senior thesis brown

Senior Capstone

• Undergraduate

The capstone will be normally be completed in a student’s last undergraduate year, and it should make use of a significant portion of what the student has learned in their undergraduate education, broadly interpreted. There are three options for the capstone course in philosophy:

• A Senior Thesis : A substantial paper, typically about 40-60 pages, that is researched and written over the course of the senior year under the supervision of a faculty advisor. Typically, students writing a thesis will enroll in PHIL 1995, Senior Thesis, both semesters. (In order for a student to be permitted to write a Senior Thesis, they must have completed at least six courses in the concentration and have received a grade either of A or of Satisfactory with Distinction in more than half of them.)
• An Independent Study: A one-semester reading course PHIL 1990 under the direction of a faculty advisor, leading to a substantial research paper, typically 15-25 pages.
• A Special Project undertaken in connection with a philosophy course at or above 0990: Examples include a more-in-depth final paper than is otherwise required or a presentation of some of the material to the class, though students are encouraged to make creative proposals, as well. The specific project should be discussed with, and must be approved by, the instructor of the relevant course.

Every philosophy concentrator must file the Declaration of Capstone Project (which is part of the concentration declaration) by the end of shopping period in their final semester.

Department of Economics

Honors thesis.

• Undergraduate

Junior year is the time to start thinking about eligibility requirements, topics of interest, and potential advisors for an honors thesis.

An Honors Info Session is held each spring to answer junior’s questions about their senior year, and interested students must fill out the  honors thesis form  by the end of junior year.

We strongly encourage students to write an honors thesis. This is very valuable for students interested in graduate school or careers requiring independent research skills, as well as for students interested in tying together their academic experience with an in-depth investigation of one topic.

More than a good course paper

An honors thesis is more than a good course paper. It must represent a substantial effort in research and exposition. A thesis must be an original contribution to knowledge, beyond a simple replication exercise. The department does not specify page lengths, methods, or topics. Instead, an honors thesis candidate should establish his or her goals – and a timeline to meet those goals – in an understanding with the thesis advisor. To see the range of topics and methods prior students have pursued, take a look at  examples of past honor theses here  or by visiting the academic office in person. To find a faculty advisor who would be a good match for your topic of interest, see their research questions  here. 

Requirements

To graduate with honors, students must satisfy the following requirements  by the   end of junior year ,

• Complete at least 70% of the courses required for the concentration.
• Have earned a grade of “A” or “S with distinction” in at least 70% of grades earned in the economics concentration, or 50% in the joint concentrations in APMA-Econ, CS-Econ, and Math-Econ (excluding courses transferred to Brown without a grade, and those taken Spring 2020).
• Economics Concentrators  must find a faculty thesis advisor in the economics department.
• Joint Concentrators  must find a primary faculty thesis advisor in either economics or the partner department. CS-Econ concentrators must have a secondary reader in the other department by the fall of senior year. APMA-Econ and Math-Econ do not require a secondary reader, unless the primary advisor deems it necessary. Joint concentrators need to satisfy the honors requirements of the economics department if their thesis advisor is in the economics department; while they need to satisfy the honors requirements of the partner department if their thesis advisor is in the partner department.

During senior year , thesis writers must:

• Enroll in ECON 1960 in the fall & spring semesters (Note that 1960 does not count as a 1000-level elective for your concentration). A requirement of ECON 1960 will be attendance at one of two lab sessions each week. 
• Submit a thesis proposal to both your thesis advisor and the Undergraduate Programs Coordinator Kelsey Thorpe, [email protected]  (see below for due date).
• Submit their work in progress to their thesis advisor and Kelsey (see below for due date).
• Depending on the nature of the thesis work, the thesis adviser may require the student to successfully complete one or more courses from among the  data methods ,  mathematical economics  and/or  financial economics  course groups in the fall of senior year, if they have not already done so.
• Complete an honors thesis by the deadline agreed upon with their primary advisor and obtain the final approval of their advisor(s) (see below for due date).
• Thesis writers are encouraged, but not required, to participate in the departmental Honors Thesis Presentation session held in May, with a brief presentation of their work and findings.

For students graduating  Spring 2024 :

• Proposal - September 18, 2023
• Work in Progress - December 18, 2023
• Final Draft - April 19, 2024

For students graduating in  Fall 2024*:

• Proposal - February 2, 2024
• Work in Progress - April 25, 2024
• Final Draft - December 10, 2024

For students graduating  Spring 2025 :

• Proposal - September 16, 2024
• Work in Progress - December 16, 2024
• Final Draft - April 18, 2025

For students graduating  Fall 2025 *:

• Proposal - February 7, 2025
• Work in Progress - April 24, 2025
• Final Draft - December 9, 2025

*Note that for the Requirements listed above, "by end of senior year" means by the "end of Fall semester 2023" for Fall 2024 graduates and "end of Fall semester 2024" for Fall 2025 graduates.

More information

For students interested in finding out more, please attend the information session on honors theses that will be given in the middle of every spring semester. For students interested in undertaking research, but not wanting to pursue honors, the department offers  senior capstone options .

Division of Biology and Medicine

Biology undergraduate education.

More than 30 percent of concentrators in the Biological Sciences earn honors each year.

Honors Application Due Dates for AY 23-24

Students graduating in May: October 2, 2023 Students graduating in December: March 1, 2024

Application for Honors : Students should complete the Honors Proposal Application in collaboration with the Thesis Advisor and Second Reader. Both advisor signatures are due at the application proposal deadline (above).

HONORS PROPOSAL APPLICATION

Honors Eligibility

To be eligible for honors, students must meet  three  requirements: .

• Completion of an original research  thesis  that is recommended for honors by both the Thesis Advisor and Second Reader.
• Formal and public  presentation  of the thesis (oral seminar or by poster presentation).
• Demonstration of quality  grades  in the concentration.  

Students concentrating in Biology AB/ScB, Health & Human Biology, and Biophysics are all eligible to apply for Honors , and the process is the same for each concentration.

Concentrators in Biochemistry apply via Biochemistry advisors; Applied Math-Biology students apply via Applied Mathematics; Computational Biology students apply via CCMB; Biomedical Engineering concentrators proceed via Engineering.

As per University policy, students may not use the same thesis to gain honors in more than one concentration. If pursuing honors in two concentrations, the theses must be fully distinct in content. 

Honors: Policy and Procedure for Biology Concentrations

The senior honors thesis is typically developed through a minimum of two, but more often three, semesters of research. Students intending to pursue a thesis in Biology often have a Brown faculty mentor and project secured in the summer prior to the senior year. Many students use  UTRAs to help support research, though this is not the only mechanism of support. Often faculty members provide student support from their own grants.

Students may also register for BIOL 1950/1960 independent study courses to support honors theses research, though this is not required.  Please note :  The Honors application process is  separate  from the  independent study BIOL 1950/1960 registration project proposal . The application for Honors is below.

Students graduating in May:

Students graduating in december*:.

A senior honors thesis in Biology is a substantial body of original scholarly research. Successful theses can be grounded in a number of methodological approaches including bench or field research, clinical study, mathematical models, computer simulations, meta-analyses that test hypotheses or yield new synthesis in a scholarly context. Regardless of the approach, successful theses will be inquiry-based and demonstrate contextual understanding of the work, formal assessment of scientific information, critical thinking, clear communication and a high level of independence.

The Thesis Advisor and Second Reader will evaluate and recommend the thesis for honors. Their roles are outlined below.

• The  Thesis Advisor  is the primary investigator who will mentor the project, and who will be available to the student in developing the thesis aims, designing methods, analyzing data, interpreting outcomes and casting the work in the context of the scholarly field(s) of relevance. The Thesis Advisor is also expected to guide the student in developing and delivering a polished final presentation of the thesis. The Thesis Advisor should be a Brown faculty member, usually but not always, from the Division of Biology and Medicine.
• The  Second Reader  will be a faculty member or associated scientist who is identified by the student, in consult with the Thesis Advisor, as appropriate to review the work. The Second Reader will evaluate the thesis, and provide an evaluation of the work. Second Readers should be acquainted with the field of research described by the project, and be willing and able to provide input and critique that will challenge and strengthen the thesis. The Second Reader should be at the doctoral level and ideally  not  from the same laboratory or research group where the project originates.

Presentation of the thesis can be fulfilled by participation in the Annual Biology Senior Research, Capstone, and Declaration Day or an arranged oral seminar.   If the oral seminar format is chosen the student will make scheduling arrangements with guidance from the Thesis Advisor. The oral presentation should be scheduled early to mid-April in order to meet the Thesis Advisor and Second Reader Final Evaluation Deadline.

While formal presentation of the thesis is required, there is not a specific set of criteria for evaluation. Advisors have the opportunity to comment on the presentation in the formal evaluation. Advisors should develop a mentoring plan to teach students about the various approaches to presenting scientific research. Opportunities for students to practice the presentation, receive, and incorporate feedback is especially helpful and encouraged.

Biology honors applicants are required to present their thesis research and senior capstone students are encouraged to do the same (though this is not a requirement). The Program in Biology will host the Annual Biology Senior Research, Capstone, and Declaration Day event on Wednesday, April 17th, 2024 in Alumnae Hall Auditorium . 

Students are required to submit a pdf of their final thesis to their Thesis Advisor, Second Reader and the BUE Office via email by the third Friday in April (see timeline above).  

Submission Instructions

1. Email a copy of the final thesis to  [email protected]  as a single pdf document. The format of the thesis is determined by the faculty advisor and student. The pdf file name should be the student’s first name initial(s) in all caps, followed by the last name (no spaces). For example, Dean Smith’s thesis file name would read KFSmith.pdf. The BUE Office will maintain a copy of the thesis for programming purposes. The thesis will not be shared or made public without the student’s permission.

2. The email subject heading should read: Honors thesis for BUE filing only.

Thesis Evaluation for Honors

The Thesis Advisor and Second Reader will evaluate and recommend the thesis for honors based on the criteria outlined below. An electronic honors evaluation form will be provided directly, via email, to the Thesis Advisor and Second Reader by the Office of Biology Undergraduate Education. This form will be sent well in advance of the final evaluation due date (above). It is up to the student and Thesis Advisors to develop internal project deadlines for submitting drafts and final copies of the thesis so there is time for revisions, as well as formal presentation of your honors thesis (poster/oral) so that the final evaluation can be submitted. The entire thesis presentation should be delivered prior to the final evaluation deadline. Please adhere to the BUE internal deadlines above.

Students who have earned a majority of "A" grades in courses required for the concentration and who are in good academic standing are eligible to apply for honors at the start of their penultimate (typically 7th) semester at Brown. Classes taken S/NC will count as qualifying towards that majority if they are marked "S* with distinction" indicating that had the student taken the course for a grade, the grade would have been an "A". Courses with a grade of S may be counted when a Course Performance Report indicates a grade of A. Students just shy of meeting the grade requirement for honors are encouraged to apply. Grades earned in penultimate semester concentration courses will be accounted for in the determination of quality grades made in the final semester. In order to verify quality grades efficiently, please make sure that your concentration course plan in ASK is up to date and that the number of required courses is listed.

Thesis Guidelines & Expectations

Faculty Advisors recommend the thesis for honors based on the following criteria:

• The writing, format, and presentation of the thesis are appropriate for the intended audience.
• The introduction of the thesis offers a formal review of the literature that presents the state of the field to date, and in doing so sets up a clear argument for the value of the work presented.
• The introduction of the thesis offers a clearly articulated goal, aim, question, and /or hypothesis to be tested.
• The methods and analyses selected are clearly justified.
• Results are interpreted appropriately and based on the analyses presented in the methods.
• The discussion section offers a compelling consideration of a) unexpected findings or challenges during the research process that may have influenced the results, b) implications of overall findings and their impact on the relevant field(s), c) future directions / next steps.

A thesis in Biology, Health & Human Biology, and Biophysics make take a variety of forms and formats. It is up to the honors candidate and Thesis Advisors to determine the specific expectations for the final thesis form and format. Elements of a thesis in Biology vary greatly depending on the nature of the project, the specific sub-field, and the student's learning goals. Communication about these expectations should be clearly articulated and agreed upon early in the research process. A common choice is for students to prepare the thesis as if they were to submit the work to a peer-reviewed journal. This approach offers the opportunity for students to experience the first step of the publication process. Another option is to prepare the thesis manuscript following the  dissertation guidelines  set forth by Brown's Graduate School. Previous students have found this useful in preparing for doctoral or master's research programs. Students and Advisors may also look to  Brown University's Digital Repository of Undergraduate Theses  in Biology for examples of formatting previously followed. Regardless of format, a thesis in Biology, Health & Human Biology, and Biophysics will exhibit the highest quality writing, novel content, context of findings, and documentation of sources expected at the undergraduate level. STEM theses generally include an abstract, robust introduction, complete methods, results, full discussion & conclusion, a complete list of references that illustrate the state of the field of relevance, clear figures and tables with appropriate captions, and necessary appendices. Regardless of format, a thesis in Biology, Health & Human Biology, and Biophysics will exhibit the highest quality writing, clear articulation of the state of the field relevant to the work, novel content, context of findings, and documentation of sources expected at the undergraduate level. 

“There is no such thing as a failed experiment, only experiments with unexpected outcomes (Richard Buckminster Fuller).”

Science does not always go as planned. Methodological hurdles and insignificant results are common experiences of researchers at every stage. Regular communication with the Thesis Advisors is essential for navigating hurdles that arise during the research process. Students with an approved application to the honors program are encouraged to submit the thesis even when challenges occur along the way. When outcomes are not as planned the student and Advisors are encouraged to work together to develop a new plan for presenting the work in the form of a formal thesis. Indeed, there is great value in presenting work completed and formally discussing challenges, unexpected outcomes, and insignificant findings. Dean Achilli is available to assist with planning during this process and to discuss alternative means of evaluation as necessary.

MDL Poster Printing Service

MDL Poster Printing service is available to: > Students participating in the BUE events, or > Students enrolled in a BIOL Course and are going to a conference, or > Students enrolled in an independent study course with an approved biology proposal and are going to a conference. See instructions from the link below:

Thesis Archival in the Brown Digital Repository

Fill out the archiving form and upload your thesis.    The BDR is Brown University's online archive of student and faculty scholarship maintained by the Brown University Library. By choosing to deposit your honors thesis in the BDR, you are making your scholarly work discoverable and accessible into the future.

Brown Archiving Form 

Students wishing to archive their thesis with the BDR should follow these instructions:

• Fill out the  archiving form online . Information on access and licensing is provided on the form.
• June 10  is the deadline to submit a thesis for BDR archiving.

Students who encounter any issues with the upload process to BDR can email  [email protected] .

The Library wishes you a nice holiday break. Buildings will be closed from 12/23/22 to 12/31/22. For a full list of closing and opening times, please visit the library hours page.

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Brown University Theses and Dissertations

Brown University Library archives dissertations in accordance with the Brown Graduate School policy .

For dissertations published prior to 2008, please consult the following Dissertation LibGuide

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Department of Religious Studies

Honors thesis.

• Undergraduate

How to Get Started

Do you want to write a thesis? You can begin thinking about your answer to this question at any time in your course of study.

Fundamentally, an honors thesis is simply an opportunity for students to conduct extended independent research under the guidance of faculty. While an honors thesis might sound like an intimidating project, try to imagine it as a set of several related research papers, connected by a single topic, issue, or question. Thinking about it that way, ask yourself: do I have a topic, issue, or question that I would like to write several papers about, over the course of a year?  If the answer is yes, then you should think seriously about writing a thesis.  As you consider an answer to this thesis and set out pursuing it, you may find it helpful to explore recent theses by concentrators in Religious Studies.

Beyond a set of interests and ideas, the first thing you need is an advisor.  In their sixth semester (ordinarily Spring semester of junior year), a student contemplating a thesis should identify a faculty member with whom they hope to work.  Students should ask faculty members if they are available and interested in supporting a thesis as a first or second reader.  The faculty member might decline for any number of reasons or may suggest other members of the department better suited to work with the student. 

If the faculty member agrees to advise the thesis, the student begins honing the topic of the thesis in consultation with the faculty member.  Before the student finishes the sixth semester, the broad contours of the project should be laid out so that the student can commence productive research at the very beginning of the seventh semester.  Before the beginning of examination period of the sixth semester, the student should complete a senior thesis proposal, obtain the necessary signatures, and submit all these materials to the Director of Undergraduate Studies.

Capstone Seminar and Thesis Workshop

Thesis writers should enroll in the Senior Capstone Seminar (RELS 1995) during the Fall semester of their senior year, and they should enroll in RELS 1999 (Thesis Preparation) in the Spring semester of their senior year.  For the Fall semester, RELS 1995 serves as the venue for thesis preparation. 

In the Capstone Seminar, thesis writers will be offered break-out sessions that provide specialized instruction and mentorship in thesis planning, research, and writing.  Dual concentrators who are enrolled in the Capstone Seminar while writing a thesis for their other concentration are welcome to join thesis workshop if their thesis is related to the academic study of religion.

Thesis Readers

Students are responsible for identifying readers for their theses.  But the Director of Undergraduate Studies and your concentration advisor can offer assistance identifying potential readers.  To receive honors, students must receive an "A" grade on their thesis from both readers. 

The "first reader" is your primary advisor.  Potential thesis writers should devise a potential thesis in consultation with an advisor.  The role of the "second reader" is more flexible.  A second reader can serve as an additional advisor who offers feedback throughout the year of research and writing, or the second reader might only read the thesis in its final form. At minimum, the second reader offers a second opinion (alongside the advisor's) about whether a thesis deserves honors; a more maximal role would have the second reader serve essentially as a second advisor. The role of the second reader should be established through dialogue between thesis writers and their readers. 

Additional Information

Honors thesis proposals, honors thesis format, bishop mcvickar prizes.

Anthropology

Honors in anthropology.

• Undergraduate Studies

Anthropology Concentration Handbook

An honors thesis is required to graduate with honors in anthropology.

The opportunity to pursue honors in anthropology is a privilege. Students are selected to become honors candidates based on a number of criteria, including standing and grades in the concentration, a viable research project, the support of a faculty advisor, and submission and approval of the proposed project. An honors thesis is required for graduating with honors in anthropology. Writing an honors thesis, however, does not guarantee graduation with honors. If a student pursues an honors thesis that is not conferred honors status, the student's record will show that s/he successfully completed a Senior Thesis (described below).

Students must apply to become an honors candidate by the end of the semester before they begin their thesis work, ordinarily at the end of the sixth semester.

To be eligible to apply for honors, students must:

• Be in good standing
• Have completed at least two thirds of the concentration requirements by the end of the sixth semester.
• Have earned a majority of "A" grades in the concentration. Classes taken S/NC will count as qualifying towards that majority if they are marked “S* with distinction” indicating that had the student taken the course for a grade, the grade would have been an "A."

Both your primary thesis advisor and secondary reader for your honors thesis in Anthropology must be anthropologists. Additional readers from outside of anthropology are welcome to participate.

Your primary thesis advisor must be a core (permanent) faculty member in the department. It is a good idea to have taken a class with the proposed thesis advisor, so that s/he has an idea of the student's interests and abilities and so that the student has a good idea of the faculty advisor’s approach to research. Adjunct and visiting faculty in the department may also serve as the primary thesis advisor, in special circumstances and with approval of the DUS, but typically serve as secondary readers.

Students interested in pursuing honors should have an idea for a thesis project by the spring semester of the junior year. Many faculty advisors limit the number of theses they advise per year, so it is good to approach a faculty member early. The Director of Undergraduate Research (DUR) is available to assist prospective thesis writers as they develop their projects.

Prepare a thesis proposal of 2-3 pages, describing the major research questions and methods to be used. The proposal should have a primary research question and will define what you are doing for your research (and why). The proposal must have a working bibliography attached. Candidates will prepare their proposals in close consultation with their primary advisor. Submit the thesis proposal, with the proposed faculty member’s approval, to the Director of Undergraduate Research in anthropology by the end of the spring semester of your junior year (specific dates are specified each year).

Some of the issues to be addressed in the proposal are:

• What is the primary research question?
• How does the proposed study articulate with prior anthropological research?
• What is novel/new/different about the proposed research?
• What is the theoretical grounding of the research?
• What methods/samples/study area will be used in the research?

As students proceed with the honors project, the direction taken may differ than that originally outlined in the proposal. In consultation with the primary faculty advisor, the student will identify a second reader, who will sign on to the project by the second week of the student's senior year (or seventh semester).

Once accepted as honors candidates, students will pursue a course of study that goes beyond what is expected of a regular concentrator. This includes:

• Enrolling in two ANTH 1930, Anthropology Thesis Workshops (half-credit courses that meet in the fall and spring semesters)
• Enrolling in 1 independent study course with your thesis advisor: ANTH 1970. This course is normally taken in the student’s final semester and supervised by the student’s thesis advisor. Students may opt to take two semesters of ANTH 1970 (fall and spring) alongside ANTH 1930, especially if recommended by their advisor. These courses may be taken for a grade or S/NC. In cases in which the student has begun early research, there is the option of taking ANTH 1970 in the spring of the junior year. These courses are in addition to the nine courses in ANTH required for the concentration.
• Regular meetings with the faculty advisor & drafts turned in at established intervals during the year.
• If your research involves ethnographic fieldwork, determine whether your project needs IRB approval. For more information, see Undergraduate Work Involving Human Subjects Research .
• Consulting with the primary thesis advisor to identify a second reader. The second reader should complement the advisor in some way. For example, if the advisor’s specialty covers the subfield (medical anthropology, linguistic anthropology, archaeology, political anthropology, feminist anthropology), the second reader’s specialty may cover the geographical region of your interest, or vice versa. The second reader should be selected at the start of the seventh semester.
• Submission of final thesis to the thesis advisor, second reader, and Director of Undergraduate Studies no later than April 15 for May graduates and November 15 for December graduates.
• Presentation of the thesis in the Honors Theses Symposium in the Anthropology department. Generally, the student prepares a fifteen-minute presentation that summarizes the topic, sources, methods, and conclusions of the thesis. After the presentation there is time for questions and comments from the audience.

All honors theses must be based on original research and advance an argument. The thesis must be more than a report on existing scholarship. It must advance an original argument or analysis, either by presenting new sources or data or by bringing a new interpretation to bear on known sources.

That research might involve:

• Ethnographic fieldwork.
• Archaeological or biological anthropological laboratory work.
• Critical analysis of data and arguments presented in published sources.

The thesis may take a variety of forms. The candidate and primary advisor should decide on the format at least two semesters in advance of the thesis completion (typically September of the candidate’s graduating year). Once the candidate and primary advisor settle on a format, the Director of Undergraduate Research should be contacted for final approval.

Possible thesis formats include:

• A traditional thesis format, approximately 12,000 – 17,000 words (50-70 pages) in length.
• A paper prepared in the format of a journal article, approximately 40 pages in length.
• A policy report (aimed at a particular organization) based on original research (e.g. a report for a university committee addressing sexual assault on campuses after substantial research devoted to understanding and analyzing the phenomenon).
• A public facing exhibition based on original research (to be evaluated based on content and curation).
• A website based on original research that seeks to make such research publicly available (to be evaluated based on content and success of design).
• Audio-visual material or film (best for those with prior film experience, to be evaluated based on content, analysis, and success of film execution).

All written material should adhere to the following format and citation requirements, unless an article is being prepared for submission to a journal, in which case that journal’s format may be used:

• Times New Roman (or a close equivalent), 12-point font
• One-inch margins
• Double spaced text
• American Anthropological Association (AAA) citation style ( Chicago Manual of Style , 17th edition )
• Anthropological archaeologists may substitute the American Antiquity style
• Deliver a complete draft of the thesis to the primary advisor and secondary reader at least one month in advance of the deadline (generally, immediately before or after spring break).
• Deliver a final draft of the thesis to the primary advisor, secondary reader, and DUR by the appointed deadline.
• The primary advisor will determine the grades for ANTH 1970. The final determination of Honors will be made by the faculty committee in consultation with the DUR.

All students who satisfactorily complete ANTH 1970 will receive course credit for their thesis work. In order to receive Honors in anthropology, however, several additional criteria must be met. Upon submission of the thesis, the student must:

• Have remained in good academic standing throughout the academic year.
• Have had no violations of the academic code of conduct during honors candidacy.
• Have completed all requirements for the concentration.
• Have produced a thesis that meets the expectations for honors work established by the anthropology department.

Two honors students from the Class of 2021 share some advice on thesis writing here  

If a student has a viable research project and the support of a faculty member, but does not meet the eligibility for pursuing honors, the student may write a senior thesis in anthropology, with the approval of two faculty members. A senior thesis writer will also be expected to take the thesis workshop and independent study and has the option to present his or her work at the end of year symposium. Senior Theses generally follow all of the requirements and guidelines of the Honors Thesis, although with a later deadline for the thesis proposal (start of the seventh semester).

As with an Honors Thesis, the Senior Thesis must be more than a synthesis of or report on existing scholarship. It must advance an original argument or analysis, either by presenting new sources or data or by bringing a new interpretation to bear on known sources.

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