Issue For May 23, 2007
Special Announcement
The Purdue OWL would like to bid a fond farewell to our current OWL Webmaster, Karl Stolley. Karl will soon complete his Ph.D. at Purdue and be moving on to his new faculty position. Karl has made a tremendous impact on the Purdue OWL, transitioning it from a static, html-based site to a dynamic, sustainable site with 21st century web standards and accessible technology. Karl will be greatly missed. Dana Driscoll will be our new OWL webmaster. Dana was the 2006-2007 OWL coordinator and is a Ph.D. student in rhetoric and composition. Dana looks forward to continuing her work on the OWL and expanding it into new areas. We would also like to welcome Allen Brizee, incoming OWL coordinator for the 2007-2008 year. Allen is also a Ph.D. student in rhetoric and composition and looks forward to contributing to the OWL in the upcoming year.
Writing Question of the Week
This is usually a question submitted by an OWL user to the OWL Tutors. If you have a question you need answered quickly, ask one of our OWL Tutors or call the Writing Lab's Grammar Hotline at 765-494-3723. And remember, both services are free for everyone!
Hello OWL,
I'm writing a research paper on the Irish Potato Famine, and I'm supposed to have a thesis. I don’t understand how I can create a thesis that will be arguable with history. Facts are facts, so how can I assure that I wont just summarize the events the occurred?
-Kelly
Kelly,
I think what you'll find is that history is about much more than simply facts. Consider, for example, how differently five different people might report something that happened this weekend. You might wind up with very different stories based on their different perspectives, backgrounds, feelings, and observations. It's the same thing with history. You might get a very different account of the Irish Potato Famine based on whose accounts you are reading.
Another thing to keep in mind is what aspect of the Famine you want to look into. I'm guessing that this is a relatively short paper since it's for a class. You won't be able, then, to discuss everything related to the Potato Famine, but maybe just one aspect of it in particular. In a research paper, your thesis statement can be used to tell your reader what area of your topic your paper will be about.
I think that our Online Writing Lab's handout on writing a research paper might be useful to you. The link to this handout is below.
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/658/01/
If you have any other questions for us, please feel free to let us know!
Best,
OWL
The OWL Help Nest
Each week we publish Purdue OWL News readers' requests for advice or information and the responses from other Purdue OWL News readers.
I read in a English grammar teaching book that the word ' currently' should not be used when you are referring to something you are already engaged in now. For example," I'm currently teaching English as a Private English Tutor." Should it be simply written as, "I'm teaching English..."? Please clarify. --JPS, Malaysia
The rule you cite applies to the word "presently," which means "in a short time" or "soon." It is not strictly correct to say "I formerly taught history, but I am presently teaching English." It is, however, acceptable to say "Although I taught history for three years, I am currently teaching English." --Jo Warfield, Springfield, Illinois
Would the phrase "bread and butter" be hyphenated? I am frequently confused about the rules regarding hyphenation. Would you please provide a response for the "bread and butter" question as well as some general guidelines? --Shana Sabbath
Shana, it all depends on how you're using it. If the phrase refers to food items (more specifically, using the items as nouns) the answer is that no hyphens are needed. It would be, "All I had to eat was bread and butter." However, using the phrase as an adjective requires hyphenation (as with any compound adjective). "All I had to eat was a bread-and-butter sandwich," or "I prefer bread-and-butter pickles to the dill variety." --Roy Greene, Milford, MA
Next Week's Questions
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What's Happening on the OWL at Purdue
- OWL Eye On...Writing in Pscyhology! The Purdue OWL has a host of materials online this week including Writing in Psychology: Experimental Reports: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/670/01/
- OWL Eye On...APA Materials Additions! Our APA citation sections have had substantial changes and additions. You can see our new resources at the following links: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/15/; http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/14/; and http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/664/01/
- OWL Eye On...Remote Testing Survey. The Purdue OWL has been doing extensive usability testing on our new site. We invite our users from around the world to take our remote usability survey: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/survey/.
What's Happening in the Writing Lab
- OWL Eye On...Summer Schedule. We will begin our summer tutoring hours from May 14th to August 3rd. Tutoring hours for the summer will be Mon-Thurs 9-4; Friday 9-1..
This week's OWL News was edited by Dana Lynn Driscoll, OWL Webmaster.
