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ENVS 243: Energy

Evaluating Web Sites

The internet has enabled anyone to 'publish' material and information. This makes it hazardous for researchers to find reliable information. Sites with evident biases are prevalent on the web, and this makes it often difficult to discern a web source's reliability. Good strategies for using the web for research are:

  • Favor sites produced or hosted by reputable research laboratories or government agencies
  • Look for the author(s) of a site and investigate the author(s) credentials
  • Try to determine a site's purpose; for instance, a site may have a political bias