Internet Reliability

Dare we doubt the credibility of our wonderful world wide web???

Of course we shall!!!

Nowadays, just about anyone can access the Internet, create a page, and make all sorts of stuff that isn't true available. I mean, I could honestly sit here and spout out some wonderful explanation as to why the sky is blue due to the secret X-ray capabilities dog's have in their eyes. Of course, that's not the focus of my blog, but perhaps I'll explain it to you if you like.

Point is, one shouldn't believe everything he or she reads. You must take into account reliability. Again, I can claim knowledge of dog's x-ray vision capabilities due to my Master's degree in chemistry from some world-renown university.

Of course, if that were credible, then perhaps you should believe it...

Right, well, this is not the case. Where was I? Oh yes, Internet reliability.

Some sites are far more reliable than other. For example, most .gov or .edu sites tend to be fairly reliable. Sites that consist of user input, such as Wikipedia (as much as we love it), are much less reliable. Think about it- the website's tag is "the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit." Anyone. As in, your two year old brother or that kind of weird kid across the street you really don't know the name of. Sites of this nature may not be the best choices. The .gov and .edu sites originated from said government or education type origin usually tend to be more reliable, as the government and educational programs don't usually want to falsely lead people. Well, then again, we certainly hope not...

But, anyway, these sites tend to be hard to copy or falsify, so they're usually a pretty safe bet. Also, look for an author, credentials, and/or the date last revised. When looking up things of current relevance, noticing that the site was last updated 10 years ago is not a good thing. How about links to other sources? Do they look reliable? Does the site look like a simple blog created by a high school student attempting to find meaning within a topic of his or her choice? Or, does it look professionally created, especially for one specific topic? Is the information on the site consistent with other info you've found in your extensive research? Take a look.

Aside from what's above, I really don't know all that much about the reliability of web sites. I never really learned how to detect falsities under the guise of truths on the Internet. I've just gone with my gut for the most part, and consistency within what I've researched. Also, on the topic of bias, obviously a site based upon an opinion is not going to give you some cold, hard fact. Keep away from 1st person "I think..." "We believe..." and similar sounding materials. Research tends to veer from personal opinions and views and towards facts.