Transcript Criteria for Evaluating an Informational Resource in Print and

Finishing the Puzzle of Research
Up the Research Ladder…
Write your Paper and Cite your Sources
Read & Evaluate the Information
Search the World Wide Web
Search for Newspaper Articles (Database)
Search for Periodical Articles (Database)
Search for Books (Catalog)
Develop a Search Strategy
Brainstorm for Keywords
Select Research Topic
Timeframe for Info
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Books
Articles
Newspapers
Web Pages
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Once
Quarterly – Weekly
Daily – Multiple Ed.
Hourly – Anytime
Books
Newspapers
Periodicals
Years Old
Databases
Internet
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1000
2000
3000
4000
Strengths: Web vs. Library
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Web
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Current events and
news
Statistics and Other
Information by gov’t
Pop Culture
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TV
Movies
Music
Opinion
Information about
Organizations &
Groups
Library
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Research Based Books
& Articles
Works Cited/
Bibliographies
Full-text Resources
Authoritative & Peerreviewed Materials
Information about
People & Cultures
Easier to Search
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Library Catalog
Databases
http://searchenginewatch.com
 Web searching tips
 Search engine listings
 Search engine ratings (which is rated
better?)
 Tutorials
 News
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Buying Your Way In (paid listings in search engines)
Fun Stuff
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Sprechen Sie Search Engines?
Directory
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Electronic Yellow
Pages
Organized into
categories
Point & click
searching
Search Engine
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Simply searches
Prominent search
box
Google voted “Most
Outstanding Search
Engine” 4 times
Lycos, the oldest
search engine on
the web (‘94)
Metasearch Engine
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Utilize search engines
and directories to
compile comprehensive
results
“one-stop” searching
Dogpile voted “Best
Meta Search Engine”
Vivísimo voted “Best
Meta Search Engine”
(’02)
Mamma, the oldest
metasearch engine on
the web (’96)
Specialty Web Tools
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Kartoo, a visual
search tool
Ditto, an image
search engine
Radio-Locator, a
audio/radio station
search engine
KidsClick!, a kids
friendly search tool
Government Web Tools
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USAGov, (formerly
FirstGov) director of
federal gov’t websites
SoonerSearch, a portal
to Oklahoma gov’t
websites
Unclesam, a version of
Google that searches
only gov’t websites
Infomine, access to
university level research
on gov’t info
When Research Goes Wrong!
Jayson Blair/NYT Plagiarism
Dan Rather/False Report on Bush
Photoshoping Martha’s Head Hwang Woo-suk/Human Cloned?
Step 1: Authority
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Books & Articles
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Who is responsible
for content?
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Author(s)?
Editor(s)?
Publisher
Credentials offered?
Newspapers
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Writer(s)
Editor(s)
Columnist(s)
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Web Pages
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Who is responsible
for content?
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Webmaster?
Web team?
Organization?
Institution?
Company?
Domain Names
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Which one is right?
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www.whitehouse.com
www.whitehouse.gov
www.whitehouse.net
www.whitehouse.org
Whois.net
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www.whois.net
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.gov
.org
.mil
.com
.edu
.net
.int
Indicates a
reliable
domain
Step 2: Accuracy
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Books & Articles
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Can the information
be verified?
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Bibliography
Works Cited
Peer-reviewed
(journals only)
Newspapers
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Interviews
Eyewitness Accounts
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Web Pages
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Can the information
be verified?
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Links to credible sites
Copyright
Works Cited
Fact check with a
printed source
Step 3: Objectivity
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Books & Articles
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Biased or Objective?
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Persuasion/Emotion
Author’s Point of
View
Newspapers
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Subscriptions ($)
Advertising ($)
Owners
CJR review
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Web Pages
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Biased or Objective?
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Opinion/Fan sites
Sponsoring
Organization
Agendas
Political Propaganda
Web hosting
Step 4: Currency
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Books & Articles
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When was it published?
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Copyright date
Important based upon
subject
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Science
Social Science
Allied Health
Education
Pharmacy
Computer Science
Newspapers published
daily
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Web Pages
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When was it created and
last updated?
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Well maintained web
sites have an indication
when it was last
updated or modified
Accessibility
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Dead links
Stability
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Changes URLs
frequently
Remember to Evaluate!
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Authority
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Accuracy
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Can the information be verified?
Check the facts!
Objectivity
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Who created it? Who is responsible?
What credentials do they hold? What makes them
qualified to discuss the topic?
How is the information being presented?
Is it objective or biased? What’s the point of view?
Currency (important based on subject)
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When was it published?
When was it last updated?
WORK IN PROGRESS
Writing Your Paper
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Writing Center
Located in the basement of the library
 Call for appointment #774-7083
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MLA Style
Style Sheets
 MLA Handbook at Reference & Circulation
Desk
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Academic Research
This is just the beginning…
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Subject searching; specialized—medical, education &
psychology
Proximity operators
Limiters—publication type, audience, research groups,
methodology
Clustering
Field Codes
Searching w/ indexes, dictionaries & thesauri
Scope Notes
Stopwords
Nesting