What is an Annotated Bibliography?

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations that can include books, articles, documents, and more. Each citation is followed by a brief descriptive and evaluative paragraph—namely, the annotation. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.

Part One Instructions:

Topic of Sources

Locate five outside sources on your own that are not  class readings Dr. Kwa has already given you (like Rise of Superman) in the Research Paper Prompt.

Helpful Tip: Many articles you will find through our databases (Links to an external site.) have “Cite This” links that automatically put the source into MLA format for you.

Topic Suggestion:  Section 2 of your Research Paper asks you to identify two important historical aspects of your fantasy vacation destination that inspired you to choose that place (rather than others) as your destination.  

In order to write Section 2, you will need to do research on the overall history of your destination so that you can decide on which 2 aspects of that history you will write on.   

      Examples of historical aspects of a place include

Who were the first people to choose to settle your destination and how did they come to be there?  What were some of the challenges they faced in their initial attempts to survive there? 

What key socio-political events have shaped the culture of your destination? (E.g. History of slavery, tension between different religious or ethnic groups, oppression of political dissidents, international and civil wars, changing governments, natural disasters, economic downturns, health epidemics, etc..)

• To what extent is your place a vacation destination?  If it is a vacation destination, how did it become commercialized?

How equitable is the society?  Are there social divisions due to historical problems with racism / genocide, violence against women and other minorities, etc..

What is the economic history of your destination?  How do people make a living? Is there much class inequality and if so between what type of social groups?

Sample Historical Aspects of Your Chosen Fantasy Vacation Extreme Sport at this Destination

• How did people in this place first come to do the extreme sport that you have chosen to include in your fantasy vacation?

Were there laws implemented that encouraged more people to do the sport (U.S. Title IX that encouraged more girls to participate in sports of all kinds)?  Was it necessary to break existing laws to practice the sport (e.g. BASE jumping)?

Were facilities built or natural resources developed that increased participation in your extreme sport (e.g. development of beaches that attract people to do water sports like surfing)?
 

Who or what companies were the first pioneers of your extreme sport in this location?  What economic or cultural forces keep drawing people to this sport at your location today? (e.g. Jake Burton developed the first modern snowboard and began an international movement to make snowboarding legal on existing ski resorts.)

Part Two Instructions

Once you have found your 5 outside sources for the Research Paper, you are ready to write your Annotated Bibliography. 

A. For each source, provide the MLA style information that identifies it (author, title, etc).

B. Under each source, add an indented paragraph that is at least 4 sentences long and answers the following questions:

What is the main argument of the source?

Who are the author’s and do they have the authority to speak on this subject?

What evidence is given to support the argument?

How will you use this source in your research paper? In which section of your research paper will you use this source?
______________________________________________________________________________

Sample Annotated Bibliography

• Waite, Linda J., Frances Kobrin Goldscheider, and Christina Witsberger.
             “Nonfamily Living and the Erosion of Traditional Family Orientations         
               Among Young Adults.” American Sociological Review 51 (1986): 541-554.

The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. As researchers at reputable institutions, the authors have the authority to make the suggestions they do. They find their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time away from parents before marrying increased individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes about families. I will use this source in my research paper conclusion in order to better support my thesis on the psychology of single living.

Walter, Linda J.. “Gender Roles in Young Adults.” American Sociological Review

                51 (1986): 554-601.

• Research Paper: Atypical Vacations, Happiness, and Extreme Sports 

Essay Length and Point Value

Research Paper Page Length and Point Value

• Page Requirements

10-11 pages

Point Value

150

• Percentage of Final Grade

15 %

Essay Purpose

• In our Research Paper and Final Exam module, students will learn how to write a well-researched thesis-driven essay in the form of a Classical Argument while analyzing the logic of travel advertising and the sociopolitical histories of their chosen travel destinations.

Example of an Adventurer’s Vacation that Illustrates the Science of Happiness and Flow States

In Diary of the Wild Ones podcast episode 35 “Shepherd of the North,” American Phil Rosenblum describes his vacations in Iceland. Prior to going to Iceland, Phil was studying permaculture in Vermont and describes himself as an average, “normal guy,” who is fun to have a beer with.

• The first time he went to Iceland with his girlfriend, they rented a car, and visited conventional tourist attractions on the famous “Ring Road.” Along the way, they stayed with a farm family whom his girlfriend had worked for as a nanny. On this farm, Phil became fascinated with Icelandic culture and how important sheep, their wool, and dairy products were for the survival of the first people in Iceland, the Vikings. Later, Phil returned to the farm where he offered to work as a shepherd for free in exchange for room and board, which was the only way he could afford to vacation in one of the most expensive countries in the world.

Phil became a surrogate member of the Icelandic farm family and went on wild adventures in the process. Though not an alpinist, Phil kept up with the other shepherds in climbing some of the gnarliest mountain peaks to find and herd all the wild Icelandic sheep down to the farms for the Winter. He got to do backcountry snowboarding and expeditions in gorgeous untouched powder. When asked how his second trip compared with the first, he expressed how much happier he is having the chance to pit himself against the rawness of the wild weather and physically hard work, forming lifelong friendships, and learning a new culture from some of the toughest and most genuine people in the world.

Research Strategies

• Watch GCC tutorial by Professor Gabriel Gomez on how to use note cards in research (Links to an external site.). Can help you narrow down and decide on your choice of destination location.

Start with reading “6 Organizations Combining Travel and Social Good” (Links to an external site.) on Charity Charge web site. Click on the name of each organization (e.g. “Operation Groundswell”) to go to its web site and find a wide selection of travel destinations that will work for this paper. You can also choose travel destinations not on the web site.

Fantasy Vacation Requirements (All Mandatory Parts of Your Vacation Plan for Section 2)

• The vacation is taking place after a successful COVID-19 vaccine has eliminated most of the threat, and the world economy has started up again, lifting travel restrictions. However, some countries may still be suffering from an economic depression from past lockdowns.

Budget: Imagine that you have been working at a job typical for you and that you have been saving money for 6 months for this vacation.

A relative of yours has given you her or his airline travel points, so you can fly anywhere in the world for free. Once you arrive, however, imagine that you have only as much money as you have saved to get to your destination and spend on your vacation. If your vacation budget is tight, you might need to work like in Phil’s case or volunteer for an organization that provides you with room and board.

You are traveling to your destination alone,without your partner, family, kids, or friends going with you. You don’t have to worry about caring for dependents while you are on vacation because you found a reliable surrogate who will cover for you while you are gone.

• You must stay a minimum of 2 weeks at your destination, though you can plan to stay longer if you wish and if you can afford it.

You are traveling to a new destination you have never been to before. You don’t already know anyone at that destination. If you want to, you can plan that prior to travel, you will make contact with someone new who you plan to interact with at the destination.

If you already do an extreme sport, plan for finding opportunities to practice your extreme sport at your current level of ability during your vacation. If you don’t already do an extreme sport, pick an extreme sport to try for the first time at your vacation destination–one that is described in Kotler’s Rise of Superman: skiing, snowboarding, surfing, skateboarding, climbing, kayaking, freediving, and BASE jumping / skydiving. Plan on how you would get or bring the gear and / or training you would need to do your extreme sport.

4 central goals of your fantasy vacation plan will be the following:

• Set you up to learn about the history and culture of the people at your destination.

Set you up to make deep social connections with the people at your destination that goes beyond simply buying stuff / food from the locals.

Find hands-on ways to help the people of the community that also strengthen those meaningful social connections (e.g. not just donating money or material objects from a distance).

Through all the above goals, maximize your flow experiences and happiness levels by experiencing more self-growth than on a typical vacation.

Research Paper Structure

Section Organization

Section One: Your Typical Vacation (3 pages)

Section Two: History of Your Fantasy Vacation Destination (3 pages)

• Section Three: Science of Happiness in Your Fantasy Vacation (3 pages)
• Works Cited Page (1-2 pages)
• Don’t Forget To
• Title the whole paper and provide a subtitle for Sections 2 and 3.

Skip a line between sections.

End each section with a conclusion paragraph that restates your thesis, adds some interesting closing reflections, and provides a smooth transition to the next section.

Divide paragraphs carefully within each section. Each paragraph should have one main idea. Body paragraphs should start with a topic sentence and end with a concluding sentence. No section should look like one long rambling paragraph.

Use MLA format for

In-text citations (such as quotations within your paragraphs). See my Quotations handout (Modules under “Research Paper”). See tutorials from Purdue Univesity OWL tutorial on MLA style in-text citations (Links to an external site.) and Quotations (Links to an external site.).

Overall paper formatting. See Purdue OWL on Sample MLA style Research Paper (Links to an external site.).

Works Cited page. See Purdue OWL tutorial on Works Cited: Electronic Sources (Links to an external site.) (including images), Works Cited: Other Common Sources (including interviews and podcasts) (Links to an external site.), and Sample Works Cited Page. (Links to an external site.)

Section One: Your Typical Vacation (3 pages)

Introduction

Describe one or two typical vacations you have gone on in the past.

If you’ve never been on a vacation or only have experiences with wild, adventuresome atypical vacations off the grid, then interview someone you know personally and describe their typical vacation.

Describe the travel ad you have chosen to write this section on.

Thesis: In your chosen travel ad, what 2 special advertising techniques are used to attract customers, and what are 2 specific ways the ad suggests people will find happiness on the advertised trip implied by those techniques?

Body Paragraphs

Start with a topic sentence and end with a concluding sentence.

Support your body paragraphs with research on advertising techniques. Helpful resources:

o For help with understanding general advertising strategies, read “Advertising Techniques” (Links to an external site.)

o For help with understanding visual ads, read “9 Commonly Used Techniques In Visual Advertising” (Links to an external site.)

(Links to an external site.)Research Paper Page Length and Point Value

Support your body paragraphs with your own personal examples from your own typical vacations or personal vacation examples from people you interviewed.

Support your thesis by describing and then analyzing your chosen online or print travel advertisement.

If you are discussing an online visual ad, include a picture of it in your research paper. 

Tutorial: How to save, copy, and paste a picture from a web browser into a Word file. (Links to an external site.)

(Links to an external site.)Tutorial: Label your picture as a Figure using MLA format. (Links to an external site.)

Conclusion

Restate your thesis using new wording and phrasing so you are not simply cutting and pasting.

Add some interesting reflections on the topic that go beyond merely repeating what you said earlier.·

End with a transition sentence that gives the reader a sense of what Section 2 will cover.

Section Two: Globalization of Your Fantasy Vacation Destination (3 pages)

Introduction

Describe the history of your fantasy atypical vacation destination beginning with who the indigenous people of that destination originally were and their way of life and continuing to modern times.

Define “globalization.”

Thesis: What are two important historical events regarding your fantasy vacation destination that have sped up or slowed down the globalization of your destination as specifically a vacation travel destination?

Additional Requirement

Include a counterargument and rebuttal body paragraph for one of your two thesis ideas.

Your counterargument would negate the topic sentence claim for that paragraph and provide a reason why your opponent would disagree with you.

Your rebuttal would reassert your topic sentence claim and provide a good reason why you reject your opponent’s reasoning without repeating past arguments. Introduce a new reason in your rebuttal.

It is good practice to introduce new evidence from your sources in either or both the counterargument and rebuttal.

Tutorial on Writing Good Counterarguments and Rebuttals. (Links to an external site.)

Resources on Impact of Globalization on Tourism

You’ll read these articles explaining the impact of globalization on tourism in various places.

Lina Linetti’s “The effect of globalization on the tourism industry” (Links to an external site.)

Kris Naudts’s “How curiosity and globalization are driving a new approach to travel” (Links to an external site.)

The Asian Entrepreneur article “Globalization’s Impact on Tourism” (Links to an external site.)

· When you quote or summarize information from your sources, make sure to cite them using MLA format (see above tutorial links) and to include the citation information on your Works Cited page.

Conclusion

· Restate your thesis using new wording and phrasing so you are not simply cutting and pasting.

· Add some interesting reflections on the topic that go beyond merely repeating what you said earlier.

· End with a transition sentence that gives the reader a sense of what Section 3 will cover.

Section Three: Science of Happiness in Your Fantasy Vacation (3-4 pages)

Introduction

Create a fantasy atypical vacation planand describe it in detail as if you were actually planning to go on the trip. Please make sure your fantasy vacation meets all the above parameters.

Also define “flow state” and describe some of its main attributes.

1.5 pages total.

Include specific details in your travel plan such as

where the destination is located

how you will get to your destination

where you will stay

how you will live within a realistic budget (e.g. maybe you need to work)

planned activities, especially those that help the community and help you form meaningful social bonds with others.

who you hope to meet and spend time with on those planned activities

what would you like to learn about the culture and history of your destination

what your extreme sport will be and how you will practice it (gear, training, specific location to practice within your destination, who will teach or go with you etc.)

Read Model Sample Atypical Vacation Plan for a nice example of what you should aim for in your own essay.

• Thesis Question: Using two concepts from the Science of Happiness and / or flow states (described in the below assigned readings), argue that your atypical travel plan will bring you more happiness than the typical vacation you described in Section 1.

Important Requirements

In Your Body Paragraphs, Provide Evidence from These Texts, from Your Own Outside Sources, and Illustrate Your Arguments with Examples from the Experiences of Real Life Extreme Sport Athletes and Adventurers.

Start each body paragraph with a topic sentence and end with a concluding sentence.

Each body paragraph should contain at least 3 MLA formatted quotations or summarized evidence from different texts on our reading list or your outside sources. For example, you can use the experience of extreme sport athletes and adventurers to illustrate flow concepts that show happiness comes from feeling connected to others or the environment.

• Required Readings and Podcasts

You’ll learn from these readings that they are all specifically about the happiness that comes from doing meaningful activities in a manner that helps you grow and makes you feel deeply connected to the people around you and / or to your immediate environment.

1) On Increased Inner Strength / Flow and Happiness from Charitable / Empathic Actions

Abigail Marsh audio and transcript of TED talk: “Why some people are more altruistic than others” (Links to an external site.) (audio) on kidney donors or transcript. (Links to an external site.)

Diary of the Wild Ones podcast Season 1, episode 20 “The Fastest Ever Unsupported Antarctic Traverse” (Links to an external site.) (9/9/2019 audio) or transcript.

Forbes article “Seven Extreme Athletes With a Cause” (Links to an external site.)

Hidden Brain podcasts

“You 2.0: The Value of ‘Deep Work’ in an Age of Distraction” (Links to an external site.) (July 25, 2017 audio) or transcript (Links to an external site.).

“The Power and the Problem of Grit” (Links to an external site.) (April 5, 2016 audio) or transcript. (Links to an external site.)

2) On the Power of Community in Group Flow to Joyfully Push Your Limits

• Rise of Superman Chapter 4 “The What of Flow” on wingsuit pilots of the Red Bull Air Force

Rise of Superman Chapter 8 “The We of Flow” on Camp 4 climbers at Yosemite.

Read the transcript or listen to Hidden Brain podcast “Researchers Examine What Social Isolation Can Do To Men’s Health” (Links to an external site.) (August 21, 2018 audio) or transcript (Links to an external site.).

3) On Happiness from a Deep Spiritual Connection to One’s Surroundings While in Flow

• Rise of Superman Chapter 6 “Outer Flow” on extreme solo kayaker Doug Ammons empathic connection to the water of the Stikine

Rise of Superman Chapter 3 “The Where of Flow” on free solo rock climber Dean Potter empathic connection to animals, the mountain, and nature.

Hidden Brain podcast “Our Better Nature: How the Great Outdoors Can Improve Your Life” (Links to an external site.) (September 10, 2018 audio) or transcript (Links to an external site.).

Works Cited (1-2 pages)

• Be sure to follow MLA format for your Works Cited page.

You are required to provide five outside sources or more in addition to our class readings (like Rise of Superman and assigned articles). Make sure to cite class readingsand podcasts on Works Cited page if you use them in your paper.

MLA Guide to Works Cited and Citations: Visit this link to the Purdue University OWL web site for help with MLA citations (Links to an external site.).

Tutorial on Works Cited: Electronic Sources (Links to an external site.) (including images),

• Tutorial on Works Cited: Other Common Sources (including interviews and podcasts) (Links to an external site.),

Sample Works Cited Page (Links to an external site.)