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Narrow a vague paper topic into a searchable question
- For College students
- You practice Giving the right context
- Time about 5 minutes
About this exercise
Your Environmental Studies professor said "is fast fashion bad?" is too vague and told you to pick one country and use data from 2020 on. Turn your notes into exactly 4 numbered lines labeled Question:, Place:, Years: and Search terms:, where Search terms: gives exactly 3 phrases in quotation marks. Plain text, under 80 words.
Common mistakes when you ask AI for this
- Leaving out the professor's rules. The AI narrows the topic its own way, often to a global question with no date range. Try: Add: "One country, data from 2020 on."
- Not saying your angle. The AI picks the most common angle, like factory labor, instead of what you care about. Try: Add: "I care about textile waste to landfill and whether resale apps help."
- Getting a list of topic ideas. The AI brainstorms ten possible papers instead of one question you can search. Try: Say: "Exactly 4 lines: Question:, Place:, Years:, Search terms:."
- Loose search terms. The AI gives long keyword lists you can't paste into a database. Try: Add: "Search terms: exactly 3 phrases in quotation marks."
- Getting markdown back. AI bolds labels and adds headings. Try: Ask for "plain text, no bold."
What a strong prompt includes
- Gives the professor's rules
- Says your angle
- Names the 4 labels
- Asks for quoted phrases
- Asks for plain text
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