The “Little Big History” Research Paper
20% course credit
Overview of Assignment: The final writing assignment in this class is a research-based paper
which describes the Big History of a single topic from the beginning of the universe up to the
present day, and considers your topic’s possible future.
Choosing a Topic:
The choice of topic is yours. Your topic can be something large and comprehensive, such as
“The Continent of Africa” or it can be something very personal and specific, such as “My Dog
Ralph.” The entire universe is yours to choose from. However, some topics will be easier to
research and write about than others. Later in this handout you will find some tips and guidelines
for choosing a topic that will work well for you. And of course, consult with your instructor if
you are uncertain about the suitability of a particular topic.
Structure & Content of your paper:
 Introduction
Your first paragraph should clearly identify your topic, explain why this topic interests you, and
offer your reader an overview of what you plan to do in this paper. In addition, provide any
necessary background or definitions. This might be easy and straightforward for a tangible, wellknown topic such as the moon or plastic water bottles, but may require more detail and
elaboration for something less familiar to the general reader (e.g. “my cat Frisco”, “Tierra del
Fuego”, “Trajan's Marketplace”), or clarification of a word with multiple meanings (e.g. is
“Sagittarius” a constellation of stars, an astrological symbol, or a Roman archer?).
 Body
Follow your topic through the entire narrative of Big History, from the Big Bang to the present,
plus your topic’s possible futures, connecting your topic to every threshold in a meaningful way.
However, topics will vary in how connected they are to each of the eight thresholds, so you do
not need to give equal page space to each threshold. On the other hand, you are not permitted to
simply “ditch” thresholds, nor should you try to claim that a particular threshold is irrelevant.
You should have a minimum of a half-page (about 150 words) devoted to each of these three
broad categories:
THE PHYSICAL WORLD: Thresholds 1, 2, 3, & 4.
PREHISTORIC LIFE ON EARTH: Thresholds 5 & 6.
HUMAN HISTORY TO PRESENT: Thresholds 7 & 8, & possible Futures.
How much factual detail should you include? You need to tell a connected story, providing the
factual details that are relevant to understanding a self-contained paper about your topic.
Do NOT “puff up” your paper with irrelevant facts!
Summarize the Big History narrative on an “as-needed” basis suited to your topic.

Conclusion:
It is easy for a reader to become immersed in the details of a paper and temporarily lose track of
why those details matter. Now that you have taken your reader on this journey through time and
space, remind the reader of the purpose of the journey. What new insight, perspective, or
appreciation might you have gained? What final emotion, thought, idea, or question do you want
resonating with the reader at the very end?
Additional Requirements:
LIBRARY RESEARCH: Your textbook will be your major source of information, but you must
have a minimum of three library-based research sources in addition to the textbook.
The Library Research assignments will help you find the research sources for your paper.
CITATION & DOCUMENTATION: Your sources of information must be documented: Use
internal citations and include end-pages listing your research sources according to either MLA,
APA, or CMS specifications (see “OWL PURDUE” online for details).
Your instructor may specify a single style for the class.
LENGTH: 1200-1800 words (i.e. 4 - 6 pages), plus either the "Works Cited” (MLA),
“References” (APA), or “Notes & Bibliography” (CMS) pages.
FORMAT: Double-spaced, 1-inch margins all around, 12 point standard font such as Times or
Courier.
 DO number the pages of the paper, but DO NOT put any identifying information (your name,
instructor’s name, or course number) on the numbered pages.
 Use a cover page that has all identifying information centered on the page:
Title: (your title for your paper -- not simply the name of the assignment)
Name of author (you)
Author’s email address (one you’ll actually check, please!)
Date (on which you made your most recent/final change to the paper)
Name of instructor
Course name and section: Big History, FYE 1001, section [x]
++++++++++++
CHOOSING YOUR TOPIC:
Some Tips, Guidelines, & Suggestions
You have the entire universe to choose from! True, that gives you a lot of freedom, but it is
also true that your choice of topic can make a big difference in how much you enjoy doing
this assignment, what you learn from it, and how easy or hard it is for you.
Your task is made easier by selecting a topic that is genuinely interesting or meaningful to you in
some way. What would you miss if it disappeared from your life? What would you save if your
house was on fire? What would you take with you to start a new life in a distant land? Do you
dream of visiting Paris and the Eiffel Tower? Have you been to the Great Wall of China? Does
that old photograph of your grandmother make you feel safe and comforted?
You can also make your task easier by selecting a topic that is specific, tangible, and welldefined. Examples of such topics would be: a baseball, your grandmother, goldfish, the Eiffel
Tower, water, apples, the car you drive, the girl/boyfriend you love, a work of art you admire, a
language you study, the family you miss, the Great Wall of China, the continent of Antarctica, a
taxonomic category of living things, a category of minerals, etc.
More difficult topics are intangible (“propaganda”, “freedom”), abstract (“dignity”, “purity”), or
hard to define precisely (“righteousness”, “honor”, “love”). Although it is not impossible to
write well about such topics, it is likely to be more challenging.
How big or small do you want your topic to be? Very large or very broad topics can make it easy
to find lots of research material, but can also be overwhelming to write about in a short paper.
Very small or very narrow topics make it easier to focus your writing, but may be more of a
challenge when you are doing your research.
Below are some examples of topics at different scales:
EXTRATERRESTRIAL SCALE:
Expansion of the Universe
Galactic structure
Exoplanets
Black Holes
Dark matter & dark energy
Space exploration
Colonization of other planets
Search for extraterrestrial life
Asteroid strikes
GLOBAL SCALE:
Climate change
Extinction
Loss of biodiversity
Food production
Population growth
Reproductive options
Fossil fuels
Alternative energy sources
Human health
Migration / population movement
Free Trade
GEOGRAPHIC, GEOLOGICAL, or REGIONAL SCALE:
Continents
Continental drift
Earthquakes & Volcanoes
Nations
States
Islands
Mountain ranges
Oceans
Natural Disasters
Weather
BIOLOGICAL SCALE (living or extinct):
Kingdoms
Phyla
Genera
Species
Evolution
Disease
Aging
Defense
Habitat
HUMAN ARTIFACTS:
Bicycles
Automobiles
Weapons
Computers
Ships
Aircraft
Writing implements
Art supplies
Sports equipment
Shoes
PERSONAL (very specific; write about your…):
Relative
Friend
Pet
Home
Memento
Heirloom
Toy
Clothing
Earrings
Lipstick
Tennis racket
Hockey stick
Car
Et cetera, et cetera, et cetera …
The “Little Big History” Research Paper
BRAINSTORMING QUESTIONS & SUGGESTIONS
The questions below are intended to help you start brainstorming ideas and suggest areas for your research.
(This is NOT a checklist -- you are not expected to answer each and every question!)
THRESHOLD 1: (13.8 Billion Years Ago) Emergence of the UNIVERSE & FUNDAMENTAL FORCES
All the matter/energy that exists now began in the Big Bang. What forms of energy (motion, heat, light, etc.) are
relevant to your topic? What subatomic particles is it composed of? Are helium and hydrogen part of its composition?
Does your topic have mass, and therefore gravity? Which frequencies of the electromagnetic spectrum (infrared,
visible color, ultraviolet, etc.) are relevant to your topic?
THRESHOLD 2: (13.4 Billion Years Ago) Emergence of GALAXIES & STARS
On what does your topic exert gravitational attraction (and vice versa)? How do stars form? What do they do? Can you
relate your topic to star formation? Does your topic have anything to do with light? With heat? Viewed from Earth,
how do stars in the night sky affect the growth and migration of living things? Human navigation (from prehistoric to
present)? Tracking the change of seasons (when to hunt, move camp, plant crops)? How are the visible constellations
of stars incorporated into religion, storytelling, or modern science?
THRESHOLD 3: Emergence of CHEMICAL COMPLEXITY
Which elements is your topic made of? Which elements heavier than hydrogen and helium does your topic contain?
Carbon? Oxygen? Nitrogen? Zinc? Gold? Lead? How and where did those elements emerge? What radioactive
elements might be part of your topic’s composition? What effect do heavy elements and/or radioactive elements have
on your topic? Why are some elements abundant and easy to find on Earth, while other elements are rare or difficult to
find?
THRESHOLD 4: (4.6 - 3.8 Billion Years Ago) Emergence of OUR SOLAR SYSTEM
Which molecules is your topic composed of? When and where did these molecules emerge? Where on planet Earth
(or beyond) is your topic located? Is your topic affected by celestial phenomena such as solar flares, ultraviolet from
the sun, or lunar cycles? Has your topic been affected by impact strikes of comets, asteroids, meteors? What geological
processes (continental drift, tides, weather, seasons, etc.) are relevant to your topic? How do the planets, sun, and
moon affect the growth and behavior of living things? Provide cues about when to hibernate, find a mate, migrate, hunt,
move camp, plant crops? Provide natural “clocks” for human activity from prehistoric to present? How are calendars
developed in various cultures?
THRESHOLD 5: (3.8 Billion - 8 Million Years Ago) Emergence of LIFE
Is your topic living or non-living? How does your topic affect the biosphere? How does the biosphere affect your
topic? For living topics: What evolutionary paths has your topic followed? What selection pressures does your topic
experience, and what selection pressures does it exert on other living organisms? How does this living organism impact
its environment? For non-living topics: Are organic molecules part of its composition? What influences or effects
does this non-living topic have on living organisms?
THRESHOLD 6: (8 Million Years Ago - 12,000 Years Ago) Emergence of HOMO SAPIENS
How was your topic relevant to our proto-human ancestors? How is it relevant to modern humans? Is it a resource that
can be exploited? Is it a source of food, a means of obtaining food, part of the process of preparing and/or cooking
food? Is it useful for making tools, shelters, ornamental objects (e.g. gemstones, precious metals, seashells), or any
other human artifact? Is it a uniquely human artifact or activity?
THRESHOLD 7: (12,000 Years Ago to present-day) Emergence of AGRICULTURE & CITIES
Is your topic affected by human farming? Does your topic have an effect on human farming? How does agriculture
change the natural landscape? Forests? Pasture land? Water tables? Irrigation? Animal and plant habitats? Is your
topic relevant to the emergence of city-states? Is your topic part of an urbanized lifeway?
THRESHOLD 8: (300 Years Ago to present-day) Emergence of THE MODERN WORLD
How is industrialization and/or fossil fuel (shale, coal, oil, natural gas) relevant to your topic? How does the use of
such fuels affect your topic? Local environmental effects? Global effects? Climate change? How has the recent
exponential growth of human populations affected your topic? Is radioactivity, nuclear weaponry, or nuclear energy
production relevant to your topic?
Possible FUTURES
How long has your topic existed, how stable is its existence, and will it continue into the future? What are its various
possible futures? For how long? What will be the state or condition of your topic ten years from now? Fifty years
from now? One hundred years? One thousand? More?