One of the areas I’m interested in researching is ocean pollution. Living on the beach for my entire life has given me a deep appreciation for the ocean and its creatures. One of the research questions I’m considering is “do military bases and ports cause significant damage to the surrounding marine environment?” My opinion on the topic is yes they definitely do. Part of the reason why my family doesn’t go to the beach often anymore is because of how polluted it looks. Which leads to the next question I’m considering is “should the military funds be allocated to reverse the harm those bases cause?” Which, of course, I think they should. I think that our military is ridiculously over funded compared to the rest of the world and considering all the problems we as a nation face that should be receiving that money and attention.

The second area of research that I’m interested in is social media. I am someone who has had unrestricted access to the internet for most of my life. I have had a long time to observe and form my opinions on it. My first question would be “should the government be able to control what people see and post on social media?” My answer would of course be no, especially given all that has happened with Tiktok in recent news. I think that social media has given people across the globe to share ideas, information, and opinions and unite like never before. I think laws about posting certain harmful things are reasonable but the government shouldn’t be able to silence its people or push certain agendas. Which brings me to my second question about social media which is “should it be legal for PR companies to manipulate the media to make people look bad?” In my opinion no it should not. I am all for free speech but for a company to use its money, power, and connections to humiliate someone on a global scale is completely unreasonable. It sounds like a defamation lawsuit waiting to happen. The Blake Lively situation is a huge example of this and truly makes you think about how much the wealthy have control over the wealthy have over the way people think. My final question about social media is “how do we mitigate social media addiction?” I don’t know how but the whole planet needs an internet detox pronto. As much as I hate to admit it, this generation and the next are far too attached to social media and have come to depend on it, myself included. We cannot continue to function properly as a society while relying on apps to formulate our connections and opinions.