MEMO
Date:
To:
From:
Subject:
WK 6
Eng 101 classes
Prof. Doolin
Assignment #4: Synthesize/Compare & Contrast
As a reminder of what you started to do in Assignment #3:
Absorbing information, considering and interpreting it, and comparing and contrasting
information from a variety of sources and with a variety of viewpoints is the core of critical
thinking.
And critical thinking is what college is all about: the ability to take a hard, unbiased look at
some piece of the world or experience and eventually make some sense of it and some decisions
about it. "This stance is correct, this other one is not." "This idea is worthwhile and probably
correct, that other one is likely either incorrect or an outright lie." "This concept is something I
can believe in, this other one is something I can't believe in."
In this assignment you will be doing just that.
In the first part of this two-part assignment you looked at Gore’s documentary, An Inconvenient
Truth, made some decisions about it, and wrote a 1000 word paper about it.
In this part of the assignment you are going to look at sources that either support him or disagree
with him or with the whole concept of global warming:
http://www.johnstonsarchive.net/environment/gore.html
this guy refutes a great deal of what’s in Gore’s documentary, almost line by line. Very
long and heavily cited.
http://www.headbutler.com/books/non-fiction/inconvenient-truth
review of the Inconvenient Truth book.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/05/060524-global-warming.html
article by National Geographic – an interview with a climate scientist. Goes claim by
claim – sounds pretty balanced
http://bridgetdgms.wordpress.com/2008/02/22/a-few-more-scientists-who-disagreewith-global-warming-alarmists/
list of a few dozen scientists who disagree with the premise of global warming
Even though Gore's documentary won him a Nobel Peace Prize in 2007, and few scientists
actually dispute the overall concept of global warming, there are many who disagree with Mr.
Gore's presentation of his material, and some who dispute the entire concept of global warming
itself.
Is global warming real? Are we humans to blame for some or all of it? What potential for harm
does global warming have for us? Presuming that it is real, is there any way to slow down or stop
this effect? What happens if we don't?
These are just some of the questions you will be looking at in this assignment. You will be
looking at information from multiple sources and blending it into a coherent whole that provides
your reader with some perspective on the entire issue. Some of these sources and opinions will
be conflicting. It's your job as the writer to make sense of these conflicts for your readers.
This is a Synthesis/Compare & Contrast Assignment
Reading Assignment: there is a variety of information in your text about this mode of writing.
Look up Compare & Contrast in your Index. You may also want to visit this site for more
detailed information:
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~jewel001/CollegeWriting/START/Modes.htm
Writing Assignment: you may want to go to your local library and get a copy of Gore's DVD An
Inconvenient Truth and view it again while you are reviewing your paper from the last
assignment.
Read the articles I have linked above. Again, you will want to make detailed notes.
You are free to use other sources as well, and I encourage you to do just that. The MCC Library
database link is an excellent place to start:
http://vc3gj6wz8x.cs.serialssolutions.com.ezproxy.monroecc.edu/
You will take all the information you gained from your work in assignment #3 on Gore’s
documentary and the articles above and write a paper that looks at these different viewpoints and
offers your reader a summary of content and viewpoint.
All sources need to be cited, of course.
Length: 1500 words minimum
This assignment is due by your last class in week 8.
As with all assignments, you will turn in:
Your final paper
Your last draft with all your final changes indicated
Your writing process/analysis