I have substantially altered and expanded Rick's original text. Most of the academic work on Wikipedia has focused on making it more like a scholarly reference work through the interventions of undergraduate and graduate students, librarians, and disciplinary faculty.Р”Р„cknowledgement: This page was inspired by Rick Lezenby, one of the Social Sciences librarians who affiliates with Temple University Libraries. Move on from Wikipedia to edited, scholarly encyclopedias and other reference works.Р”Р„n interesting compromise between traditional encyclopedias and Wikipedia is Citizendium, a project that continues to limp along but has unfortunately not gained much traction. In order to be safe, think of Wikipedia as the first stop on a research road trip. Prohibitions of this nature, fairly uncommon nowadays, typically result from the volunteer approach to editing taken by Wikipedia, which can be unreliable. But some faculty go further, advising students not to consult Wikipedia as a background source. Articles are sometimes too detailed, making it difficult for uninitiated readers to identify important themes.Р”Р„s with any other reference work, most faculty instruct students not to cite Wikipedia. Wikipedia articles often reflect the enthusiasm of their anonymous author(s) for the subject. Wikipedia, of course, can be very useful as a starting point for many topics, especially obscure ones or those with passing or popular interest. Wikipediais ' written collaboratively by volunteers from all around the world' and relies on the collective wisdom of its volunteers to get the facts right and to balance the opinions expressed. The 'conversation' among literary scholars and historians-or academics in any other discipline for that matter-does not occur within the pages or pixels of encyclopedia articles. Encyclopedias are best suited to providing background information rather than in-depth analysis or novel perspective. The reason for this prohibition has to do with the function of reference works. Undergraduates are rarely permitted to cite encyclopedia articles. sorts of useful things, from carving a duck to the best.

Articles are edited for length, the goal being to provide students (and other researchers) with sufficient background information without overwhelming them. edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, remarked he felt very like a chap who has been ordered. Many articles provide references to books and other sources about the topic covered.

The articles in Britannica are written by authors both identifiable and credible. It fits the ideal purpose of a reference work as a place to get started, or to refer back to as you read and write. The Encyclopedia Britannica contains carefully edited articles on all major topics. But what are the differences between Wikipedia and the traditional, scholarly reference works listed and described on the Reference Shelf tab of this guide? In this box I flesh out some of those differences (and similarities) within the context of one of the greatest reference works of all time, Encyclopedia Britannica. Almost every student, faculty member, and librarian knows from experience how valuable Wikipedia can actually be when looking for quick background information about almost any topic.

Best encyclopedia britannica edition