Alice. In School. - Evaluating Internet Sources - Sharing with JamesBennett

"The central work of life is interpretation."
--Proverb

Evaluating Internet Research Sources
Robert Harris - June 15, 2007

Here's just one of the many articles and book chapters I'm reading for this assignment....It's pretty long...

If you ever want to see more than this one let me know..but this one is pretty extensive...

Here are the parts I highlighted (electronically, of course as it's online...)

only some information is power: reliable information

note the difference between, "Allan Thornton, employee of the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Agency, says that a new ice age is near," and "The National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Agency said today that a new ice age is near." The employee is speaking for himself, whereas a statement in the name of NOAA represents the official position of NOAA

Metainformation can take many forms, but there are two basic types, summary and evaluative. 

Summary metainformation includes all the shortened forms of information, such as abstracts, content summaries, or even tables of contents. This type of metainformation gives us a quick glance at what a work is about and allows us to consider many different sources without having to go through them completely. 

Evaluative metainformation includes all the types that provide some judgment or analysis of content. This type includes recommendations, ratings, reviews, and commentaries. Even the search results order of pages from a search engine like Google represents a type of evaluative metainformation, since pages are ranked in part by the number of other pages linked to them (and hence "voting" for them in some sense).

be careful to note when the information you find was created, and then decide whether it is still of value (and how much value)

Many Web pages display today's date automatically, regardless of when the content on the page was created. If you see today's date on a page other than from a news site, be extra careful.

several indicators that may mean the source is inaccurate, either in whole or in part:

• No date on the document 

• Vague or sweeping generalizations 

• Old date on information known to change rapidly

• Very one sided view that does not acknowledge opposing views or respond to them 

Pretending that the opponent has wild, irrational ideas or arguments no one could accept is to commit the straw man fallacy

There is no such thing as pure objectivity...

Use your knowledge and experience to ask if the information is really likely, possible, or probable

The consistency test simply requires that the argument or information does not contradict itself. Sometimes when people spin falsehoods or distort the truth, inconsistencies or even contradictions show up. These are evidence of unreasonableness.

World view can be an evaluative test because some world views in some people cause quite a distortion in their view of reality or their world view permits them to fabricate evidence or falsify the positions of others. For some writers, political agendas take precedence over truth. If you are looking for truth, such sources are not the best.

Where did this information come from? What sources did the information creator use? Are the sources listed? Is there a bibliography or other documentation? Does the author provide contact information in case you wish to discuss an issue or request further clarification? What kind of support for the information is given? How does the writer know this? It is especially important for statistics to be documented. Otherwise, someone may be just making up numbers. Note that some information from corporate sites consists of descriptions of products, techniques, technologies, or processes with which the corporation is involved

See if other sources support this source. Corroboration or confirmability is an important test of truth.

find at least three sources that agree

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The CARS and CAFE charts at the bottom are more concise...

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Sooo, thanks for asking...I'd better get back to it...I have to finish a lot right now to stay ahead in the class...

I want to check out those beatles links you posted at some point today...Enjoy the day off today...