IA History (HL) IA/HI Topic Help

[kylevanh]

Hey guys!

I need help narrowing down/finalizing my idea for this mock HI due soon. We have to do something on the Vietnam War and I want to do something on Chemical Warfare/ Operation Ranch Hand. My original idea was this:

To what extent did Operation Ranch hand completely alter the lives of the Vietnamese Population?

Then I realized it was an already answered question as it also leaves little room for interpretation/analysis.

I then came up with a second:

To what extent was Operation Ranch Hand an informed and justified decision based on its consequences to the Vietnamese population?

I favor this question more because i think that it requires a bit more analysis than the original; however, I am not completely sure if I can find ample information on it (such as US policy papers etc).

Does anybody have any sort of ideas how to approach/manipulate this topic on Chemical Warfare in Vietnam to make it a successful HI topic? If no, can someone please help me find another aspect of the war to study?

I'm at a loss!

Thank you all

[Arrowhead]

To what extent was Operation Ranch Hand an informed and justified decision based on its consequences to the Vietnamese population?

Since you've already stated that the "consequences" in question is a settled question, the ideal way of narrowing down your topic would be to focus on one particular consequence and then on a particular part of the "population," so: to what extent...based on its consequence[ on the economic ruination] to the Vietnamese [youth] population [settled in a village in the Mekong Delta]?"

Something along those lines would narrow things quite well I would say.

Best of luck!