MLA Research Paper (Levi)
#ELL0HONESINTHE(ANDSOF$RIVERS
!2ISKORA"ENEFIT
0AUL,EVI
%NGLISH
0ROFESSOR"ALDWIN
!PRIL8888
Title is centered
about one-third
down the page.
Writer’s name is
centered around
the middle of the
page.
Course name,
professor’s name,
and date are
Lopez begins to
centered near the
identify and
bottom of the page.
question Goodall’s
assumptions.
Marginal annotations indicate MLA-style formatting and effective writing.
3OURCE $IANA(ACKER"OSTON "EDFORD3T -ARTINS
4HISPAPERHASBEENUPDATEDTOFOLLOWTHESTYLEGUIDELINESINTHE-,!(ANDBOOKFOR7RITERSOF2ESEARCH0APERS
THED
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Outline pages
are numbered
with small roman
numerals.
Outline begins
with thesis and
uses standard
format.
Outline is
written in complete
sentences.
Source: Diana Hacker (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006).
Writer’s name and page
number are typed 1⁄ 2''
from top of each page.
Source: Diana Hacker (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006).
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#ELL0HONESINTHE(ANDSOF$RIVERS
!2ISKORA"ENEFIT
Text of the paper
begins on page 1.
Title is repeated
and centered.
!SOFTHEREWEREABOUTNINETYMILLIONCELLPHONEUSERS
INTHE5NITED3TATESWITHOFTHEMUSINGTHEIRPHONESWHILE
ONTHEROAD3UNDEEN"ECAUSEOFEVIDENCETHATCELLPHONES
IMPAIRDRIVERSBYDISTRACTINGTHEMSOMESTATESHAVECONSIDERED
LAWSRESTRICTINGTHEIRUSEINMOVINGVEHICLES0ROPONENTSOF
Statistic is cited
with author’s name
and page number
in parentheses.
LEGISLATIONCORRECTLYPOINTOUTTHATUSINGPHONESWHILEDRIVINGCAN
BEDANGEROUS4HEEXTENTOFTHEDANGERHOWEVERISAMATTEROF
DEBATEANDTHEBENEFITSMAYOUTWEIGHTHERISKS5NLESSTHERISKS
OFCELLPHONESARESHOWNTOOUTWEIGHTHEBENEFITSWESHOULDNOT
Thesis asserts Paul
Levi’s main point.
RESTRICTTHEIRUSEINMOVINGVEHICLESINSTEADWESHOULDEDUCATE
THEPUBLICABOUTTHEDANGERSOFDRIVINGWHILEPHONINGAND
PROSECUTEIRRESPONSIBLEPHONEUSERSUNDERLAWSONNEGLIGENTAND
RECKLESSDRIVING
!SSESSINGTHERISKS
7EHAVEALLHEARDHORRORSTORIESABOUTDISTRACTEDDRIVERS
Headings help
readers follow the
organization.
CHATTINGONTHEIRCELLPHONES&OREXAMPLEINALETTERTOTHE
EDITOR!NTHONY!MBROSEDESCRIBESBEINGPASSEDBYANOTHERDRIVER
hWHOWASHOLDINGA3TYROFOAMCUPANDACIGARETTEINONEHAND
ANDACELLULARTELEPHONEINTHEOTHERANDWHOHADWHATAPPEARED
TOBEANEWSPAPERBALANCEDONTHESTEERINGWHEELˆALLAT
APPROXIMATELYMILESPERHOURv!NOTHERDRIVER0ETER
#OHENSAYSTHATAFTERHEWASREARENDEDTHEGUILTYPARTYEMERGED
FROMHISVEHICLESTILLTALKINGONTHEPHONE!DMITTEDLYSOME
DRIVERSDOUSETHEIRCELLPHONESIRRESPONSIBLY
Source: Diana Hacker (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006).
For a quotation,
the author is
named in a signal
phrase; the page
number is in
parentheses.
A summary is
introduced with
a signal phrase
naming the
author; a page
number is given
in parentheses.
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4HEDANGERSAREREALBUTHOWEXTENSIVEARETHEY4ODATE
THEREHAVEBEENFEWSCIENTIFICREPORTSONTHERELATIONBETWEENCELL
PHONEUSEANDTRAFFICACCIDENTS)N$ONALD2EDELMEIERAND
2OBERT4IBSHIRANISTUDIEDDRIVERSWHOOWNEDMOBILEPHONES
ANDHADBEENINACCIDENTS4HEDRIVERSWHOVOLUNTEEREDFORTHE
STUDYGAVETHERESEARCHERSDETAILEDBILLINGRECORDSOFTHEIRPHONE
CALLS7ITHTHESEDATATHERESEARCHERSFOUNDTHAThTHERISKOFA
COLLISIONWHENUSINGACELLULARTELEPHONEWASFOURTIMESHIGHER
THANTHERISKWHENACELLULARTELEPHONEWASNOTBEINGUSEDv
Long quotation is
introduced by a
sentence naming
the authors.
!LTHOUGHTHISCONCLUSIONSOUNDSDRAMATIC2EDELMEIERAND
4IBSHIRANICAUTIONAGAINSTREADINGTOOMUCHINTOIT
/URSTUDYINDICATESANASSOCIATIONBUTNOTNECESSARILY
Long quotation
is indented; no
quotation marks
are needed.
ACAUSALRELATIONBETWEENTHEUSEOFCELLULARTELEPHONES
Ellipsis dots show
that words have
been omitted.
SERIOUSINJURIES&INALLYTHEDATADONOTINDICATE
WHILEDRIVINGANDASUBSEQUENTMOTORVEHICLE
COLLISION)NADDITIONOURSTUDYDIDNOTINCLUDE
THATTHEDRIVERSWEREATFAULTINTHECOLLISIONSITMAY
BETHATCELLULARTELEPHONESMERELYDECREASEADRIVERS
ABILITYTOAVOIDACOLLISIONCAUSEDBYSOMEONEELSE
0OINTINGOUTTHATCELLPHONESHAVEBENEFITSASWELLASRISKSTHE
AUTHORSDONOTRECOMMENDRESTRICTIONSONTHEIRUSEWHILEDRIVING
5NFORTUNATELYMOSTSTATESDONOTKEEPADEQUATERECORDS
ONTHENUMBEROFTIMESPHONESAREAFACTORINACCIDENTS!SOF
$ECEMBERONLYTENSTATESWERETRYINGTOKEEPSUCHRECORDS
3UNDEEN)NADDITIONCURRENTLYTHEREISLITTLESCIENTIFIC
EVIDENCECOMPARINGTHEUSEOFCELLPHONESWITHOTHERDRIVER
Source: Diana Hacker (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006).
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DISTRACTIONSFIDDLINGWITHTHERADIOSMOKINGEATINGPUTTINGON
MAKEUPSHAVINGANDSOON
!LASDAIR#AINAND-ARK"URRISOFTHE#ENTERFOR5RBAN
4RANSPORTATION2ESEARCHSURVEYEDRESEARCHONTHECELLPHONEISSUE
ASOFANDCONCLUDEDTHATTHEREIShNONATIONALLYACCREDITED
DOCUMENTTOPROVETHECONNECTIONBETWEENMOBILEPHONEUSEAND
TRAFFICACCIDENTSv"ECAUSERESEARCHRESULTSHAVEBEENSO
INCONCLUSIVEITMAKESSENSETOWAITBEFOREPASSINGLAWSTHATMIGHT
WELLBEUNNECESSARY
7EIGHINGRISKSANDBENEFITS
)NRESEARCHERSATTHE(ARVARD#ENTERFOR2ISK!NALYSIS
FOUNDTHATTHERISKSOFDRIVINGWHILEPHONINGWERESMALLCOMPARED
WITHOTHERDRIVINGRISKS7HEREASTHECELLPHONEUSERSCHANCESOF
DYINGAREABOUTINAMILLIONPERYEARSOMEONENOTWEARINGA
A corporate author
is named in a
signal phrase;
page number for
statistics is given
in parentheses.
SEATBELTHASARISKOFPERMILLIONANDSOMEONEDRIVINGA
SMALLCARHASARISKOFPERMILLION"ECAUSEOFTHIS
COMPARATIVELYSMALLRISKREGULATIONOFPHONESMAYNOTBEWORTH
THECOSTOFTHELEGISLATIONASWELLASTHEADDITIONALBURDENSUCH
LEGISLATIONWOULDPUTONLAWENFORCEMENTOFFICERS
)NADDITIONTOTHERISKSTHEREAREBENEFITSTOUSINGPHONES
ONTHEROAD-ATT3UNDEENREPORTSTHATDRIVERSWITHCELLPHONES
PLACEANESTIMATEDEMERGENCYCALLSEACHDAYANDTHATTHE
PHONEShOFTENREDUCEEMERGENCYRESPONSETIMESANDACTUALLYSAVE
LIVESv4HEPHONESHAVEBUSINESSBENEFITSTOO!CCORDINGTO
TRANSPORTATIONENGINEER2ICHARD2ETTINGh#OMMUTERTIMEISNO
LONGERJUSTFORDRIVING!STHECOMFORTSOFHOMEANDTHEEFFICIENCY
Source: Diana Hacker (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006).
Clear topic
sentences are
used throughout.
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OFTHEOFFICECREEPINTOTHEAUTOMOBILEITISBECOMINGINCREASINGLY
An indirect source
—words quoted in
another source—is
cited with the term
“qtd. in.”
ATTRACTIVEASAWORKSPACEvQTDIN+ILGANNON!#ARPHONES
ALSOHAVEPERSONALBENEFITS!MOTHERCOMINGHOMELATEFROMWORK
CANCHECKINWITHHERCHILDRENAPARTYGOERLOSTINASTRANGE
NEIGHBORHOODCANCALLFORDIRECTIONSORATEENAGERWHOSECAR
BREAKSDOWNCANPHONEHOME
Transitional paragraph serves as a
bridge to the next
section.
5NLESSORUNTILTHEREISCLEAREVIDENCEOFADIRECTLINKBETWEEN
CELLPHONEUSEANDTRAFFICACCIDENTSTHEGOVERNMENTSHOULDNOT
REGULATEUSEOFCELLPHONESWHILEDRIVING!BETTERAPPROACHISTO
EDUCATETHEPUBLICTOTHEDANGERSOFDRIVINGWHILEDISTRACTEDAND
TOENFORCELAWSONNEGLIGENTANDRECKLESSDRIVING
%DUCATINGDRIVERSANDENFORCINGLAWS
%DUCATIONALEFFORTSCANWORK)NTHELASTTWENTYYEARS
GOVERNMENTANDPRIVATEGROUPSHAVEMANAGEDTOCHANGETHE
No citation is
needed for common knowledge.
DRIVINGHABITSOF!MERICANS3EATBELTSARENOWREGULARLYWORN
PEOPLECOMMONLYAPPOINTDESIGNATEDDRIVERSWHENAGROUPIS
DRINKINGSMALLCHILDRENAREALMOSTALWAYSPUTINSAFETYSEATSAND
MOSTDRIVERSTURNONTHEIRHEADLIGHTSINRAINYWEATHER
%NFORCINGLAWSAGAINSTNEGLIGENTANDRECKLESSDRIVINGCAN
ALSOWORK%VENGROUPSCONCERNEDWITHSAFETYSUPPORTTHISVIEW
&ORINSTANCETHE.ATIONAL(IGHWAY4RAFFIC3AFETY!DMINISTRATION
ADVISESSTATESTOENFORCETHEIRRECKLESSANDNEGLIGENTDRIVINGLAWS
ANDWHERENECESSARYTOSTRENGTHENTHOSELAWSITDOESNOTCALLFOR
Government source
is listed under
“United States”
in the works cited
list and in the
parentheses.
RESTRICTIONSONUSEOFTHEPHONES5NITED3TATES$EPTOF
4RANSPORTATION4HE#ALIFORNIA(IGHWAY0ATROLOPPOSESRESTRICTING
USEOFPHONESWHILEDRIVINGCLAIMINGTHATDISTRACTEDDRIVERSCAN
Source: Diana Hacker (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006).
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ALREADYBEPROSECUTED*ACOBS)TISPOSSIBLEOFCOURSETHATSOME
STATESDONOTENFORCETHEIRLAWSTOTHEEXTENTNECESSARY)NSUCH
INSTANCESCITIZENSSHOULDPUTPRESSUREONHIGHWAYPATROLSTOSTEP
For a summary,
the author’s name
is in parentheses;
no page number
is available.
UPENFORCEMENTFORWITHOUTFEAROFPROSECUTIONMANYDRIVERSWILL
NOTCHANGETHEIRBEHAVIOR
4HEUSEOFCELLPHONESWHILEDRIVINGISPROBABLYHERETOSTAYˆ
DESPITETHERISKSˆUNLESSFUTURESTUDIESPROVETHATTHERISKSCLEARLY
OUTWEIGHTHEBENEFITS(OWEVERPUBLICSAFETYCONCERNSAREREAL
4OADDRESSTHOSECONCERNSWESHOULDMOUNTAMAJOREDUCATIONAL
CAMPAIGNTOEDUCATEDRIVERSABOUTTHEDANGERSOFDRIVINGWHILE
DISTRACTEDANDINSISTTHATLAWSONNEGLIGENTANDRECKLESSDRIVINGBE
ENFORCEDASVIGOROUSLYASPOSSIBLE
Source: Diana Hacker (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006).
The paper ends
with Levi’s stand
on the controversy.
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7ORKS#ITED
Heading is centered.
!MBROSE!NTHONY,ETTER.EW%NGLAND*OURNALOF-EDICINE 0RINT
List is alphabetized
by authors’ last
names (or by title,
if a work has no
author).
#AIN!LASDAIRAND-ARK"URRISh)NVESTIGATIONOFTHE5SEOF-OBILE
0HONESWHILE$RIVINGv#ENTERFOR5RBAN4RANSPORTATION
2ESEARCH#OLLOF%NGINEERING5OF3OUTH&LORIDA!PR
7EB-AR
First line of each
entry is at left
margin; next lines
are indented 1⁄ 2''
#OHEN0ETER*,ETTER.EW%NGLAND*OURNALOF-EDICINE 0RINT
(ARVARD#ENTERFOR2ISK!NALYSISh#ELLULAR0HONESAND$RIVING
7EIGHINGTHE2ISKSAND"ENEFITSv2ISKIN0ERSPECTIVE
0RESIDENTAND&ELLOWSOF(ARVARD#OLL*ULY7EB
-AR
Double-spacing is
used throughout.
*ACOBS!NNETTEh'UEST/PINION.O.EW,AWS.EEDEDFOR$RIVER
$ISTRACTIONSv7IRELESS7EEK!DVANTAGE"USINESS-EDIA
-AY7EB-AR
+ILGANNON#OREYh2OAD7ARRIORSWITH,APTOPSv.EW9ORK4IMES
!UG!0RINT
2EDELMEIER$ONALD!AND2OBERT*4IBSHIRANIh!SSOCIATION
BETWEEN#ELLULAR4ELEPHONE#ALLSAND-OTOR6EHICLE
#OLLISIONSv.EW%NGLAND*OURNALOF-EDICINE 0RINT
3UNDEEN-ATTh#ELL0HONESAND(IGHWAY3AFETY3TATE
,EGISLATIVE5PDATEv.ATIONAL#ONFERENCEOF3TATE
,EGISLATURES.ATL#ONFOF3TATE,EGISLATURES$EC
7EB-AR
Source: Diana Hacker (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006).
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5NITED3TATESOF4RANSPORTATION.ATL(IGHWAY4RAFFIC3AFETY
!DMINISTRATIONh!N)NVESTIGATIONOFTHE3AFETY)MPLICATIONS
OF7IRELESS#OMMUNICATIONSIN6EHICLESv.(43!.ATL(IGHWAY
4RAFFIC3AFETY!DMINISTRATION.OV7EB-AR
Source: Diana Hacker (Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006).