With a partner, choose the better thesis from each pair and discuss why you think it is better.
1.
a. A recent trend in law enforcement known as “community policing” shows much promise in deterring
criminal activity.
b. “Community policing” is a recent trend in law enforcement used in many municipalities across the country.
2.
a. Because air pollution is of serious concern to people in the world today, many countries have implemented a
variety of plans to begin solving the problem.
b. So far, research suggests that zero-emissions vehicles are not a sensible solution to the problem of steadily
rising air pollution.
3.
a. The Sex Pistols could not have succeeded without singer and lyricist Johnny Rotten, who provided the stage
presence, poetry, and authentic working-class rage that galvanized the group’s young English audiences.
b. The Sex Pistols were popular with young English audiences, and the singer and lyricist Johnny Rotten was
very important to their success.
4.
a. Because it has become outdated, the electoral college should be replaced by a system that allows the U.S.
president to be elected by direct popular vote.
b. Rather than voting for a presidential candidate, voters in a U.S. presidential election merely choose their
state’s Electoral College representatives, who actually vote for the president; in most states, all of the electoral
votes go to the candidate who wins the popular vote in that state, no matter how close the outcome.
5.
a. This paper presents the results of my investigation into electronic surveillance in the workplace.
b. Though employers currently have a legal right to monitor workers’ e-mail and voice mail messages, this
practice can have serious effects on employee morale.
6.
a. In his autobiographical Narrative, Frederick Douglass draws on techniques used in popular texts of his day—
sentimental literature, the Bible, and rip-roaring oratory—to persuade his audience to reject slavery.
b. Frederick Douglass’s autobiographical Narrative is an interesting exploration of the issue of slavery.
7.
a. Video games are not as mindless as most people think.
b. Although they are widely ignored and derided as mindlessly violent, video games are a form of popular art
that deserves to be evaluated as seriously as television and film.
8.
a. Judges should have discretion in sentencing drug offenders so that those convicted of nonviolent or first-time
offenses do not automatically go to prison.
b. Currently judges do not have much discretion in sentencing drug offenders, so even nonviolent or first-time
offenders automatically go to prison.
9.
a. Instead of repealing the estate tax altogether, Congress should raise the current exemption significantly, to
two million dollars, so that wealthy estates are taxed but those of the vast majority of Americans are not.
b. The U.S. system of taxation is unfair to taxpayers who have worked hard all their lives to provide a secure
future for their families.
10.
a. Social workers in Metropolis leave much to be desired.
b. The social service system in Metropolis has broken down because today’s workers are underpaid, poorly
trained, and overworked.
Excerpted from Diana Hacker’s AN ELECTRONIC WRITER’S REFERENCE 5.0