research topic ideas and questions

The origin of track and field
Greek Mythology~the study of the gods
The Milky Way
Dreams
Prohibition in Montana
Mental and physical benefits of exercise
The origin of sailing
Walt Disney

Topic: The Origin of Track and Field
1) How did it come about?
2) What kind of events did they have?
3) Origin of the rules of track and field
4) How has track and field changed over the centuries?

Topic: Greek Mythology~the study of the gods
1) Who were the different gods?
2) What was the reasoning behind the Greek gods?
3) What are some of the present day beliefs that have come from the history of the gods?
4) What were the rolls that the gods played in people's lives over the years?

Topic: Dreams
1) What are the different stages of dreams?
2) How do dreams help us cope with everyday life?
3) What causes nightmares?
4) Why do we dream?

Topic: The Milky Way
1) The study of the constellations.
2) What type of matter makes up the Milky Way?
3) How do we study the Milky Way?
4) How do we know the location of the Milky Way?

Logical Fallacies

 

These are all ad populum fallacies. The reason the dog is an ad populum is because it is clearly a dog, but the dog is generalizing that because it has four legs, as does a cat, it must be a cat. This dog could easily think it was a bear, zebra, or cow for that matter. Ad populum is an appeal to the people or the majority. This dog thinks that because all cats have four legs, like he does, he must be a cat because the majority says so.
The Pope is commiting an ad populum fallacy because he is saying that a billion catholics, or the majority of catholics, can not be wrong when in fact he is wrong. He is going with the majority of the people therefore the people can not be wrong.  
The third and final comic strip is an ad populum because the Muslim said that if one person thinks that all the one and a half billion Muslims are wrong than that one person is clearly wrong. The reply to this was the four and a half billion non-muslims couldn't pssibly be wrong. In actuality they all could be wrong and the majority has no true say in it if they are wrong.

Logical Fallacies in the Third Presidential Debate

The question asked was, "What happened in Benghazi, Libya and was there a policy failure?" Romney responded with a Red Herring by not getting to the point of whether or not there was a policy failure, he never had a direct answer. He started talking about his own agenda and what life was like in Iran and about them being four years closer to a nuclear weapon. He also talked about all of the different terrorists and terrorist attacks in the different countries around the middle east, such as Mali, Egypt, and the surrounding region.
During Obama's answer to the same question as stated before he went into an Ad Hominem stating that, "Romney's strategy, previously, has been one that is been all over the map, and is not designed to keep Americans safe or to build on the opportunities that exist in the middle east." He attacked Romney rather than sticking to the question. His attack had no relevance to the question of what happened in Libya. He then attacked Romney again, stating that Romney thought Russia was  the biggest geopolitical threat facing America.
The next question was, "Should we reassess our policy in Syria?" Obama replied with a False Dichotomy suggesting that if we provide arms to Syria, that those arms will then be used against the United States. He was just looking at the one option and not looking said option in a logical manner.
Romney then states that Obama tries to use the Appeal to Authority when dealing with the tumultuous situation in the middle east. He said that the United Nations and Kofianon wanted to try and have a cease fire, that didn't work so Obama went then to the Russians to see if they could do anything. Romney is using this technique to point out that Obama is trying to appeal to authority.

helpful sources_capital punishment

http://deathpenalty.procon.org/
I find this source very helpful because it gives both points of view from several different people. It also covers many questions that may arrise with the topic of capital punishment. I have used this source before and have found it very helpful. It gives the pros and the cons of the topic and has no bias opinion. The information given is from respectable sources. I also like that it gives you more informaation on subtopics, such as background, moral, legal, and social issues. It also gives other alternatives to the topic or issue at hand. I think it will be usefull because it does give all sides to my topic.

http://www.religioustolerance.org/execute.htm
I like this source because it gives also all the sides of the issue and it also gives a religious based view on the matter at hand. I think it's good to have a religious based opinion also stated in writing. I personally believe that people need to know all sides including religious sides, no matter their beliefs.  This source also covers many subtopics that revolve around the main topic. I think it is helpful to give the reader more information on the subject at hand so that they can decide for themselves what their opinion will be on the matter.

http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/
This site is purely cases describing why people have or have not been put on death row. I think it will be useful because it will give different situations with different outcomes; whether it be a person being put on death row because of mental issues or because they blatently murder eight people. This way the reader knows that everyone is punished for their crimes no matter if they do have a mental dissability or not. It gives so much information on so many different issues people have come across with the death penalty that all sides will be covered.

http://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/links/dplinks.htm
This site is purely one-hundred percent site that will allow me to look at other sites for further information about capital punishment. I believe this will be very helpful because it leads me to other sites about the area in which I am studying. I will only need to wonder about a subtopic of capital punishment and this site will give me full access to any site that would be related to capital punishent. This way it will be easier to acccess all the information which I will desire or need. I personally love sites like this and think it is an enormous help to me.

Tim O'Brien Response

I believe Tim O'Brien's exploration of truth, reality, and morals of story telling are in a way twisted. I actually understand, in a way, the complications of which is fact and which is fiction when dealing with war stories. As he stated, people do not like to hear of all the gore, blood, depression, and death. People do not like hearing about that much less trying to comprehend that soldiers and others live in such a life. Those who do not have to deal with the reality of war seem to just ignore it and not try to place themselves in the situation, it is to much for some to handle.
I believe, no matter the controversy of whether it is right or wrong, that you should always tell the truth when telling war stories. People need to know what our troops go through daily! We cannot be oblivious to the world around us. We need to be able to trust writers through war stories; they are our only way we could possibly try to understand what soldiers go through. If we can get an infinitesimal understanding of what war is like we will, or we should, be able to relate with them and feel their pain.
Reality is something that is different for everyone. For those who have been through the war and have lived the life their reality could be the complete opposite of you or I. For them they could see death as a blessing while one who have not been through war could see it as a curse. Reality has no sound definition for everyone. It changes from person to person.
Morals also change from person to person. When one has to decide at the last possible second, whether it is right or wrong to leave behind a man or take him, kill someone or let them live, morals get thrown out the window. I see nothing wrong with this because I do not know what soldiers go through during times of war and I pray that I never have to make that choice. Our sense of morals, I believe, have gotten lost over the past decades. What once was terribly wrong is now acceptable.

Show don't tell!

Prompt: Spring will be here soon.

As I prepare myself for the first few steps out into what I expect to be the frozen tundra of winter in Montana, I am shocked to see the pure white fluffy snow in my yard has drastically decreased in size. I can hear the brown muddy water trickling down my dirt road which still is in the clutches of ice in a few places where the ice refused to relinquish it's hold on the gravel and dirt. I look closely at the places where the snow has finally given itself to the soil underneath and can see the new grass trying with all its might to push through the dirt and dead grass left from the previous fall. As I walk down our winding concrete sidewalk I see the snow has vanished in our once beautiful flower gardens, leaving only little bright green buds of flowers still to come, hoping to bring a new and beautiful experience into the world with its life. I then stop to listen not only do I hear the trickle of the melting snow but I hear the birds sing their glorious song of praise and excitement as the cold days start to disperse. I close my eyes and just stand there listening to all the sounds of the coming spring and I realise that I'm beginning to get warm! The sun is out and brighter than I have seen it in what seems like ages. The light rays coming down to the earth and tickling the new life that sticks up through the moist and rich soil. I look at my uncle's horses and see they are pregnant! The best part of spring is the new life that comes with a new time.

Dialogue

There Sage and I sat on my bedroom floor, not knowing what to do with our lives when I had a brilliant idea.

“Sage, let us go out for breakfast! How much money do you have?” I inquired, hoping she would have enough for herself and me.

“Hmmm, let me look. I have got about thirty-five cents,” she said with disappointment at the small amount she held out to me. We both look down pitifully into her cold white palm.
“Thirty-five cents?” I wonder, making sure I heard her correctly.
“Well, that and some pocket lint.” She replies with a smile. Such is the life of a poor college student.