Research

Plagiarism and Fabrication Plagiarism is the inclusion of someone else’s words, ideas or data as one’s own work. If you submit ideas that are not your own, you must submit the source of that information. This is not just for quotes, but for paraphrasing and summarizing as well. If words are used verbatim, you put quotes around the statement. Examples:  Whenever one quotes another person’s actual words without citing  Whenever one paraphrases another person’s idea, opinion, or theory  Whenever one borrows facts, statistics, or other illustrative materials – unless the information is common knowledge. o Ex: Pearl Harbor was attacked on December 7, o Ex: Joe Shmo died in the Pearl Harbor attack.

Examples:  Citing information not taken from the source indicated  Listing sources in a bibliography that were not used  Inventing data or source information for research or other academic work  Submitting work that you did not do yourself Fabrication is the used of invented information or the falsification of research or other findings with the intent to deceive. Plagiarism examples: Plagiarism and Fabrication

Research Reading and Evaluating Sources

Reading Sources Critically:  Look for similarities and differences in the sources you read  Examine implications of what you read for the project – how will the source help you?  Be aware of unusual information  Note relevant sources used in the source you are reading  Avoid reading with psychological standards (egocentrism, sociocentrism, etc.)  Be aware of logical fallacies  Ask questions as you read – don’t just accept what the reading tells you

Primary vs. Secondary Sources: A primary source is an original work or evidence provided directly by an observer of an event  A primary source has not been tainted by the opinion of another person Examples:  Works of art or literature (poem, short story, novel, painting, musical recordings, etc.)  Personal writings (diaries, journals, memoirs, autobiographies)  Reports, photographs, films, audio recordings of an event  Physical artifacts associated with an event (the book gives an example of a weapon used in a crime scene) A secondary source is a source that comments on or interprets an event, using a primary source as evidence  A secondary source is okay to use, but remember that you are seeing a primary source/issue through the eyes of other people  To avoid problems with this tainted lens, consider what factors may have affected the author’s argument or analysis

Evaluating sources: Look at evidence to see if it is reasonable:  Is enough evidence offered?  Is the right kind of evidence offered? For example, does the author rely on different types of evidence or just one?  Is the evidence convincing to you? If not, your readers will probably not buy it either.  Is the source of evidence provided?  Avoid personal websites or blogs – tend to be very subjective sources

Evaluate the author: How knowledgeable is the author about the topic? What makes the author an “expert” on the topic? Who is the author affiliated with? What organization (if any) does the author belong to? How do the author’s biases affect the arguments, ideas, and information in the source?  Also consider the publication’s bias The date of publication – this is especially applicable if you are writing a report in the field of science Comprehensiveness – does the source provided a complete and balanced view of the topic? Also consider:

Research MLA Citations

How to Format Works Cited Page: *See handout for general rules Important things worth mentioning twice… Title your page Works Cited – Times New Roman size 12 Alphabetize by the first word listed in each citation (with the exception of a, an, and the). Every entry should end with a period (.)

How to Format Citations Based on Source Type: Book: One author Last, First M. Book. City Published: Publisher, Year Published. Print. Carley, Michael K. 1939: The Alliance That Never Was and the Coming of World War II. Chicago: Dee, Print.

How to Format Citations Based on Source Type: Book: More than one author Last, First M., and First Last. Book. City Published: Publisher, Year Published. Print. Carley, Michael K., and Jody Jones. 1939: The Alliance That Never Was and the Coming of World War II. Chicago: Dee, Print.

How to Format Citations Based on Source Type: Book: Chapter from an Edited Book Last, First M. Section/Chapter Title. Book/ Anthology. Ed. First M. Last. Edition. City Published: Publisher, Year Published. Page Range. Print. Melville, Herman. Hawthorne and His Mosses. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Ed. Nina Baym. 3 rd ed. New York: Norton, Print.

Website Last, First M. “Website Article.” Website. Publisher, Day Month Year. Web. Day Month Year. Friedland, Lois. “Top 10 Natural and Wildlife Adventure Travel Trips.” About.com. New York Times Company, 22 Sept Web. 25 Sept How to Format Citations Based on Source Type:

How to Format Citations Based on Source Type: Personal Interview Interviewee. Personal Interview. Day Month Year. Hesch, Kara. Personal Interview. 9 Dec

How to Format In-Text Citations: Your in-text citation should always include the first element of the citation of the Works Cited page. For example, if the first element listed for a source is the author, you will put the author and page number in the in-text citation: (Carley 30). There should be NO punctuation used here, and the period goes OUTSIDE of the parenthesis.

How to Format In-Text Citations: If no author is listed (common for websites), you go to the next element of the Works Cited page citation for that source. For a website, this would be the article title: (“Top 10 Natural and Wildlife Adventure Travel Trips”). NEVER put the URL in the in-text citation!

Research: Using Sources Properly

Using Direct Quotes:  Write down the EXACT quote and the page it appears on  You may want to quote when the statement strongly supports (or disagrees) with your idea  Use a quote when it enhances your paper and you don’t think your paraphrase could do it justice  Be sure to indicate it is a quote by using quotation marks o Also, be sure to introduce your quote o For example: As Smith states in her book Untitled, “……” (33).

Paraphrasing: Paraphrasing is restating a passage or statement in your own words Your research paper will include a great deal of paraphrasing – use it when a direct quote is not entirely necessary Points to remember when paraphrasing: Still need to cite when paraphrasing Paraphrasing too closely is plagiarism (for example, adding or changing words, including using a thesaurus to change a word) To avoid plagiarism, focus on key ideas in the passage

Paraphrasing: Practice Paraphrase the following paragraph: "The Antarctic is the vast source of cold on our planet, just as the sun is the source of our heat, and it exerts tremendous control on our climate," [Jacques] Cousteau told the camera. "The cold ocean water around Antarctica flows north to mix with warmer water from the tropics, and its upwellings help to cool both the surface water and our atmosphere. Yet the fragility of this regulating system is now threatened by human activity.“ From "Captain Cousteau," Audubon (May 1990):17.

The twenties were the years when drinking was against the law, and the law was a bad joke because everyone knew of a local bar where liquor could be had. They were the years when organized crime ruled the cities, and the police seemed powerless to do anything against it. Classical music was forgotten while jazz spread throughout the land, and men like Bix Beiderbecke, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie became the heroes of the young. The flapper was born in the twenties, and with her bobbed hair and short skirts, she symbolized, perhaps more than anyone or anything else, America's break with the past. From Kathleen Yancey, English 102 Supplemental Guide (1989): 25.

Summarizing: A summary is a brief statement of what a source says. You are taking a great deal of information and narrowing it down to a few sentences. This will be part of your annotation for your annotated bibliography. Practice: Write a brief summary of your favorite novel or movie. Be prepared to share with the class.