Directions for completing policy opinion assignments

September 12, 2002

Please note: These directions are modified slightly from previous directions. Thank you for your patience as we invent the most efficient system.

There is one opinion question each week.

Each will be due Thursday morning, before class.

You can write them one at a time, or ahead of time, as suits you.

Please do not send them late, as they will receive only ½ credit (unless there are extenuating circumstances) and will not be included in the class list of (anonymous) opinions. Thank you.

Submit your opinions to rmr16@cornell.edu.

Please submit your opinions using exactly the following formatting. It may seem oddly formal, but it helps enormously to be able to keep track of so many emails every week.

1. In the subject line write:

THOL02 <question key word(s)> <your last name,> <your first name>

· the stuff in the brackets is what you fill in

· do not type the brackets

· use one space between each word

For example,

Subject: THOL02 hominid remains Ross, Robert

The key words are at the bottom of this page, and are also listed on the syllabus.

(Why make it so difficult to follow? My email program will sort “THOL02 question key word” into an appropriate mailbox; the emails in the mailbox will be easy to sort according to your last name. What will happen if you make a typo or do it wrong? – nothing at all, but I’ll need to manually put the email into the right place.)

2. In the body of the email, type your answer in plain unformatted text. You needn’t write your name or any other information (though you can make a note to me if you wish; I will simply delete it before posting the opinions).

3. The answer should be <100 words.

You may do research if you wish, but it is not required of you. You should aim to be succinct and clear, and have valid reasoning and information behind your opinion.

There is no right or wrong answer to these questions. You will be graded as follows:

+2: competently done and submitted on time (I expect most people to receive this)

+1: quality very low – obviously very hurriedly written or not seriously answered

0: no response

Whatever opinions I have received by class I will post anonymously within a few hours after class on Thursday, if at all possible.

There is a follow-up assignment, to read and evaluate the responses of your peers, and to note those you feel were especially well done and/or insightful. These will be due the following Tuesday morning. Please go to the “opinion response” directions.

If you have done an especially noteworthy job that is noticed by your peers, you will receive some extra credit points.

1 Th Aug 29	1. Introduction: Hyde Park mastodon		keyword(s)
2 Tu Sep 3	2. Hyde Park mastodon
3 Th Sep 5	question: should fossil animals be cloned?		cloning
4 Tu Sep 10	3. Jarkov mammoth
5 Th Sep 12		question: what should be policy about global warming?	global warming
6 Tu Sep 17		4. fossil hominids: late Pleistocene
7 Th Sep 19		question: should all hominid remains be returned to native peoples?	hominid remains
8 Tu Sep 24		5. megavertebrates and human overkill
9 Th Sep 26		question: how far should we go to protect animals from extinction?	extinction
10 Tu Oct 1		6. evolution of whales
11 Th Oct 3		question: who should have the right to control or allow whale hunting?	whale hunting
12 Tu Oct 8		7. arms race in the sea: predator and prey in the sea
13 Th Oct 10		question: should there be larger controls on petroleum and coal use?	fossil fuels
14 Tu Oct 15		Mid-term
xx Th Oct 17		Fall Break
15 Tu Oct 22		8. dinosaur size; midterm review
16 Th Oct 24		question: is geological age a”fact?”	geological age
17 Tu Oct 29		9. dinosaur predation; extinction
18 Th Oct 31		question: who owns what’s in the Earth?	specimen ownership
19 Tu Nov 5		10. birds are dinosaurs
20 Th Nov 7		question: should evolution be taught in science classes in all public schools?	teaching evolution
21 Tu Nov 12		11. pterosaurs are not birds, marine reptiles are not dinosaurs
22 Th Nov 14		question: is history a science?	history
xx Tu Nov 19		12. synapsids are not mammals or even reptiles
xx Th Nov 21		question: should habitats be preserved?	habitat preservation
23 Tu Nov 26		Thanksgiving week
24 Th Nov 28		Thanksgiving week
25 Tu Dec 3		13. Devonian seas over New York, origin of land life
26 Th Dec 5		question: should the public be involved in making science policies?	public decisions
27 Tu Dec 10		14. the first records of animal life: the Burgess Shale
28 Th Dec 12		question: should public money be devoted to search for evidence of extraterrestial life?	extraterrestrial life
TBA		Exam review
TBA		Final exam