Third Week

Readings: Chapters 2, 3 State of the World 1997, Lester Brown

Chapters 6, 7, 22 The Ultimate Resource 2  Julian Simon

Interview notes or draft (typed) due Monday. Paper about interview due Monday Oct 13.

Continue adding to your journal. Include thoughts, observations, ideas about the environment

Class report: Gene & Adam

Readings:  Chapters 5, 6, 9 State of the World 1997, Lester Brown
    Chapters 1, 15, 16, 17 The Ultimate Resource 2  Julian Simon
 
 Interviews this week.  Typed notes or draft due Monday October 6

Start a collection of notes, "a journal", about your observations and thoughts about the future. Consider the past: what has changed, what hasn't?

Class report: Paige and Tara

Readings:    Pages 28-99 The Art of the Long View,  Peter Schwartz
    pages 12-17 The Holt Handbook

Resources paper due Wed.  Revision due Monday.

class report: Ann and Karie

Readings:  Chapter 1 State of the World 1997, Lester Brown
        Pages 1-28 The Art of the Long View,  Peter Schwartz

Project: Scenarios
Component: 2. Future Poster
size: 8"x10" or larger
copies: 1
due date: September 22, Monday of first week

Assignment:  Create a small poster illustrating your view of the future.
This is not a writing assignment; I want you to think visually.  Any words or phrases should be short and integrated into the design.  (Advertisements and billboards are good models for this assignment.)  Your image should comunicate a vision of the future.
 
You may use any materials: ink, collage, computer, paint, etc.  You may collaborate if you wish, but each student will need to create a unique poster.
 

Project: Time
Component: 1.  Interview subject
due date:  September 26, Friday of 1st week

Assignment: Find someone to interview about change over time.  This person can be anyone who has lived long enough to experience decades of change.  Generally this would be someone born before 1937.  I encourage you to interview someone you know: a grandparent, a neighbor, a teacher, an older relative.

You should contact your potential subject to find out if they are willing to be interviewed and if they will be available between September 26 and October 5.
 
 

Project: Resources
Component:1. Initial paper-- resource shortage
length: 4 pages (double spaced)  (~1000 words)
copies: 2
due date: Sept 24, Wednesday of 1st week

Assignment: The future availability of resources is a common concern.  For this assignment, choose one resource and consider what would happen if it became much scarcer.  You should think about the impact on society and the economy.

This is not a research assignment.  I want you to speculate on possibilities and connections.  You are free discuss this subject with classmates or others, but all writing should be your own work.  This paper does not require footnotes since the ideas will be your own.

Possible topics include scarcity of: electricity, timber, clean water, steel, agricultural land, copper, petroleum, housing, skilled labor, fisheries.  This list in not all inclusive.  You should choose a resource you feel has interesting implications.

Any decrease in resource availability will have a large number of effects on society, more than can be covered in a short paper.  Here are some questions to consider: Who suffers?  Who wins?  What industries will be hurt?  Will there be indirect effects?  What's the environmental impact?  What countries will be most affected?  How would people adapt?  How would lifestyles change?  What substitutes exist?  Would new technologies develop?  Are there different effects in the short run and the long run?

One implication of an increase in scarcity is an increase in the price of the resource.   This assignment could be re-worded as: what happens when a resource becomes substantially more expensive?

Writing tips: 1)  Think about organization.  You need to arrange your thoughts to prevent confusion for your readers.  Does your paper flow smoothly?
2)  Proofread carefully.  Spellcheckers won't catch every mistake.

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