Research Topics

(you will be choosing one to complete an annotated bibliography on)

Art & Music

  • Is art/music therapy the best form of treatment for specific disorders? Why?
  • Is there a “film noir” revival in modern cinema?
  • What does the phenomon of the Hollywood remake represent and why are remakes popular?
  • How does mental illness play a role in creativity?

Current Events, News, & Politics

  • Should women be allowed in military combat? To what extent?
  • Who should/should not be allowed to drive and what should the testing process be?
  • Is the Patriot Act defending us or invading our privacy as citizens?
  • Can there really be "Net Neutrality" in a capitalist society?
  • How are news organizations and newspapers influenced by their parent companies and how does that affect the information we get?

Education

  • Should teachers still teach penmanship and cursive?
  • Should summer vacation be eliminated from the school year?
  • Should parents who home-school their children be certified to teach?

English, Communication, & Languages

  • How did the Hollywood Blacklist affect movies and television in the 1950s?
  • Does American media present an accurate picture of Islam?
  • Should the government regulate privacy settings for social networking services?
  • Should American elementary students be required to learn a second language?
  • How does the modern Vampire novel compare with the 19th-century Gothic genre?
  • What is the role of symbolism in the work of [Poe, Chekhov, Atwood, other author]?
  • What social forces made the Harlem Renaissance possible?

Health & Biological Sciences

  • How is added/artificial sugar harmful?
  • According to the research, who can benefit from pet therapy?
  • Should genetically altered food have warning labels?
  • How will the use of PDAs and mobile devices improve the nursing field? What are the drawbacks?
  • Do video games help or hinder childhood development?

History, Philosophy, & Anthropology

  • Did humans create the idea of an afterlife?
  • What were the social forces that led to Prohibition?
  • How did the labor movement bring about the work week as we know it today?
  • Is the government doing enough to protect indigenous cultures in [country]?

Math, Computers, & Technology

  • How has technology impacted spelling and grammar over the past 5, 10, 20 years?
  • How is technology impacting our children’s social skills?
  • Should employers be allowed to monitor employees’ online activity at work?
  • How has the concept of zero changed the way we think about our surroundings?
  • Is there a mathematical equation for beauty and proportion? Should there be?

Psychology, Sociology, & Social Work

  • Should men have mandatory paternity leave?
  • How does body adornment exemplify a culture and its values?
  • Do "beauty" contests (Mr. America, Miss America, etc.) serve any purpose in society?
  • Is there a correlation to academic achievement, behavior problems or creativity and birth order?
  • Is an addiction to gambling as serious as an addiction to drugs or alcohol? (pick any addiction)
  • Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder: Have misdiagnosis’s caused doctors to over-prescribe Ritalin? Should we develop new diagnostic procedures (which ones?) to curb this trend?

What will be your topic? ______