Major Paper #4--Explaining a Concept Research Paper This is the longest paper you will write for this class.   The Explaining a Concept Paper will be due at the end of Unit 14. In the Explaining a Concept Paper, you will simply want to explain a concept of your choice, using research to support your explanations/definitions.  This paper should be at least 4-6 pages long, it should include at least two sources, and it should accomplish the following: *Inform your particular audience about a specific subject. *Present information confidently and efficiently. *Use established information for support, as well as personal “evidence” (if applicable) such as short anecdotes and examples from your own experience, or the experience of others. *Maintain an informative tone (not an argumentative tone, as this is not an argumentative or persuasive paper). *** IMPORTANT NOTE: Papers on the following topics will  not  be accepted:  * abortion * capital punishment * euthanasia These topics are far too controversial for the Explaining a Concept Research Paper, which should be informative (not persuasive) in its purpose.  Also, I've already read more papers on these topics than anyone should in an entire lifetime, so I won't read anymore. I encourage you to be more creative in selecting your topic.  *** There are several different ways that one can explain a concept.  While you do not have to use all five of these strategies (some may be more helpful to your paper than others, depending on your topic), the following options may be useful for you to consider: 1.)  Defining Directly:   This is the most obvious strategy—using a direct, dictionary-type definition to explain what something is or does.  For instance, in the “Love” essay, Toufexis defines terms such as “attraction junkies” and “endorphins” directly (see paragraphs 12 and 13).  In the “Cannibalism” essay, Ngo defines cannibalism directly (see paragraph 5).   For more on this concept, refer to Chapter 16. 2.)  Classification:   Another way to explain something is to break information into groups, and discuss each of the groups one by one.  This is called classification.  In the “Love” essay, Toufexis divides hormonal chemicals into two groups:  those associated with falling in love and those associated with lasting relationships (see paragraphs 9 through 14).  In the “Cannibalism” essay, Ngo divides cannibalism into three different types—survival cannibalism, dietary cannibalism, and religious or ritual cannibalism.  He then devotes several paragraphs to each of these types (see paragraphs 6-14).   For more on this concept, refer to Chapter 17. 3.)  Process Narration:   Particularly if your topic is of the how-to variety, this strategy will come in very handy.  Even if your topic is not how-to, a clear explanation of how something is done may be helpful.  In the “Love” essay, Toufexis uses process narration to explain how romantic love may have been part of the evolutionary process (see paragraphs.

1. Major Paper #4--Explaining a Concept Research Paper
This is the longest paper you will write for this class.
The Explaining a Concept Paper will be due at the end of Unit
14.
In the Explaining a Concept Paper, you will simply want to
explain a concept of your choice, using research to support your
explanations/definitions. This paper should be at least 4-6
pages long, it should include at least two sources, and it should
accomplish the following:
*Inform your particular audience about a specific subject.
*Present information confidently and efficiently.
*Use established information for support, as well as personal
“evidence” (if applicable) such as short anecdotes and examples
from your own experience, or the experience of others.
*Maintain an informative tone (not an argumentative tone, as
this is not an argumentative or persuasive paper).
***
IMPORTANT NOTE: Papers on the following topics will
not
be accepted:
* abortion
* capital punishment
* euthanasia
These topics are far too controversial for the Explaining a
Concept Research Paper, which should be informative (not
persuasive) in its purpose. Also, I've already read more papers
on these topics than anyone should in an entire lifetime, so I
won't read anymore. I encourage you to be more creative in
selecting your topic.
***
There are several different ways that one can explain a concept.

2. While you do not have to use all five of these strategies (some
may be more helpful to your paper than others, depending on
your topic), the following options may be useful for you to
consider:
1.) Defining Directly:
This is the most obvious strategy—using a direct, dictionary-
type definition to explain what something is or does. For
instance, in the “Love” essay, Toufexis defines terms such as
“attraction junkies” and “endorphins” directly (see paragraphs
12 and 13). In the “Cannibalism” essay, Ngo defines
cannibalism directly (see paragraph 5).
For more on this concept, refer to Chapter 16.
2.) Classification:
Another way to explain something is to break information into
groups, and discuss each of the groups one by one. This is
called classification. In the “Love” essay, Toufexis divides
hormonal chemicals into two groups: those associated with
falling in love and those associated with lasting relationships
(see paragraphs 9 through 14). In the “Cannibalism” essay, Ngo
divides cannibalism into three different types—survival
cannibalism, dietary cannibalism, and religious or ritual
cannibalism. He then devotes several paragraphs to each of
these types (see paragraphs 6-14).
For more on this concept, refer to Chapter 17.
3.) Process Narration:
Particularly if your topic is of the how-to variety, this strategy
will come in very handy. Even if your topic is not how-to, a
clear explanation of how something is done may be helpful. In
the “Love” essay, Toufexis uses process narration to explain
how romantic love may have been part of the evolutionary
process (see paragraphs 3 through 6). In the “Cannibalism”
essay, Ngo uses process narration in several ways: by offering
us stories about specific cases of cannibalism (see paragraphs 1
through 4), and by narrating the process of particular
cannibalistic rituals (see paragraphs 11-13).
For more on this concept, refer to Chapter 14.

3. 4.) Comparison and Contrast:
Another way to explain something is to discuss the ways in
which it is similar to and different from a concept that your
audience is already familiar with. Throughout the “Love”
essay, Toufexis compares and contrasts our traditional
assumptions about love with the scientific view of love. In the
“Cannibalism” essay, Ngo compares and contrasts traditional
western notions about cannibalism with the facts about
cannibalism (for instance, the fact that it still exists). Ngo also
uses comparison/contrast as a method of transition for one type
of cannibalism to the next. For example, “Unlike survival
cannibalism, in which human flesh is eaten as a last resort after
a person has died, in dietary cannibalism, humans are purchased
or trapped for food and then eaten as a part of the culture’s
traditions.” (See the first sentences of paragraphs 8 and 11.)
For more on this concept, refer to Chapter 18.
5.) Cause and Effect.
A final strategy to consider is cause and effect. What are the
causes of your concept? What are the effects of your concept?
Again, this tool may be more useful for some topics than others,
but it is an option you should consider. In the “Love” essay,
Toufexis explains what may have caused romantic love to
develop in human evolution, as well as the benefits—or
effects—of this development. In the “Cannibalism” essay, Ngo
discusses the causes of the different types of cannibalism (for
instance, the cause of survival cannibalism is starvation with no
other option but to eat human flesh).
Structure
In general, this paper should follow the basic research paper
format: Introduction, Body, Conclusion. However, here’s a
more specific outline:
1.) List your audience at the top of your paper, before your
title.
Who are your intended readers? You can name a specific
group of people (for instance, “New parents”) or you can name

4. a publication that you think your paper would be appropriate for
(for instance,
Time Magazine
or
Outdoor Life).
2.) Introduction. This is the place where you need to engage
the reader.
In journalism, this is referred to as the “hook.” How can you
hook your readers? How can you grab their interests so that
they want to keep reading?
There are several ways to hook the reader. You can start with a
question, you can alter your tone (see the first paragraph of
“Love”), you can use a quote (also see the beginning of
“Love”), or you can tell a story (see the beginning of
“Cannibalism.”) Your introduction and hook may take only one
paragraph, or it may take several, as the example essays
demonstrated.
3.) State your thesis.
This is the place where you come right out and tell the reader
what you are going to be offering them. (See paragraph 2 in
“Love” and paragraph 5 in “Cannibalism.”)
4.) Orient your readers to your concept.
In other words, describe or define your concepts, so that your
readers can understand what you’re talking about specifically.
5.) Provide information about your concept.
Use strategies such as comparison/contrast, process narration,
etc., and use examples as appropriate. (See the body portions of
the example essays “Love” and “Cannibalism.”)
6.) Conclusion.
This is where you want to wrap things up for the reader. You
may even make some reference back to the beginning of the
paper, or restate your points. (See the last paragraphs of
“Love” and Cannibalism.”
MLA Documentation
MLA Documentation is simply a standardized method of citing

5. your sources. In general, when you use source material, you’ll
want to do several things.
Within the text of your paper . . .
1.) When you are using a source for the first time, introduce
your source so that we can understand his or her credibility.
According to Joe Smith, a computer programmer at VacuTech,
“Programming is difficult” (Smith 2).
See the “Love” essay for excellent examples of this, at the
bottom of paragraph 2, at the bottom of paragraph 5, and in
paragraphs 10, 12, 14.)
2.) When you quote the same source later in the paper (after
he/she has been introduced), use a standard attribute tag.
Smith went on to say that “DOS is especially difficult for many
beginning users” (Smith 3).
3.) In addition to these informal methods of citation, you will
need to use parenthetical citations whenever you are quoting a
source directly and whenever you are using a source’s ideas,
even if you are putting them in your own words.
Smith explained that there are three keys to good
programming: be patient, be practical, be persistent (Smith 2).
Additional Notes/Questions about In-Text Citations
*But what if the author of the article is not the person that I am
quoting? What if I'm quoting someone who the author quoted in
her article?
If the person you are quoting is not the author, just do the same
as in number 1 above, but when you get to the parenthetical
citation use the author's name instead of the name of the person
you are quoting. For instance, if Lou Brown had written the
article above, and merely quoted Joe Smith, you would do this:
According to Joe Smith, a computer programmer at VacuTech,
“Programming is difficult” (Brown 2).
*But what if the article has no author?
If the article has no author, just do the same as above, but use a
keyword from the article title in the parenthetical citation. For
instance, if the article we quoted above had no author, but we
knew the title was "Programming for Beginners," we would cite

6. it like this:
According to Joe Smith, a computer programmer at VacuTech,
“Programming is difficult” ("Beginners" 2).
At the end of your paper . . .
At the end of your paper, you’ll need to include a Works Cited
page, which will offer an extended reference for each of the
sources you used in your paper. Use the MLA guide in Chapter
24 (Chapter 22 for the 8th or 7th editions) to determine how to
cite each of your individual sources. Then refer to pages 787-
794 in the 9th edition to see an example of an MLA formatted
research paper and how the Works Cited page should be
formatted.
(This example is on pages 772-779 in the 8th edition or pages
782-790 in the 7th edition.)
For more information on MLA documentation on the web, go to:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/