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SCI: Science Through Inquiry

A guide for locating resources relevant to assignments in Science Through Inquiry classes.

Websites

icon of the outline of an internet window with a curser arrow

Use websites to find valuable evidence from authoritative resources like academic institutions, the government, other research bodies, or non-profits.

Websites have a wealth of information, but not websites are reputable or have legitimate information. If you are using the information found on the web, you must evaluate the information before using it.

Use the SIFT method to evaluate web sources and determine if you should use the information for your assignment/project.

 

Tip: Don't be fooled by .org, while .orgs are fairly reliable, some are not.

Tip: Use .gov and .edu websites when you can

SIFT- The Four Moves

If you want to use information from a website, use the SIFT process to evaluate if the information is reliable.

 

SIFT is a tool to evaluate information S is for Stop, I is for investigate the source, F is for find better coverage and T is for trace the original context

Stop = Pause and ask yourself if you know about the reputation of the site or author before reading it (or sharing it). Also, stopping periodically throughout the process will help you reflect and reevaluate your strategy.

Investigate the source = know about what you are reading before your read it. Take one minute to investigate the author (do they have the expertise or credentials to be an authority on this topic?) and the publisher (are they reputable? what is their agenda?).

  • To learn about the author, do a quick Google search. Many researchers will have a webpage about them on their institution's website.

  • You can often find information about the publisher in the "About" section of the website. Or you can do a quick Google search to read about what others have written about them.

Find better coverage = if you want to know if a claim is true or false, look to other resources that are authorities on the topic. Look to groups, organizations, agencies, and government departments that would be an authority on this topic. 

Trace claims = go back to the original source and see if the claim is accurately presented. By reading the claim in the original context you can decide if the information was taken out of context or not in the source.

Mike Caufield's Web Literacy for Student Fact-Checkers...and Other People Who Care About Facts is the publication that introduced SIFT also called the "Four Moves and a Habit" process. The ebook can be accessed with the link below.

If you are finding health information on websites, make sure you are evaluating it to make sure you are using good information. Follow the steps outlined in "Find Good Health Information" linked below.

Popular Science Magazines

Several online magazines who are written for non-scientists can lead you directly to peer-review articles.

Health Science Websites

  • Healthline covers all areas of health; articles are written by professionals in specific fields.
  • MedlinePlus is a service of the National Library of Medicine (NLM), the world's largest medical library. Their goal is to provide free up-to-date health and medical information that is easy to understand for non-professionals.