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Explanation
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What is Explanation?

Explanation as a mode of academic writing appears across virtually every discipline, from biology and economics to history, theology, and technology. Rather than arguing a position or narrating events, explanatory writing prioritizes clarity — breaking down complex systems, processes, or phenomena so that a reader can genuinely understand them. This makes it a foundational skill in English composition courses, where students learn to present information in structured, accessible ways regardless of subject matter.

The papers collected here reflect the broad range of contexts in which explanation is required. Some take a scientific or technical approach, such as examining how LASIK surgery works or identifying the symptoms caused by exposure to mercury and arsenic. Others explain organizational structures, business strategies, or economic paradoxes like the diamond-water problem studied in microeconomics. Still others address social, legal, or cultural subjects — from reciprocity within the Iroquois Confederacy to the traditions of the Catholic faith — demonstrating that explanation adapts to whatever situation or subject demands it.

A strong explanatory essay begins with a clear sense of scope: identify precisely what needs to be understood and why it matters to the reader. Evidence carries weight when it is specific and well-sourced — definitions, data, examples, and step-by-step reasoning all serve the goal of genuine understanding. The most common pitfall is confusing explanation with argument; an explanatory thesis states what something is or how it works, not what the writer believes about it. Keeping that distinction sharp ensures the writing stays focused on illuminating rather than persuading.

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Research Paper Doctorate

Principal leadership effectiveness in international school settings

¶ … Leadership Skills Impact International Education

Research Paper Doctorate

Methodological individualism and classical economics: comparing economic philosophies

Alternative to Methodological Individualism

Research Paper Doctorate

Paley's watch argument and design in nature

William Paley's version of the argument from design is that Nature has a discernible order to it; a design and therefore it can be inferred that there is a Creator behind it. Paley reached this conclusion through using…

Research Paper Doctorate

Marshall McLuhan's "the medium is the message" theory and applications

This essay deals with issues raised by Marhsall McLuhan's famous dictum: "The medium is the message." It has 5 sources.

Paper High School

HIV and AIDS impact on African women in sub-Saharan Africa

The spread of AIDS has reached epidemic proportions on the African Continent. There are many factors that can be attributed to the spread of this phenomenon. Lack of modern health care facilities and trained medical professionals is often cited as a cause as well as a source that hinders modern treatment options for infected Africans. However, this is only one factor among several and other third world nations have avoided the AIDS epidemic. Another factor that is at play is the lack of education about the disease and its method of transmission. This factor especially affects young women who generally know little about family planning or how to practice safe sex. Finally, another major factor that will be discussed is that lack of availability of basic preventative resources such as condoms. To change the situation in Africa, it will take an effective intervention among both the private and public sector. Yet these organizations require additional resources such as funding and qualified staffs. However, there are promising developments that could act to deter the spread of the disease in the future.

Essay Doctorate

Sensory adaptation demonstrated through touch, taste, and temperature experiments

How we perceive our environment is what makes us as a species different from other life forms. Our ability to see, taste, feel, hear, and smell, and to interpret those sensations, is something that has evolved over time, and it is what makes us uniquely human. One of the most interesting aspects of perception is our ability to adapt, both in biological terms and in psychological terms. As the experiments conducted above demonstrated, after being exposed to the roughness of the sandpaper, the sweetness of the sugar water, and the extreme temperatures of the bowls of water, my sense of perception was very different after my initial exposure to each of these sensations.

Essay High School

Group dynamics in hotel food and beverage departments

This report focuses on the study of organizational behaviour in the hotel industry and most especially in the food and beverage department. Focusing on the organization I am attached to, the aspect of groups and group dynamics is widely explored. The paper first introduces with an introduction in which a brief explanation of the discussion is established. Part of the factors addressed in this section includes the aim and scope of the study. Additionally, the methodology of the research, the assumption, the limitations within the organization and the background of the problem are explored within the discussion. The paper then goes ahead to focus on the literature review. Here, definitions of organizational values and individuals values are provided. Also demonstrated is the manner in which organizational and individual values intersect. Further, the relationship between individual values and organizational structure is established. The report goes further to demonstrate how values of individuals within the organization influence the aspects of groups. Here, issues of group dynamics and intergroup dynamics are discussed. Furthermore, factors that manager ought to consider when managing groups are indicated. The paper then concludes with a summary of the entire discussion.

Paper Doctorate

Defining good citizenship: character qualities and education's role

This is a three page paper that answers several questions related to a bunch of texts. These texts are related to two different categories of discussion. The first category of discussion has to do with being a "good citizen." The second category of discussion has to do with race and preference for self-grouping. The answers are short but to the point and reflective of the readings that were relevant.

Paper Doctorate

Hume's theory of causation as habit and custom rather than necessity

Philosopher David Hume, considered among the best philosophical writers in England, has a number of interesting explanations as to why causation isn't a necessary connection, and moreover, Hume has viewpoints on perception and how ideas and facts are related in a philosophical way. This materials is intellectually derived and the points made in this paper are based on Melchert's book and Hume's Treatise of Human Nature.

Paper Doctorate

Knowledge by acquaintance versus description in Bertrand Russell

How do we know what we know? Can we trust our very limited senses to provide us a sense of true knowledge of the external world around us? These are serious questions that have seemed to plague mankind for centuries.

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