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Science Research Basics: Website Evaluation

Website Selection Reminders

Most websites are not going to provide the level of academic integrity required for scientific research. Even Google Scholar is not limited to articles that are written, edited, and fact-checked by subject experts. "Scholarly" sources most commonly refer to peer-reviewed publications that adhere to academic writing standards such as citation of sources. Academic peer review is a process in which works are vetted by experts in the field before being accepted for publication.

Try these sites for articles:

  • Google Scholar instead of Google! https://scholar.google.com/
    • some articles available without purchase
    • not all peer-reviewed
  • Public Library of Science(PLOS): open access scholarly articles
  • arXiv: curated research-sharing platform, covering physics, mathematics, computer science, quantitative biology, quantitative finance, statistics, electrical engineering and systems science, and economics.

Try these for topic ideas or for general background info:

Remember NOT to use: 

  • Wikipedia
  • General encyclopedias
  • Ask.com
  • Personal blogs
  • Opinion sites

Website Evaluation Checklist

pmwired.com

Currency

Authority                       

Accuracy

Relevance

Purpose

 

The Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue has some very helpful information on evaluating both print and Internet sources.