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America
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What is America?

America as a topic of academic study spans nearly every discipline, from history and political science to public health, literature, and cultural studies. Its breadth makes it a common subject in introductory college courses as well as upper-level seminars, where students are asked to examine the nation's political institutions, social tensions, and evolving identity. What makes the topic academically rich is precisely its complexity: the United States has served as a site of competing visions, from debates over economic policy and national power to questions of individual rights and social change. Papers touching on figures like Edward M. Bannister, Sam Patch, and Heather Whitestone illustrate how individual stories can illuminate broader national narratives.

The papers archived under this topic reflect a wide range of approaches. Historical analyses trace developments across defined periods, such as America's rise to world power during the Gilded Age or the military origins of the republic from 1763 to 1789. Policy-focused essays examine specific controversies, including welfare from a libertarian perspective, same-sex marriage, and the Cuba-related Helms-Burton legislation. Other papers take a social or public health angle, addressing issues like childhood obesity or health promotion strategies. Comparative and philosophical approaches also appear, as in contrasting the theories of David Hume and William James within an American intellectual context.

A strong essay on America establishes a focused thesis rather than attempting to survey the entire nation's history or character. Evidence drawn from primary sources, policy documents, historical events, or specific case studies carries more weight than broad generalizations. The most common pitfall is treating "America" as a monolithic subject — the strongest papers define a precise time period, population, or issue and argue a clear, defensible position about it.

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Thesis Undergraduate
Gender and culture in criminal justice and capital punishment
Comparing the rates of crime and punishment in the United States as a whole to various individual regions and states, and to other countries in the world can provide very useful information regarding criminal justice policies in the nation. Through such measurement and comparisons, programs that work—and those that do not—can be identified, expanded, adjusted, or eliminated as warranted by the evidence. On a deeper level, understanding such information can tell a society a lot about its attitudes towards crime and various "types" or demographics of criminals, potentially exposing not only more fundamental societal issues but also cultural values, perspectives, and ethics.
Paper Masters
Language, power, and racial attitudes in America
Simply talking about culture can be like entering a minefield. Even the use of the word 'articulate' or praising an African-American's 'intelligence' can be questionable. The use of language is so powerful -- and so…
Paper Undergraduate
Jefferson Davis's paternalistic ideology and treatment of enslaved people
Jefferson Davis is famous for his controversial role during the war and his proslavery stance which is viewed in a negative light today. Although is views were led by good intentions on his behalf and his quest to protect the blacks from any oppression, it the ideology that drove these actions that have been controversial throughout history. His politeness, compassion and generosity towards his slaves and the black community in general were driven from the view that the blacks were an uncivilized community and that they needed to be tamed through slavery. In that respect he did not want the Blacks to outdo him in any civilized practices, and that was the motivation for many of his activities.
Paper Undergraduate
William Tecumseh Sherman's total war strategy and the Confederacy's collapse
The Civil War ended quickly after Lee's surrender at Appomattox: Why?
Paper Doctorate
Organizational change as the most effective approach to gang violence
Law – Criminal Justice – Analyzing Approaches to Gangs American cities have been plagued with gang problems for decades. They have responded with numerous programs which have one or more of three basic themes: suppression, social intervention or organizational change. These approaches have achieved different levels of success. Studies show that suppression and social intervention have failed while organizational change has enjoyed some success. Even the "gang capital" of America - Los Angeles – has experienced some success with its organizational-change-based Advancement Project.
Paper Doctorate
Rural imagery and American identity in 2013 Super Bowl advertisements
Superbowl advertisements: National vs. international audiences
Essay Doctorate
Elizabeth Cady Stanton's address to the First Women's Rights Convention
Address to the First Women's Rights Convention" was a speech given by Elizabeth Cady Stanton in order to raise voice against male chauvinism and religious bigotry and how it had been used to suppress women throughout history.Address to the First Women's Rights Convention" was a speech given by Elizabeth Cady Stanton in order to raise voice against male chauvinism and religious bigotry and how it had been used to suppress women throughout history.Address to the First Women's Rights Convention" was a speech given by Elizabeth Cady Stanton in order to raise voice against male chauvinism and religious bigotry and how it had been used to suppress women throughout history. Address to the First Women's Rights Convention" was a speech given by Elizabeth Cady Stanton in order to raise voice against male chauvinism and religious bigotry and how it had been used to suppress women throughout history.
Paper Masters
Youth unemployment in America and Europe during economic crisis
This paper compares two articles from European-based newspapers (one German, the other British) with two articles in American newspapers. The American newspaper articles tend to be more individualistic and localized in their content. They focus more exclusively on America and are less concerned with contextualizing the issue in an international perspective.
Essay Undergraduate
Electronic health record systems and organizational structure
This paper is about Systems Structures Presentation. Electronic health records consist of not only technology components, but also people (physicians and health care providers), and processes such as clinical workflows. The technological aspect of an electronic health record structure consists of the databases, software, and networks. The electronic health records store the data with regard to individuals as well as populations, with the data being managed, accessed and used by health care providers using various support processes. However, there are cost issues related to electronic health records.
Paper Undergraduate
Creating a model waterfall from shoeboxes and household materials
From Niagara Falls in America to Victoria Falls in Africa, some of the world's most famous natural wonders are waterfalls. When a flowing river erodes the soft rock of a streambed, this process can create a shelf of…