Citation

We love the fact that billions of records from around the world are now available to us in one form or another, to access with our device of choice. That convenience comes with an inconvenience: citing the stuff can be so doggoned confusing.

For us to simply attach a document to a person's profile, without any discussion, is to send that document out into the world, naked of all identification or explanation that is needed to make a decent claim. ...

We’re studying Benjamin S. Anybody. We find his photograph online. Well, we find a photograph that is said to be him. What do we do now?

15 March 2015 When we extract a “fact” from a source and we cite that source in our research notes, we feel so virtuous, don’t we? Our inner self reaches out and pats us on the back. “Atta girl! Way to go! Keep up this good stuff!” Truth it, citing sources doesn’t mean ...

6 March 2015 EE user Simon (aka “Nomis”) poses a question that puzzles many researchers. When we cite a source that cites its own source, we introduce that second layer of our citation with the word "citing." But, Simon asks, what exactly should come after that? What details need to be included? ...

1 January 2015 It's a new year. You've made your resolutions, right? Of course, No. 1 is, "I shall—from this day forward and forevermore—provide complete and accurate documentation for all my research." Wonderful! But what, exactly, does this call for? ...