Web Searching & Evaluation of Information Jason Dupree Assistant Professor MLIS, University of Oklahoma BFA, Art Studio, Phillips University Head of Public.
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Web Searching & Evaluation of Information
Jason DupreeAssistant ProfessorMLIS, University of OklahomaBFA, Art Studio, Phillips University
Head of Public ServicesAl Harris Library jason.dupree@swosu.edu
Directory
• Electronic Yellow Pages
• Organized into categories
• Point & click searching
Search Engine
• Simply searches• Prominent search
box• Google voted
“Most Outstanding Search Engine” 4 times
• Lycos, the oldest search engine on the web (‘94)
Google Search
• PageRank (algorithm)– 500 million variables– 2 Billion Terms
• Bias?
• Popularity is a Proxy for Importance
Personalized Search
• Google’s algorithm will suggest “what is best for you” – based on past searches.
• It’s as if we looked up the same topic in an encyclopedia and each found different entries.
Personalized Search
• Find information that is most likely to reinforce your own worldview
• We begin to lose dissenting opinion/conflicting points of view
• Yet search seems neutral, objective, unbiased.
Personalized Search & the Internet
• Google is likely to direct you to material with which you already agree.
“a search for proof about climate change will turn up different results for an environmental activist than it would for an oil company executive.”
“democracy requires citizens to see things from one another’s point of view, but instead we’re more and more enclosed in our own bubbles…offered parallel but separate universes.”
Metasearch Engine
• Utilize search engines and directories to compile comprehensive results
• “one-stop” searching
• Dogpile voted “Best Metasearch Engine”
• Mamma, the oldest metasearch engine on the web (’96)
Government Web Tools
• USAGov, (formerly FirstGov) director of federal gov’t websites
• SoonerSearch, a portal to Oklahoma gov’t websites
• Infomine, access to university level research on gov’t info
Wikipedia
• No Original Research• NPOV (Neutral point of view)• No owners, multiple anonymous
authors• Anyone with Internet access can
create or edit an entry…Anyone
Wikipedia
• Contributors: male, English speaking, denizens of the Internet.
• Problem is not that it disregards the facts, but that it elevates them above all else.
• Most of the content is discussion/ history of edits & not the entries themselves.
Wikipedia
• Participation maps popular, not academic concerns
• It is a working community…but is it a good historical resource?
• Lack of Critical Analysis• Problematic as a sole source of
information • Like all encyclopedias…great place to
start, terrible place to stop. • Benefit may be to its active
participants, not its readers.
Strengths: Web vs. Library
• Web– Current events and
news– Statistics and Other
Information by Gov.’t
– Full-text Resources (expired copyright)
– Pop Culture• TV• Movies• Music
– Opinion– Information about
Organizations & Groups
• Library– Research Based
Books & Articles– Works Cited/
Bibliographies– Full-text Resources– Authoritative &
Peer-reviewed Materials
– Information about People & Cultures
– Easier to Search• Library Catalog• Databases
Surface Web
Ever wonder what you might be missing?
Google2.7 billion searches per month
Indexes a trillion web pagesIndexes 16% of the Surface Web
Indexes 0.03% of the entireWorld Wide Web
Deep Web (or Hidden Web)
NO SEARCH ENGINES ALLOWED
54% of DWis databases
DW is 500 timeslarger than SW
And a 1,000 times
higher in quality too
Web Domains
• Which one is right?– www.whitehouse.co
m– www.whitehouse.go
v– www.whitehouse.ne
t– www.whitehouse.or
g• Whois.net
– www.whois.net – allows you to conduct detective work on URLs
• .gov• .org• .mil• .com• .edu• .net• .int
Indicates a reliable domain
Web Domain Usage
• Domain name appropriate for the content ?
• Restricted: .edu, .gov, .mil, a few country codes (.ca)
• Unrestricted: .com, .org, .net, most country codes (.us, .uk)
When Research Goes Wrong!
Jayson Blair/NYT Plagiarism Dan Rather/False Report on Bush
Photoshoping Martha’s Head Hwang Woo-suk/Human Cloned?
Newspaper
Magazine
Journal
Television
Step 1: Authority
• Books & Articles– Who is
responsible for content?• Author(s)?• Editor(s)?• Publisher• Credentials
offered?
• Newspapers• Writer(s)• Editor(s)• Columnist(s)
• Web Pages– Who is
responsible for content?• Webmaster?• Web team?• Organization?• Institution?• Company?
Step 1: Authority
• Web Pages–
Credentials/Qualifications/Reputation– Who is responsible for content?
• Is it a commercial site?• Is it a government site?• Is it an education site?
Step 1: Authority: Questions
1. Who is responsible for the content? Domain name? What does this indicate?
2. If you don't recognize the name, or there is no name, what type of information is given about the contact information? - Position? - Organizational affiliation? - E-mail address? - Biographical information?
Step 2: Accuracy
• Books & Articles– Can the
information be verified?• Bibliography• Works Cited• Peer-reviewed
(journals only)
• Newspapers• Interviews• Eyewitness
Accounts
• Web Pages– Can the
information be verified?• Links to credible
sites• Copyright• Works Cited• Fact check with a
printed source
Step 2: Accuracy
• Web Pages– Can the information be verified?
• Links to credible sites• Copyright• Works Cited• Fact check with a printed source
Step 2: Accuracy
1. Does the website cite sources used to present its information? What type of sources are they? Scholarly? Popular?
2. Is it possible to verify the legitimacy of these sources?
3. If the site is research-based, does the website clearly identify the method of research and the data gathered?
Step 3: Objectivity
• Books & Articles– Biased or
Objective?• Persuasion/
Emotion• Author’s Point of
View
• Newspapers• Subscriptions ($)• Advertising ($)• Owners• CJR review
• Web Pages– Biased or
Objective?• Opinion/Fan sites• Sponsoring
Organization• Agendas• Political
Propaganda• Web hosting
Step 3: Objectivity
Biased or Objective?• Sponsoring Organization• Agendas• Political Propaganda• Web hostinghttp://english.aljazeera.net/http://www.foxnews.com/ http://www.npr.org/
Do you trust the author or organization providing the information?
Step 3: Objectivity
Do you trust the author or organization providing the information?
Determine what is the aim of the author or organization publishing the site.
What is the purpose of the web site?
1. Is it advertisement for a product or service?2. Is it for political purposes?3. Is it trying to sway public opinion on a social
issue?
Step 4: Currency
• Books & Articles– When was it
published?• Copyright date• Important based
upon subject– Science– Social Science– Allied Health– Education– Pharmacy– Computer Science
• Newspapers published daily
• Web Pages– When was it created
and last updated?• Well maintained web
sites have an indication when it was last updated or modified
• Accessibility– Dead links
• Stability– Changes URLs
frequently
Step 4: Currency
• Web Pages– When was it created and last
updated?• Well maintained web sites have an
indication when it was last updated or modified
• Accessibility– Dead links
• Stability– Changes URLs frequently
Step 4: Currency
1. Is a date clearly displayed?2. Can you determine what the date refers to?
When the page was first written?When the page was first posted on the Internet?When the page was last revised or
updated?The copyright date?
3. Are the resources used by the author current?4. Does the page content demand routine or
continual updating or revision?5. Do the links on the page point to the correct
Internet site addresses?
Remember to Evaluate!
• Authority– Who created it? Who is responsible?– What credentials do they hold? What makes
them qualified to discuss the topic?• Accuracy
– Can the information be verified?– Check the facts!
• Objectivity– How is the information being presented?– Is it objective or biased? What’s the point of
view?• Currency (important based on subject)
– When was it published?– When was it last updated?
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