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In my English class we have to write a 7-9 page, double spaced research paper. Everyone in my class picked controversial topics related to sports or drugs. I decided to do mine on Synodontis. The teacher said it would be easier to write about a controversial topic, but I didn't want to. I am planning on writing about the different species, where they are found in the wild, what conditions they are found in, etc. I can only use databases as internet sources. I can use books and do interviews. Should I be able to find enough information to be able to write this paper? Does anyone have any interesting facts on synodontis? My teacher said I should find something about synodontis that is different from other fish, something unique about them to start the paper with. Anyone have any ideas?

Well, some have a tendency to swim upside down most of the time (this is not unique to Synodontis, of course), and they stridulate (make chirping/squeaking noises) in defense (again, not unique to synos...many catfish stridulate).

Tell him/her about the feathered barbels of Synos. That's a pretty unique feature. And to keep it that way, don't tell him/her some Doradids (Hassar, Doras, Opsodoras) have them too .

Some are also venomous, but again not unique.

When I was 13 I did my english speaking project (a five minute speech) on the Doradidae.

I have never seen 25 people so bored in my life. To be honest they [the doradids] could have spoken 4 different languages and played table tennis for they [my audience] cared.

So, if you want your teacher to remain awake after page 2, then I suggest you choose a different topic, but if you want to learn lots about synos, go for it!

An alternative topic could be about whether it's ethically right to keep tankbuster fish like red-tailed catfish in the home aquaria. There's loads discussion in the forum.

This would be a bit more controversial, and maybe your teacher may feel more involved, as everyone has an opinion on animal welfare.

On the original context: "Different from other fish" is obviously a matter of "Each of these things are not uniquely different on their own, but no other fish has X, Y and Z at the same time" - this is how a genus is defined, it's different from other genera in one or more ways. And the teacher didn't say "What makes them different from ALL other fish", it may be sufficient to tell what is different from MOST other fish - like the common fish found in the US for instance.

Of course, this could be very technical differences, such as "The difference between Brochis and Corydoras is that Brochis have more than 10 rays in the dorsal fin, whilst the Corydoras have 6 or 7" or "Genus X has 42-56 teeth on their gill-rakers, whilst genys Y has always more than 60" or "The proportion between the size of the eye and the length of the head is bigger than 20% on this genus, whilst other genera in the family have a proportion that is less than 18%".

Those sort of details bore most people to death. We might find them fascinating, and scientists will NEED to identify consistently these differences to define a genus or specie - whether the scientist finds them interesting or boring doesn't really matter...

I agree with racoll too, it's easy to bore everyone to death with a subject you like a lot - if the audience isn't into the subject and you just go on and on about it. 8 pages, even double-spaced, is quite a bit of text. Making it "controversial" is going to make it more interesting because the reader has a feeling about it, whether it's good or bad doesn't really matter much.

Best of luck.

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Mats

I would think the point is to show your ability to research a topic, collate the data you have researched and present it in a concise and clear manner. The actual content is pretty much irrelivant, it is a learning situation after all. I say you may as well learn something new about a topic YOU are interested in.

As a difference to other fish you could point out S.multipunctatus as a coockoo(spelling?) and you could describe Lake Tanganjika and its features. Which is very good researchable topic as the rift valley and the east african graben is very well documented. Wouldnt be much more interesting than a technical fishpaper though.

If you want a controversial topic go with Dying(Atificial Color not killing)Fish and Cross Breeding for specific genetic make up. I'm sure there is quite a few topics in the forums on that stuff.

Hi

Try including Eygptology, within synodontis. There are scenes engraved in temples/pyramids (not sure which) showing Synodontis 'sp'
Maybe you could use this as a starting point in arguements re-Syno's, something like 'Early records show'
If you contact Danny Blundell e-mail
treasurer@catfishstudygroup.org

He has some photographs of these carvings, and maybe could tell you more about this and allow you to use the photo's.I am sure he would be willing to help you.

Are you supposed to do a paper on something controversial or argumentative? Make sure to follow the instructions for the term paper. If you do need to include controversy in your paper, there's plenty to be had! A lot of people think that "Catfish" is one species of fish that live in the Mississippi River and is farmed for food. Many people are quite surprised to see just how many thousands of Catfish there are. Your teacher may be expecting a paper on this kind of Catfish.

Are you any further along then when you started? Are you overwhelmed? Underwhelmed?
Amanda