Writing the Research Paper: A Handbook Book

1. BASIC INFORMATION ABOUT THE RESEARCH PAPER. Fear of the Research Paper. Definition of the Research Paper. Format of the Research Paper. Reasons for the Research Paper. The Report Paper and the Thesis Paper. Drafts of the Research Paper. Writing the Research Paper: Steps and Schedule. 2. CHOOSING A TOPIC. How to Choose a Topic. Topics to Avoid. Narrowing the Topic. 3. THE LIBRARY. Layout of the Library. Organization of the Library Collections. 4. THE THESIS AND THE OUTLINE. The Thesis: Definition and Function. The Outline. Choosing an Outline Form. 5. USING THE COMPUTER IN YOUR RESEARCH. Computers and the Research Paper. The Internet. Online Resources. Researching with Search Engines. Usenet, Listserv, Telnet, and Gopher. Evaluating Internet Sources. Running a Search. Useful Internet Sites. 6. DOING THE RESEARCH. What Information to Look For. Where to Look for Information. Assembling a Working Bibliography. Selecting Your Sources-skimming. Note-taking. Plagiarism and How to Avoid It. 7. TRANSFORMING THE NOTES INTO A ROUGH DRAFT. Preparing to Write the Rough Draft: A Checklist. Writer's Block. Writing with a Computer. Using Your Notes in the Paper. How to Use Quotations to Explore and Discover. Writing with Unity, Coherence, and Emphasis. Using the Proper Tense. Using Graphics in Your Paper. Writing the Abstract. 8. REVISING YOUR ROUGH DRAFT. Principles of Revision. Revising the Opening Paragraph. Revising Sentences for Variety and Style. Revising Words-Diction. Rules for Writers. Not. 9. THE MLA SYSTEM OF DOCUMENTATION. Parenthetical Documentation: Author-work (MLA). Format for "Works Cited" (MLA). Content Notes. Consolidating References. Finished Form of the MLA Paper. Submitting Your Paper Electronically. 10. THE APA SYSTEM OF DOCUMENTATION. Parenthetical Documentation: Author-date (APA). Format for "References" (APA). Sample References to Special Items ("References"). Writing the Abstract. Finished Form of the Paper. Bibliography ("References"). Peer Review. Peer Review Checklist. Submitting Your Paper Electronically. 11. TRADITIONAL SYSTEM OF DOCUMENTATION (CMS). Footnotes and Endnotes. Sample Footnotes for Books. Sample Footnotes for Periodicals. Subsequent References to Footnotes and Endnotes. Electronic Sources. Finished Form of the Paper. Use of Numbers. Bibliography. Peer Review. Submitting Your Paper Electronically. 12. SAMPLE STUDENT PAPERS. Appendices. Mechanics. General and Specialized References, an Annotated List.