Enrique Said:

What are considered "academic sources" online?

We Answered:

Usually, they would be sources from websites that have reputable information; places like:
1) government sites (chamber of commerce, Housing and Urban Development)
2) educational sites (schools, colleges)
3) academic sites (info. from sites put on by colleges or health centers or history organizations like NAACP, etc.)

My daughter's community college does NOT accept Wikipedia as an academic website, just so you know. You might look at the bottom of the Wikipedia page, though, for the original references, and those would give you the original references, which would probably be more valid.

Good luck!

Herman Said:

Do you consider Wikipedia as a creditable resource to use in writing an academic paper?

We Answered:

An expansive and systematic study of all of the edits made for one calendar quarter (late 2007) on Wikipedia's 100 articles about the hundred U.S. senators showed that the content in those articles was deliberately misleading, misinformed, or defamatory about 6.8% of the time. Some would say that's "not bad", others would say it's "not good".

I don't believe any encyclopedia would ever be 100% perfect, and surely no encyclopedia matches Wikipedia's breadth of coverage. However, a 6.8% inaccuracy rate is nothing for the Wikipedia project to be proud of.

Another incident is instructive. The Wikipedia article about Jackson, Michigan stated that Abraham Lincoln was in attendance at the first Republican Party nominating convention. This was false. The only city that Lincoln ever visited in Michigan was Kalamazoo, and it had nothing to do with the state nominating convention in Jackson. This error was present within Wikipedia for 601 days.

An older university study of Wikipedia's "damaged views" rate suggested that Wikipedia is getting progressively more and more damaged over time. Below, I will give you links to all of these sources.

I think that people who will go to Wikipedia for information, and ONLY to Wikipedia for information are selling short their educational opportunity. Take advantage of the many, diverse resources that are available for research -- both online and off-line.

One of my favorites lately is Google Books. You can type in any search term, then get a truckload of books that discuss that topic -- with many of the books "readable", at least the few pages around your specific search term or phrase. Check it out:

http://books.google.com/

P.S. Anyone who cite that bogus "Nature" study comparing Wikipedia to Britannica should wake up and read this:
http://www.roughtype.com/archives/2006/0…

The so-called "study" was rigged from the get-go to favor Wikipedia, and Wikipedia STILL came up 32% short.

Paula Said:

I Need to Learn Academic Writing/Academic Research - I'm International Student.?

We Answered:

The courses listed W131 and W231 (take both, in that order) listed at the link below would teach those skills. Note that W131 is online but W231 is correspondence.

Duane Said:

how can i use my online library to finding credible resources to support my academic writing?

We Answered:

Are you asking if you can use your local library online to find resources? They may have some resources, or they will also have inter-library loan. If you are in school, your college or university library will have what you need or be able to guide you. Even going to a local university library is a way to do research. You may need to make copies or there are thousands of online periodicals. If you use a general website, make sure that the information is from a credible source, with bibliography and citations, not just opinion or outdated information.

Marvin Said:

Can you suggest me some academic websites about persecution of the early christians ?

We Answered:

Anyone who put up such information on an official academic website would be sued, fined, thrown in jail or killed. The world hates Christianity this much.

Leroy Said:

Do you know of any academic/critical writing regarding online poker?

We Answered:

Victoria Coren is the only person I know who writes about poker. Although she's not an academic, the subject is one she knows and there are many articles at the link below -

Oh, look, here's a reference to an academic writing about online poker - "Professor of Gambling Studies" no less!

Oh, and here's another British academic - don't know if it's much use but it's got some references.