RAINIER JARENZ R.

MERCADO

Brainstorming Research Questions

Ask these questions:

What is it?

It is the process of thinking up and writing down a set of questions that you want to answer
about the research topic you have selected.

Why should I do it?

It will keep you from getting lost or off-track when looking for information. You will try to
find the answers to these questions when you do your research.

When do I do it?

After you have written your statement of purpose, when you will have a focused topic to ask
questions about.

How do I do it?

You will be making two lists of questions. One for "factual" questions and one for
"interpretive" questions. The answers to factual questions will give your reader the basic
background information they need to understand your topic. The answers to interpretive
questions show your creative thinking in your project and can become the basis for
your thesis statement.

Asking factual questions:

Assume your reader knows nothing about your subject. Make an effort to tell them
everything they need to know to understand what you will say in your project.
Make a list of specific questions that ask : Who? What? When? Where?
Example: For a report about President Abraham Lincoln's attitude and policies towards
slavery, people will have to know; Who was Abraham Lincoln? Where and when was he
born? What political party did he belong to? When was he elected president? What
were the attitudes and laws about slavery during his lifetime? How did his actions affect
slavery?

Asking Interpretive Questions:

These kinds of questions are the result of your own original thinking. They can be based on
the preliminary research you have done on your chosen topic. Select one or two to answer
in your presentation. They can be the basis of forming a thesis statement.

A. Hypothetical: How would things be different today if something in the past had
been different?
Example: How would our lives be different today if the Confederate (southern) states had
won the United States Civil War? What would have happened to the course of World War
Two if the Atomic Bomb hadn't been dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki?
B. Prediction: How will something look or be in the future, based on the way it is
now?

Example: What will happen to sea levels if global warming due to ozone layer depletion
continues and the polar caps melt significantly? If the population of China continues to grow
at the current rate for the next fifty years, how will that impact its role in world politics?
C. Solution: What solutions can be offered to a problem that exists today?

Example: How could global warming be stopped? What can be done to stop the spread of
sexually transmitted diseases among teenagers?
D. Comparison or Analogy: Find the similarities and differences between your main
subject and a similar subject, or with another subject in the same time period or place.

Example: In what ways is the Civil War in the former Yugoslavia similar to (or different
from) the United States Civil War?
What is the difference in performance between a Porsche and a Lamborghini?
E. Judgment: Based on the information you find, what can you say as your informed
opinion about the subject?

Example: How does tobacco advertising affect teen cigarette smoking? What are the major
causes of eating disorders among young women? How does teen parenthood affect the
future lives of young women and men?

Name_______________________

The Art of Asking Questions Learning how to ask good questions will make your
writing more sophisticated and interesting to read. There are two categories of
questions; factual and interpretive. In the process of writing, you will want to ask
and answer both kinds.

I. Asking Factual Questions: Assume your reader knows nothing about your subject.
Make an effort to give them the background they need to know to understand what
you will be talking about in your essay. Make a list of specific questions that ask :
Who? What? When? Where?

Examples: (For a report about Abraham Lincoln) Who was Abraham Lincoln? Where
and when was he born? What political party did he belong to? When was he elected
president? Where did he and Steven Douglas debate? etc...

List some factual questions about your topic that you will answer in your project:

___________________________________________________ ___________________________
_______________________________________________________________ _______________

___________________________________________________________________________ ___

______________________________________________________________________________

II. Asking Interpretive Questions: These kinds of questions are the result of your
own original thinking. They can be based on the preliminary research you have done
on your chosen topic. Select one to answer in your essay.

A. Hypothetical : How would things be different today if something inthe past had
been different?

Examples: How would our lives be different today if the Confederate (southern)
states had won the United States Civil War? What would have happened to the
course of World WarTwo if the Atomic Bomb hadn't been dropped on Hiroshima and
Nagasaki?

Write a hypothetical question about your topic:

___________________________________________________ __________________________

_______________________________________________________________ _______________

___________________________________________________________________________ ___

______________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________ ____________________________

B. Prediction: How will something look or be in the future, based on the way it is
now?

Example: What will happen to sea levels if global warming due to ozone layer
depletion continues and the polar caps melt significantly? If the population of China
continues to grow at the current rate for the next fifty years, how will that impact its
role in world politics?

Write a prediction question about your topic:

___________________________________________________ __________________________

_______________________________________________________________ _______________

___________________________________________________________________________ ___

______________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________ ____________________________

C. Solution : What solutions can be offered to a problem that exists today?

Examples: How could global warming be stopped? What can be done to stop the
spread of sexually transmitted diseases among teenagers?

Write a solution question about your topic:

___________________________________________________ __________________________
_______________________________________________________________ _______________
___________________________________________________________________________ ___
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

D. Comparison: Find the similarities and differences between your main subject and
a similar subject; or with another subject in the same time period or place.

Examples: In what ways isthe Civil War in the former Yugoslavia similar to (or
different from) the United States Civil War? What is the difference in performance
between a Porsche and a Lamborghini?

Write a comparison question about your topic:

___________________________________________________ __________________________
_______________________________________________________________ _______________
___________________________________________________________________________ ___
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________

E. Judgment: Based on the information you find, what can you say as your informed
opinion about the subject?

Examples: How does tobacco advertising affect teen cigarette smoking? What are
the major causes of eating disorders among young women? How does teen
parenthood affect the future lives of young women and men?

Write a judgement question about your topic:

Brainstorming Strategy: Asking Questions

Brainstorming is the process by which ideas are produced using techniques like concept
mapping, free-writing, etc. Choosing a topic can be a difficult process when starting an
assignment, writing a paper, or working on an oral presentation. Brainstorming can be used to
choose a topic or narrow down a broad topic.

ASKING QUESTIONS

WHO
 Who are the important / influential people (artists, designers, critics, writers, philosophers etc.)
involved with my topic? This could also be a group or organization rather than an individual.

 Who is the audience or end user?

WHAT

 What are some examples of this topic? A work of art, building, film, product, service, etc.?
 What is it made of, what does it look like, what style is it?
 What are the creator’s aims, goals or concerns?

WHEN

 What time period(s) are appropriate to this topic?

 Has it been around for a long time, or is it new?
 How did it originate?
 If it is historical, what are the important milestone dates in its history?

WHERE

 Is it tied to a specific country, state, city or geographic area?

 Has it been relocated to multiple places and if so, where?
 What is the importance of place to my topic?

HOW

 Has this topic/idea/work influenced others?

 How does it relate to the larger culture or context?

WHY

 Is this topic/idea important–to others, and to me?

Research Presentation Guidelines

Presentation in brief: The presentation is a group project. Think of this as a visual version of your paper.
The presentation should include: a short intro, your hypotheses, a brief description of the methods,
tables and/or graphs related to your findings, and an interpretation of your data.

The presentations should be no more than 10 minutes long. That’s not much time. Plan on needing
about 1 minute per slide. The trick to giving good presentations is distilling your information down into a
few bulleted lists, diagrams, tables and graphs. You don’t want to be rushed while presenting.

Title slide (1 slide). Title of the talk (probably the same as your paper), the names of all group members,
the class and university names, and the date the talk is given.

Introduction (typically 3-4 slides). Explain why your work is interesting. Place the study in context – how
does it relate to / follow from the scientific literature on this subject. If it relates to any applied issues
(e.g., environmental problems), mention this here. Use some pretty visuals (photographs, drawings, etc.)
to get the audience excited about the issue and questions you are addressing. Clearly state your
hypotheses. (4 points)
Materials and Methods (typically 2-3 slides). Clearly summarize the design. Show a picture of your
organisms and justify why they are appropriate for addressing the questions mentioned above. Show a
picture of your lab setup and/or of a person doing some of the lab work. Show a diorama of your
experimental design (with sample sizes, number of replicates, sampling frequency, etc.). Mention what
parameters you measured but do not go into detail on exact procedures used. Do state what statistical
tests you used to analyze your data. (2 points)

Results (typically 2-4 slides). First show a photograph (or sketch) that shows an interesting qualitative
results (e.g., trays of plants in which one set is noticeably bigger than the other, a drawing of a happy
Daphnia) and state that result. Then display the results in graphical form, reminding the audience of
your hypothesis and stating whether it was supported as you do so. Use simple, clean, clearly labeled
graphs with proper axis labels (no extraneous 3-D effects please). Do not use light colors (yellow, light
green, or pink) in your figures, they do not show up well when projected. Indicate the results of the
statistical tests on the slides by including pvalues (or asterisks/letters that indicate the significance level)
on the same slides with the graphs. If you have multiple results, state them in a logical order. (5 points –
good graphs are a big part of this!)

Implications and Conclusions (typically 2-3 slides). Correctly interpret your results. Constructively
address sources of error and methodological difficulties. Place your results in context and draw
implications from them. (4 points)

Acknowledgments (1 slide). Thank anyone who provided advice or assistance. Verbally thank your
audience for their attention and tell them you would be happy to answer any questions. For more advice
on preparing a research presentation, see
http://www.swarthmore.edu/NatSci/cpurrin1/powerpointadvice.htm