Assignment Requirement: Technical Report Overview: In the report, you will present a comprehensive overview of the social or structural problem by reviewing research that has already been conducted. You’ll also evaluate one potential solution to that problem by addressing the following questions: What are the strengths of this solution? Why is it such an effective solution to the problem (or part of the problem)? What are the weaknesses or downsides of the solution? What opportunities does the solution present for the future? How might it bring the community together or lay the structural groundwork for additional work? What are the threats or barriers to implementing this solution? How might those barriers be overcome? Technical Report Required Sections: The report should be approximately 10-15 double-spaced pages with 1” margins. Those 10-15 pages may include illustrations, the memo of transmittal, and the summary, but the body of the report should be at least 6 full pages long. While you may have additional parts, the minimum pieces that should be included: Memo of Transmittal addressed to your instructor. In this memo, you should include an overview of your work and your final recommendations Summary or Abstract: Create a clear, concise summary that could be distributed internally or externally Report: The headings below will guide the content that you include in your report. However, the headings that you use in your report should be much more specific and concrete than the headings below. You will need to have additional headings, also, as appropriate for your topic.

–Overview of the Problem (Problem Analysis):

Present an overview of the problem based on your research. Make sure to integrate at least 3 sources into this section so that you avoid relying on a single source. Your goal in this section is to establish the scope of the problem and the significance of it.

–Presentation and Evaluation of one Solution: Present one comprehensive solution to the problem and then evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of that solution. Remember, the solution can respond to part of the problem rather than the problem as a whole. In fact, these focused, limited solutions can have powerful impacts. Note: If you are in engineering (or a similar field), you will usually be asked to design a solution to the problem. However, since this is not a design class, your goal will be to research and present a solution that that someone else has designed. (Of course, if you already have a design, we’d love to see it. If that’s the case, check in with me to ensure that you’re not reproducing work from another class.) –Conclusion and Recommendations: Provide an overview of concrete actions or steps/tasks that can be taken to reach your goal. You may consider adding multiple subsections to address different stakeholders or actors.

References: Include a References section at the end of the report. You can use any citation style in the References section, but make sure that style is consistent. Technical Report Must Include:

Research: Your research should include at least six outside references, including: at least one white paper or technical report from a governmental agency or non-profit organization doing work in the field and at least two resources from library databases. The Pew Research Center is a non-partisan non-profit group with excellent statistics on a vast array of subjects. You can choose the citation style you use: Pick a style that most closely ties in with your topic. It doesn’t matter which style you use, as long as you’re consistent and use it correctly. Remember to think carefully about the credibility of your sources:

Illustrations: The report should include at least one original illustration that you created. Options might include a chart or graph, a series of photographs, a CAD drawing, or a very clean and professional pen and ink drawing. You may also include other illustrations that aren’t original, but you need to be sure to cite your source in a caption. All visuals must have clear captions, labels (like Figure 1) and citations.