If not, be sure to pick something that interests you. If you need ideas, talk to other people, browse through magazines, think about what is important to you in your life now or about something you have always wanted to know more about. Try not to choose a subject so large you can't focus your research, or so small that you won't be able to find enough information to inform yourself. Use brainstorming or clustering techniques to generate ideas. Read an encyclopedia article on your topic.
Special encyclopedias exist in most major subject areas.
This is a great way to get an overview of the topic and identify important concepts, terms, names, of people, time periods, geographic areas, and connected events that you may not be aware of. Do the Encyclopedia exercise in this chapter. Write your topic down in a concise form that expresses exactly what you want to research. This should include the aspects of your topic on which you will concentrate. Write down everything you already know about your topic.