Overview
Considering what you have learned in class so far, what does it mean to speak of science as a social activity? Using concrete examples presented in lectures or in the readings, discuss how such an approach changes how science is conventionally understood. You may include examples not discussed in class but the link to issues raised in class should be made explicit. Whenever you quote from course material, include in parentheses the lecture and slide number or the author and page number; for all other sources give the full reference (see note in previous question about appropriate sources).
Q: For the first prompt, is there any restrictions on the time frame of our research?
A: No, as long as the research addresses the question and is accurate. If your older article is out of date and things have changed then it could be risky to use, but if you are using it more historically (like, this is how x was thinking about this a year ago) then that should be fine.
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Q: Are we required to cite from class readings for prompt #1? Or can we just use outside sources for it?
A: Nope! You aren't required to, but you can if it would be helpful for your argument. You will want to use at least some general approach learned in class to answer this question (so it could be that you use a sensibility or style of question asking rather than cite a specific text). It would be possible to approach this question in a way that resonates with the teachings of the class without needing to cite any specific lecture or reading.
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Q: Do we need a works cited, or are in-text citations sufficient?
A: If you cite from course material brief in-text citations are sufficient. For prompt 1 you should include full references (both in-text and bibliography). In-text citations can be given in footnotes or author/date in parenthesis, followed by full references in the bibliography. It does not matter which citational style you use but please be consistent in the citation style you use. Please simply include as much of the standard information that is found in a citation (author name, date, publication venue, URL, etc.). Many online sources will not have page numbers and no need to stress about that :)
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Q: How should we label lectures? Is it okay to do "Week 3, Lecture 2" or should we write the lecture titles? (just wondering bc word count!)
A: We ask that you choose a citation style and use consistently throughout. The formatting will depend on which citation style you choose. W3L2 would be an acceptable stand in for what was quoted above.
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Q: For question #1 Can you please clarify what is meant by “other such activities”?
A: For "other such activities" I would say fields like politics, activism, religion etc, *and* other academic disciplines all fit within that category.
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Q: Is prompt #1 supposed to be more of an unbiased, neutral research paper, or more like an editorial where we choose an argument/opinion on the topic?
A: Since the prompt doesn't specify what style your paper should take, you can write it either way. Just be sure to address all elements of the prompt and back up your statements.