In the Middle Ages, when I started this business, we worked with things called pencils, typewriters, phones, and books. When we needed to do research on a topic we didn’t know about, like the article I did on the bacterial vagina, we looked it up. Now back then, when “we were looking for it,” it usually meant going somewhere and looking for a book.
For that job, SME, a doctor, told me to check the Stedman and Gray’s Anatomy Medical Dictionary (not the TV show, the book) to get a general idea of what the topic was about before speaking. Without having to turn to Amazon.com, I went to a bookstore where I discovered that these are really good books that cost a lot of money. Next stop, the library.
OK, fast forward to the beginning of the 21st century. The point is that we now have so many excellent research resources literally at our fingertips. Being able to connect to the Internet and type in a song is much better than in the past.
That doesn’t mean you never need to go to the site or go to a library or go out and talk to people. It means that much of what you need to know can be found quickly on the Web. The amount of information is staggering. Having this resource saves time that you can use to refine your research and produce a better product.
But, whether it’s Fred Flintstone or George Jetson, there are a few things that don’t change. I am still a technical writer, and the way I process information is even more important than where I get it. It is still my job to collect, evaluate and organize data. The very fact that there is a lot of data available ensures that not everything is as good. Finding it is easier. Making it useful is as difficult as ever.
This week’s exercise is looking at some online sources and deciding which ones you are most likely to use as the basis for your technical writing assignment. The task is to research a list of eight people who are considered prominent in their fields. Then, you should make a recommendation as to which two people should be interviewed by your client, based on their area of expertise and education level, as potential candidates to complete a team studying the economic effects of drought on African nations.
Here is his list of 8 people to research:
or Benson, Charlotte
o Clow, Barbara
or Clow, Kenneth
o Elbadawi, Ibrahim A.
or Thompson, Lonny
or Tilahun, Tewodros
o Weinhold, Janae
or Wilcox, David
When you’re done, check the solution below.
Exercise – Answer
His task was to research eight people on the Internet who consider themselves prominent in their fields. He was to make a recommendation as to which two should be interviewed by his client, based on his area of expertise and education level, as potential candidates to complete a team investigating the economic effects of drought on African nations.
Using both the person’s name and keywords like drought, research, and Africa, he found a large number of citations. Then it was a matter of researching areas of specialization and education to find the two candidates that best fit your client’s needs.
Your information should include:
There are two prominent people named Charlotte Benson:
1. Charlotte Benson is a founding member and president of five terms of the Arizona Society of Astrologers and is untitled.
2. Charlotte Benson is a doctor and professor of economics and a senior research associate.
There are two prominent people named Clow:
3. Kenneth E. Clow is a Ph.D. and dean of the University of Louisiana School of Business Administration at Monroe.
4. Barbara Clow has a master’s degree from the University of Michigan and is a New Age astrologer, channeler, and entrepreneur.
There are two prominent people in Africa:
5. Tewodros Tilahun is the Managing Director of the Ethiopia Insurance Corporation.
6. Ibrahim A. Elbadawi is a member of the African Economic Research Consortium in Nairobi, Kenya.
There are two prominent people named Thompson:
7. Lonny G. Thompson is a professor of geological science at Ohio State University.
8. Lonny L. Thompson is a doctor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Clemson University.
9. Janae Weinhold has a doctorate in child psychology and operates the Carolina Institute for Conflict Resolution and Creative Leadership, which specializes in evolutionary resources for changing consciousness.
There are two prominent people named David Wilcock:
10. David Wilcock is a doctor in Basel, Switzerland, and works on the sustainable livelihoods approach to solving hunger.
11. David Wilcock is an Untitled Intuitive Professional Consultant
Now the task is to reduce these eleven people according to the customer’s specifications. This is how I approached it.
First, I eliminated seven people whose areas of expertise did not meet specifications.
1. Charlotte Benson, astrology
4. Barbara Clow, astrologer
5. Tewodros Tilahun, sure
7. Lonny G. Thompson, geology
8. Lonny L. Thompson, mechanical engineering.
9. Janae Weinhold, changing consciousness
11. David Wilcock, Intuitive Consultant
Of the remaining four, I eliminated two that least fit the research topic.
2. Charlotte Benson, economics
3. Kenneth E. Clow, sure
I decided on these as the last two whom the client should interview.
10. David Wilcock, Hunger Reduction
6. Ibrahim A. Elbadawi, African economy
Certainly, there are other ways to divide and dice the list, but who were your final choices, the important thing is that they were based on a lot of research and the choice of resources that you considered most credible.
By the way, if you’re wondering how the customer came up with the original list, I can only say that it is no stranger than much of the information provided to work in this business.
If you impoverishment to relish the Suitable Story: Making money in the condition of your own interior oeuvre online, then this is for YOU!: Click Here
Comentarios
Publicar un comentario