a passion of mine and knowing about climate change I'd like to see the overall effect of that and what is to happen with these reefs. Possible Question: What will the Great Barrier Reef be like in 20 years? 50 years?
ReplyDeleteI’m an NHL fan and recently heard that the MLS (major league soccer) has surpassed the NHL in viewer support and attendance. Possibly I would like to research why hockey seems to be a dying interest in the US.
Greek Life. I feel like this would be a great one for interviews, surveys, and observations by seeing what people who are both in Greek life and not think about it here at DU as well as at other schools and throughout history. Possible question: How does the influence of Greek life compare here at DU to other universities?
The NFL and concussions: How effective are the rules right now and should new ones be implemented?
Explosion of outer beauty: why has the ideal ‘beauty’ changed over the years? Male vs. female?
-The first topic that I thought about doing was with my major. I am majoring in HRTM and I am mainly interested in resorts/lodging. I could possibly narrow down my topic to what it takes to hold a certain position. I could also research the industry as a whole.
ReplyDelete-The importance of knowing multiple languages. Or should schools be bilingual? I lived in Belgium for five years and knowing multiple languages in Europe is much more valued than it is in America. I could research the effects that knowing a second language has on people as far as intelligence, social skills etc.
-I also really enjoyed my FSEM which was understanding moral panics. I might want to do my research paper on that and tie it into the media.
-I thought about doing something along the lines of running/exercise/triathletes because I have been a runner for a while. I could either go the nutrition/diet route or I could research more of the exercise route.
-How has technology effected our relationships? and is it a good thing or bad thing?
I don't know if I want to do something with my major yet because it might be interesting to pick something completely different. As of now, the two topics I am leaning towards are the multiple languages one and the exercise/diet one, but I am still not sure.
Marketing of Apple vs PC. Marketing has always been of interest to me, the different methods which companies employ to advertise their product and how the most ridiculous of advertising campaigns generate the obscene sales numbers that they do. Other than my passion for marketing and what I have experienced with it as a consumer, I do not know much. I hope that this project would help me to explore the field and give me a new understanding for the practice.
ReplyDeleteLoyalty to sports teams varying by type of sport (US). I have always been involved with sports, and very loyal to my teams – high school, collegiate and professional, but there certainly exists a discrepancy, I believe, in the following of football versus baseball, soccer versus lacrosse, and so on. I would like to discover if the less popular sports (relative to others) have a less loyal fan base or is it just that we perceive it as such because they receive less attention in the media. Perhaps the less popular sports even have a stronger following.
Loyalty to sports teams varying by region (US). Similar to the previous topic, I would like to discover how strong of a fan base certain teams of (of one sport) based on their geographic location. Sports have always been a contentious subject for me when I meet people from other places around the country because rivalries exists and we all claim to have the best team in the league. Do certain regions truly have a more loyal and stronger fan base though? And what are the contributing factors?
Perception of Greek life on campuses around the US (both affiliated and non affiliated students). Joining Greek life has been one of the most influential decisions I have made since starting college. However, ask me a year ago and I likely would have told you I did not intend to join a fraternity, mostly because of the way it is perceived in the South. Greek life as a whole, I believe, provides members with countless opportunities for personal development and I would advocate for joining a chapter, but it certainly has different implications based on each campus and each area of the US. I would like to see how both members and non-members at various campuses around the country of varying sizes student body makeup perceive Greek Life.
The resurging popularity of vinyl records. Vinyl records used to be extremely popular, but faced a stark decrease in popularity over time. However, they have recently started to gain popularity again. Music has always been a huge part of my life and though I personally have not gotten into the new fad of vinyl records, I have seen the rising popularity of them all around me. I would like to research what it is about vinyl records, which are generally more expensive than the digital/disk counterpart, have become popular again. It may just be a part of the “hipster” culture but there may be something more, or some more insight that could be gained about this hipster subculture.
Violence in video games:
ReplyDeleteWith the recent mass shootings, the news has put some of the blame on violent video games. Since I have spent lots of time playing video games, I thought it would be interesting to explore this topic.
Is technology moving too fast:
Technology growth seems to be almost exponential, will it ever reach a point where it is out of our control? As a science major, I feel that I have a personal stake in this topic as it relates to my major.
Social media:
Facebook has become such a large part of society that it has become an expectation to have a profile. Employers now check facebook of potential employees and your information can be sold to the highest bidder. How does the current state of social media impact the future generation of kids growing up?
Sports science:
With the advancement of science, sports are becoming much more demanding. At what point will the human body not be able to keep up with the stresses of different sports.
Gap year:
How does a gap year affect a college student's first year at school? In Europe, it is much more common for people to take a year between high school and college, is it beneficial?
The topic that I have most interest in is violence in video games. In middle and high school, I spent a lot of my free time playing games like call of duty, counter strike, and halo. After recent mass killing, some news stations have reported that violent video games are to blame. I think it would be interesting to see how some students who play shooting games and students that don't feel about the issue.
-How healthy is the food here at DU? is it sustainable?
ReplyDelete-Is solar energy the future of energy production?
-Is nuclear power really dangerous? (It saves more lives b/c nuclear plants don't produce pollutants that cause respiratory disease)
-Are there negative effects of the large amounts of sunshine in the Denver area?
-Are video games damaging the minds of children?
-What are the effects of desensitization through video games?