Finding and Recording Your Sources

Evaluating Possible Sources The following questions will help you to evaluate a source: Is the source authoritative? An authoritative source is one that can be relied upon to provide accurate information. Is the source unbiased? An unbiased source is one whose author lacks any prejudices that might make his or her work unreliable. For example, an article claiming that there is no relationship between smoking and disease would probably be biased if written by someone who works for a tobacco company.

Evaluating Possible Sources Is the source up to date? For some topics, such as ones associated with current events or with new technology, up-to-date sources are essential, so check the date on the copy-right page of your source. For other topics, the copyright date may be less important or not important at all. Is the written work at an appropriate level? Materials that are written for children are usually simplified and may be misleading. Other materials are so technical that they can be understood only after years of study.

Preparing Bibliography Cards Every time you find a source that may be useful for your research report, you need to prepare a bibliography card for it. All of your bibliography cards, taken together, make up your working bibliography. A bibliography card serves three purposes. First, it enables you to find the source again. Second, it enables you to prepare documentation for you paper. Third, it enables you to prepare the Works Cited list that will appear at the end of your report.

Bibliography Cards A bibliography card contains the following… A bibliographic entry gives essential information about a source, such as its author, its title and the place and date of its publication. The first line of the bibliographic entry begins in the upper left-hand part of the card. Additional lines are indented a few spaces. A source note tells where you found the source. A source number is written in the upper right-hand corner of the card and circled. Assign a different number to each source you find. You will use this number to refer to the source on note cards containing material from that source. A catalog number. If the source comes from a library, you should write that number in the lower right-hand corner of the card. This number can help you find that source again.

Marin, Albert. 1812, the War Nobody Won. New York: University Press, 1985. Laing Media Center 782.32 EU