An Early Look at Our Big Paper
After you leave my tender care, you will probably need to write some sort of research paper fairly often. The interesting thing is that, depending upon your path, there are two completely opposite kinds of research paper, and you might need to know how to do both. No freedom whatsoever—do exactly what the boss says. This is typical of the business report. The boss says, “Write a report on the feasibility of building a new factory in Smallville.” The topic is prescribed. Boss wants to know the pros and cons, wants it laid out cleanly with good reasons, and wants your conclusion about whether the factory is a good idea. Not only that, but the format and structure of the report (including all the summaries and such) is prescribed. These things are the meat-and-potatoes of business writing, and if you are a business major, I strongly suggest you take a business writing course so you can learn how to do them. The sky is the l...