You will be expected to write a research paper investigating some aspect of economic, political, or social relations in a state of the Asia Pacific. We will discuss this process throughout the semester, but it is important for you to get an early start to produce a high-quality product.
Points will be deducted for poor writing, bad organization, weak substance, illogical argumentation, or other errors that reduce the quality of your work.  Similarly, points can be added for skillful writing, clear organization, strong substance, solid logical argumentation, and other quality-enhancing elements.
Please use Arial 12 point font for your paper.  You may use APA, MLA, or Chicago Manual style.
The more quality resources you use, the better your paper will be.  Including books by scholars that are at the cutting edge of research in your field of investigation is important to your success.  For example, if you were doing research in orientalism, it might be important to include Edward Said in your bibliography.
I will evaluate you using the following criteria:

Is your writing clear, concise, comprehensive, engaging, and grammatically correct?
Does your research rely on a sufficient depth and breadth of quality resources?
Is your thesis falsifiable and do you muster sufficient evidence and logic to justify your conclusions?

Some topic areas you might consider include:

What role does ethnicity play in the politics of a given Asian Pacific country?
How does the film, fiction, or art represent economic, political, or social trends in a given Asian Pacific country?
How do debates about the teaching of history reflect current economic, political, and or social trends?
What has been the path of democratization or economic development in a given Asian Pacific country?
How does ideology impact the economy, politics, and society of a given Asian Pacific country?
How does corruption influence the economy, politics, and society of a given Asian Pacific country?
What role do global justice concerns play in the economy, politics, and society of a given Asian Pacific country?
What role do environmental concerns play in the economy, politics, and society of a given Asian Pacific country?
How do geopolitical concerns impact the politics of the various states in the region?