2/12 Homework

The research that I have learned so far in this class is a bit more detailed and time consuming than what I am used to doing. I usually just type into Google or sometimes I will go to Wikipedia and follow through the links to find decent information.  I do not usually get a book from the library; I just use an EBook online.  

I learned key search words in class today and that will help with my ongoing research.  I prefer to use Advance Academic research engine over the other search engines that I have learned so far. I like the key concept and synonym part of the engine tool bar, I think they help increase and save the time to looking up a topic.  

Homework 2/7

      Special collections could be an integral part of many presentations that deal with history, since it deals with past artifacts.  Using sources outside of Academia such as letters, photographs, diaries, and other physical objects brings a personal touch to what you’re presenting.  I knew the library contains artifacts but I did not know that contain that many.  I enjoyed the presentation.     

For my research on free trade, I could give photographs of rust belt cities that became industrialized over the past 3 decades particularly Detroit, M and Gary, Indiana.  I could also give pictures of sweatshops in Asia and Mexico as well as the amount of smog in the air due to the low regulatory standards in these regions.  I could interview a former factory to get an insight to how his life was like during and after the plant closed down if that would be considered a ‘special collection’. 

Homework 1/30

The topic that I have chosen, and have picked all along, is Free Trade as an economic policy in America.  In my economics class that I am currently taking, we are discussing Free Trade and its consequences on the Trade deficit and blue collar workers wages.  My professor, despite many of the costs, seemed to support free trade and that it is a good thing because it increases the quantity of trade between countries, though I believe more so in others. I will have to look at the World Trade Organization to find out more information about this topic.  

As for a primary source, I could use articles from The Economists magazine, which has articles about this phenomenon every month.  I used "NAFTA", "Trade deficit", and "Free Trade" as some of my keywords and found several helpful links.  I could use graphs that help explain some of the details.     

Homework 1/29

I might use scholarly journals, magazines, books, or even newspapers to find the type of information that I need.  We did the source engine Galileo in class, so I believe that could easily aid in my search for information.   I know now that I can ask the librarian or an assistant to help me in my field of research if I need any.

 As for what type of discipline would be interested in my field of research, I would think Sociologists would have an interest in my topic given the fact it deals with people and their relationship with society from deindustrializing.  Another discipline that would be interested in my field of topic would be statisticians.  Some organizations that would be interested in my topic would be the World Trade Organization.  Others would be The Federal Reserve Bank, financial watchers, and other ordinary people that don't want to see their jobs outsourced. 

Homework 1/24

    
I prefer to use Google in doing my searches on the Internet.  I could use words that are similar to my chosen topic, which deals with the effects of Free Trade on the Economy.  I could choose words such as "Trade balance", "trade deficit", and "NAFTA" I could use Credo Reference and even Wikipedia to help find legitimate sources.  I could narrow my research question and ask for specific items.  

I will ask some of the main questions to any topic such as the; who, what, where, when, and why when I am researching my question.  I won’t ask a 5-minute search question that can be found on Google, or a quick yes or no question, trivial type questions, or a asking for an opinion that cannot be supported.  I will ask questions that acquire abstract enough to require analysis and that is broad enough that you can actually find information.  

Homework 1/17

One of the topics that I am researching, and that is in my field of study, is Free Trade.  The debate about global trade has become more important in recent years given the U.S. trade deficit.  I could look at the argument about Free Trade from both sides of the aisle.  I could look into the trade policy the U.S. has had over the past two centuries. I could look into the effects Free Trade has had on industrial manufacturing and blue collar wages.

The other topic I could research on is the effect television has on society.  I could search and see if television has had any effect on the development on the brain.  I could compare several different parameters and statistics such as SAT scores before and after, crime rates before and after, drug use before and after etc.  I could calculate the number of hours the average person watches television.                 

1/15 Homework

In one eaxample of a large transaction, I had to purchase books through Amazon for my classes and they totaled about $200.  The website offered me several discounts I could get if I signed up for this or that.  For instance, it offered Free shipping and handling if I became a member and bought only books from an affiliate from Amazon.  I asked my dad about it and he said it wasn't worth it.  I agreed because I don't buy very many things from Amazon, but at at the same time I thought they might have been useful in case I need to buy more books for school.

After I bought the books, I would get emails from the company advertising books that were similar in the field that I had purchased from as well as coupons and other discounts.  It would also give weekly updates of my book order and how close they were to arriving to my house.