Final Assignment: WHAT DO I DO???

So last night we were given the instructions for the final assignment for the Technology and Culture in America course. The topics are not that bad; actually, both are pretty doable, which is the problem. I don't know which one I should pick because both interest me but seem a bit difficult when I start to delve further into them. Another factor I'm worried about is the quality of outside sources I will consult for the assignment. Since both topics are arguable and can even be controversial, I'm afraid I'll be linked to wacky blog posts or really biased pages. Hopefully, I'll be able to find decent articles and not have to rely on Wikipedia or something like that (haha).

The first topic regarding universities as technopolies brings up an interesting question of whether or not higher education is negatively affected by the growing technology. Without much thought, most people would agree that technology has improved higher education, as it made information readily available and helped students and faculty alike become more efficient with innovations. However, the truth is that because of such accessible information and such convenient tools, people are becoming less competent and more dependent on outside factors. Inventions such as calculators are amazingly helpful; however, people tend to forget how to actually do the problems, rendering them useless without a calculator. Despite all this, I don't know how I could take the topic further to expand for 6-8 pages and present a well developed essay.

I think I slightly prefer the second topic because there seems to be way more that I can talk about. Among other things, America is known to host a wasteful and ungrateful bunch of human beings. The society described in Slade's Made to Break is of obsolescence. Despite the rise of the environmental movement in America, it seems like America is miles and miles away from the path of going green. Sure, there are commercials and programs advocating "going green" here and there, but in reality, the society as a whole has not made much changes. The fact is that going green is expensive and too out of the way for greedy and lazy Americans. The possibility that putting too much resources into going green can hinder further technological development may also play a factor in America's reluctance of going forth with the green movement......I'm pretty sure I can find decent articles regarding America's wastefulness and how often new products come out and etc., so I think I'll be looking into this topic!