Good Research papers?

http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2008/07/is-google-making-us-stupid/306868/

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Research paper

Why would anyone want to read a research paper? They are boring, dry, and hard to follow. Do they really all have to be like that though? After going through several different types of research papers, I have noticed that there is a research paper for everyone! Maybe you think I am crazy, but it’s true. You just need to find the right research papers for you. Different things appeal to different audiences. Figure out what appeals to you the most, and you won’t ever have to struggle reading another research paper again!

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After reading several research papers, I have only found some of them to be intriguing. Intriguing articles for me consist of have a strong title, useful hyperlinks, and pictures throughout the article. When I start reading an article it is for several different reasons. You obviously are researching the article because you want or need to learn more about the topic. When you finally pick what research paper you want to read, it normally has to interest you in some way. When I started reading “is google making us stupid” , I found that it really caught my attention. This article mainly caught my attention because the title is exactly the question I was pondering. The title of the article has to be solid and eye catching for me to even open the paper; if the title doesn’t interest me how will the article keep my attention? To me, pictures are an amazing way to liven up the writing as well as interest me as I read. When pictures are added it not only keeps me interested and on track, but it also lets me know what is about to come up and what I have to look forward to later in the paper. Hyperlinks are also a great way to help prove your point even more. I enjoy reading papers that have hyperlinks to supporting articles because this makes the original paper more trustworthy as well as provides helpful links to other helpful sites. I have found that research papers that satisfy these key things tend to keep me interested enough to read the paper in full.

I went around and asked several different types of people what they thought a good research paper was. I asked two of my friends, Jake and Meaghan and they said “that in order for them to really want to read a full research paper, they would want it to look appealing, as well as be an interesting topic.” When I asked them whether or not it would be more enjoyable to read if it has picture throughout it they both said that “it definitely would.” Meaghan said “that it definitely helps her keep on task”. Jake said “it shows him what is going to be coming up later in the research paper”. Whether it’s to keep them on track or show them what they have to look forward to, pictures are a great addition to a research paper. When I asked how long they think a normal research paper should be, Jake said “he really enjoys reading 1 to 2 page articles for several different reasons. Mainly he feels as if they are too short you really would not get anything out of it, but when they get really long he does not want to read it either. A long paper just keeps going on repeating itself.” Meaghan said “I don’t really like reading research paper, but if I had to read one I would definitely find a short one that answered my question.” I’ve concluded that when I went around asking different people similar questions it really showed what should be added or taken away from research papers. You really just need to know who you want to read your paper. Whether it is college kids, professors, or everyday people that do this kind of thing just because they have free time; no matter how you look at it, your audience is key to writing a successful research paper.

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“You have to do everything in steps… like research papers and even blowing bubbles”

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When articles are placed on the internet there is not a worldwide editor. Therefore, you can’t say what is truly real or not. This is why when you back your information with hyperlinks it makes your statements mean a little more. Hyperlinks show that you’re not the only one thinking this, or making up facts. Information that is backed up is really a key aspect to every research paper. My favorite papers almost always start with a catchy title and beginning paragraph.  

Reading research papers is not always bad; but there are several reasons I hate doing it. Most research papers are normally really long. Without your full interest in the topic it can really make the paper seem to drag out more than it really does. When you look at the article “Is Google Making Us Stupid” you will see you have a solid 5 or 6 scrolls before you get to the bottom. When I look at the article I am about to read I will always scroll to the bottom to see what I am getting myself into. Honestly if there is more than roughly two pages there is no way I’m going to read it all. Therefore I do what everyone else would do and scroll through the research paper picking out some of the information I need. Another part that I have a strong dislike for when reading research papers is when they are all facts. Yes facts get right to the point but it makes it really dry to read. You always need to make sure the writing has a playful side. If you were to just add pictures and captions to paragraphs; making it look more like a magazine I’m positive it would encourage skim readers to read more of the research paper. Now I am not saying that it is more likely they will read the whole thing. Just that they will read full paragraphs throughout the writing. Now only if all writers understood the world’s research papers would be so much more intriguing.

Even if you know your audience can you make a strong research paper? You definitely could. What do those different types of audiences look for in a strong research paper though? There are several different types of audiences you need to attract to your research paper. Pictures attract a wide range of audiences but even when people like pictures how many pictures should really be in one research paper? You definitely should have at least one picture in every article. Depending on what you are writing about is really how many pictures that should be in your article. Now you are not writing a picture book so don’t add too many, but you also want your work to be unique and appealing to the eye. After you make the article look interesting with pictures you should really add hyperlinks. Hyperlinks should be used as needed and there is not really a number that should be recommended in an article. Hyperlinks will show your audience they have an additional site to back up the research paper. Some hyperlinks will go more in depth about the statement. Really just take into consideration who your audience is and what you can do to make your statements more valued.

There will always be strong research papers packed with a lot of information, and there will be ones with not enough. The downside of having long articles is that no one wants to read them! You will have some people that skim read, and some that take one look at it then go to a different site. This is why you use hyperlinks to back some of your information you found and keep it short and sweet. Be warned, research papers can have too many hyperlinks throughout the paper and sometimes this will scare a reader away. This wouldn’t be good either because then you have the same problem as before. You skim the article and only click on a few links losing a lot of valuable information.

Research magazines would be the best if they had one on everything you needed to look up. Then why don’t we just start making them? There really is no reason why we should not make them. Tons of people would read them especially high school students, college students, and well pretty much anyone that reads magazines. Magazines have valuable information throughout them as well as keeping it short and sweet and mostly to the point. Most magazines start of with a catchy title which generally makes a reader want to read it. Some will have pictures but they all have something that research papers don’t. You may be asking yourself, well what is it? Guess what, it’s the ability to keep your interest! When do you ever start reading an article with a catchy title get half way through and decide never mind I don’t want to read this. Not very often. Just think about it, wouldn’t you read a research paper if it was more like a magazine?!

Only if their was a perfect research paper. People love reading magazines, right? Well what makes them so much better than research papers? Well other than they have pictures, there short articles, and organized differently… Wait a minute. Why wouldn’t people just make research papers more like magazines then? They give you information just the same! This is something that I would highly recommend more research papers to do. Next time you are looking for a research paper really take a minute. Look at how different website are set up and stop for a second to ask yourself, why did I end up on this one? Is it because of the lay out? If so what’s the layout look like? I bet there’s at least one picture along with a title that will answer your question? Maybe the research paper does not start like others. Maybe it has a story at the beginning that really gets your attention. Who knows?

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These are only a few reasons you should figure out what interests you. Don’t you want to read research papers that are adventurous and not just long, dragged-on, boring information?

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