Tag Archives: Google

Blackouts and stuff

18 Wednesday Jan 2012

Posted by in Musings

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Everyone today is talking about the Wikipedia blackout. Oddly enough, it seems as if Wikipedia is the only one really being talked about of all the many many internet sites that have declared support for the anti-SOPA/PIPA protest by ‘going dark’ for 24 hours. At least here in the UK.

I am not going to go into the intricacies of the two US bills that are proposed to ‘stop’ online piracy. I am not sure I really have the legal nounce to fully understand the implications of two complicated bills that are being proposed in an entirely different legal system to my own and there are many out there who are better qualified (or at least think they are) to discuss it in a more intellectual manner. I am concerned about both internet piracy and laws that appear to endorse censorship but I don’t feel as if I can make any public or definitive statement on the issue other than I beleive there is a need for better policing of the internet but that I am not convinced SOPA or PIPA are the way to achieve this.

What I am going to talk about, however, is articles like this one which throw out hyperbole about students ‘panicking’ over the blackout. I don’t know about any panic. My students yesterday seemed quite unaware of the need to panic and did not seem worried over the fact that they may not be able to get hold of any facts whatsoever from the internet today because Wikipedia is down. Maybe it is because of the way I have been encouraging decent internet research in my teaching? Or maybe not as I haven’t really had them as students that long. Maybe they are just more sensible than the ones who are reported as ‘panicking’? Or maybe the panic is merely a creation of the media based on extrapolation?

Fact is that there are other sites for research than Wikipedia and yet, according to research (Becta, 2008*; Mitchell, 2008 p112**) students mostly only use Wikipedia, BBC Bitesize and Google for their research. While these sites are fairly comprehensive, they are not the entire internet and research that is limited to only a few sites, like Wikipedia, is likely to be flawed in a number of ways. To teachers, Wikipedia is often seen as ‘the lazy option’ for students. It is very easy to get information using it, much easier than many other sites, and it does tend to come up first in any google search (which may be why many students use it). The main problem teachers have with the site is the open editing option. Now, yes, I am aware that there are quite careful peer review checks in place whereby information needs to be referenced before it is accepted and so on. This prevents a certain amout of inaccuracy and downright lying and bias. However, there is still a risk that these are still going to be present and, to the average layman in any field of study, there is no real way of telling if the information is to be trusted. This is why, in any internet search, I always advocate the checking of multiple sites – chasing references from Wikipedia to check their accuracy, actively looking for sites which contradict the information, comparing sites for their reliability and considering factors such as political, religious and social bias before you commit to any one view. It is really nothing more than an extension of what researchers have done for years – just in libraries and conference halls rather than internet sites and webforums. One thing I always encourage among higher ability students and those in University or college is to look for specialist search engines for their subject areas. For example, the National Library of Medicine has a searchable database of medical and biomedical science journals and there are others for other subjects. University libraries are often helpful in this regard. These sites provide a more focussed, higher level search than Google and access to articles which can be read as pdfs on screen (and even printed out) for free (in some cases – many of them do charge to read the full article but you can still access an abstract).

So, yes, I am using the perfectly justified blackout of Wikipedia today to highlight something other than SOPA and PIPA. I am bandwagoning on this issue in order to point out another issue – the lazy research methods of our students. I am hoping that, instead of panicking as the media seems to beleive they are doing, students worldwide are now thinking of ways to do without the useful and easy Wikipedia site and considering more grass roots style research. They may, gods forbid, even consider maybe, possibly, reading an actual book or journal to get the information they need***. Then, when Wikipedia does come back online, they might have a few more options for finding out information and checking the veracity of that information.

And look, I have provided actual references and stuff as if this were a proper essay and not just some random blurbages from my mind. One of them is not even available on the internet 🙂

*Becta (2008) How do boys and girls differ in their use of ICT? Becta (Coventry) http://www.becta.org.uk

**Mitchell R (2008) Using ICT in teaching and learning science In Harlen W (ed) (2008) ASE Guide to Primary Science The Association for Science Education (Hatfield)

*** Does this make me sound like a Luddite? Well, I am expected by professional teaching ethics to actively support looking at proper peer reviewed and checked books and journals as well as using the internet. You can use the internet to check these too, you know…

[Guest Post] 5 Ways of Getting Good Information Cheaply

30 Wednesday Nov 2011

Posted by in Guest posts, Reaearch

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This guest blog comes to us courtesy of Dan Clarke, who writes blog articles on how to do public speaking among other things. Here he talks about something which is close to my heart as a former scientist, a teacher and a writer – research and how to do it effectively without resorting to Wikipedia all the time.
5 Ways of Getting Good Information Cheaply
One big problem some writers have, is finding all the necessary details to make their story work. Most writers, I hope, have never been arrested, many can’t explain the newest computer programs in any great detail, and nuclear physics is beyond most peoples general retinue of skills.
So how can writers find the information for their stories or articles, without spending lots of money, taking a college course, or doing something illegal?
It’s actually fairly easy, if you use any of these 5 methods.
  1. Interview People
    Most people like talking about themselves, their jobs or their hobbies. When you need to know how something works, how a job gets done, or an interesting fact, look around your community and find people who can help.
    You’re planning a romance story involving firemen? Ask the fire department, if you can have an hour long tour and ask firemen how they do their jobs, what’s the most dangerous thing they’ve experienced and anything else you can think of.
    You want to learn about hacking into a computer for a mystery, go to the local high school or better yet, college or computer security firm, and ask for a basic idea of how to do it, along with any computer jargon you’ll need. They probably won’t give you step by step instructions, but it will be enough general information for most readers.
  2. Visit Museums, Schools, and Libraries
    If there is a museum nearby, consider visiting and asking the curators some questions. Museums are full of interesting facts and people that generally enjoy talking about them. When you have to know about ancient and not so ancient history, or technology and animals, call up the museum and ask if you can talk with an expert.
    Colleges and universities are like museums, although actually meeting the professors can be a bit harder. Either phone or send an email to the office that you need, be it history, sciences, math, etc, and politely ask if you could meet a professor. Be sure to explain what you need, and if its by email, provide a list of questions you will be asking.
    Reference libraries are another great resource, that are sadly underused. Most large libraries and all university libraries have reference librarians. These people, or computer systems in cheaper libraries, and point you in the right direction for various facts and statistics. All you have to do is ask.
  3. Volunteer, Learn By Doing
    If you live in a city or even a small town, you can learn a lot of useful things for your book by volunteering. You may just do it for a week, or you could do it on a full time basis, either way first hand experience can be vital to making a book seem real.
    If you want to know how an election is run, volunteer with a local political party you support, or at least like. You can watch how they plan meetings, get a bit of an insiders view of what is happening and its a good way to make new contacts.
    Want to know what its like to be homeless or a runaway, volunteer at a food bank or safe house. You can do some good for your community and learn how people survive on the street.
    For stories about actors, join a local acting group, even if you have no acting abilities you can see things from behind the scenes as you work the lights, make costumes or other things.
  4. Read Blogs and Forums
    Many people will post on blogs and forums about their trails and experiences at work, hobbies and life. If you spend a few days going over the various blogs and forums related to what you’re researching, you can find lots of useful information.
    Web forums can be even better than blogs, as you can ask questions directly, and often recieve useful answers.
    The important thing is to not just focus on one or two forums or blogs. You could easily get bad information, you need to back check and confirm through other forums, blogs and resources to make sure you have the right info. But simply knowing what to ask after reading a blog, is better than flailing around blindly.
  5. Table Top Role Playing Games
    Bear with me here.
    I’m a role player, I love table top games, and own many RPG books. Some of them, many of them actually, are inaccurate, unscientific and try for cool rather than accuracy.
    However there are a few RPG companies that focus on realism. Science fiction, military, and horror RPG companies often have a few books that deal with the realities of various era’s, sciences, tactics and groups.
    More importantly its done in an easy to read manner, that’s easily understood by laymen. So if you’re too shy, or unable to talk to experts, and don’t want to pay lots of money on thick reference books, buying a 10 or 20 dollar RPG book, that focuses on realism can be the answer.
If you’ve searched the internet, looked through the books on your shelves, and mined your family members for information, remember there are other sources of information. Get out and talk to people, do interviews, join groups and look in unexpected sources. Don’t rely entirely on easy research via Wikipedia and Google (use them at first then expand), do some footwork and get what you need.
Biography
Dan Clarke, is a teacher, freelance writer and occasional public speaker in Nanjing, with five years experience at finding information and faking being an expert. He currently blogs at Speaking in Public, providing information on public speaking from the very first step to the last.