When you're trying to tackle a new subject, Wikipedia can be an incredible starting point. But, including a Wikipedia reference in a research paper is sure to get a chuckle (or perhaps a grimace) out of your virtual professors. Since anyone can edit Wikipedia articles, they often contain errors. Several colleges have banned the use of Wikipedia references all together.
A few new Wikis are trying to solve this problem by putting tighter restrictions on editors. One of the creators of the original Wikipedia has started over with Citizendium, a wiki that uses writers' real names and checks articles for factuality.
A newer project is Scholarpedia. Here's how they describe the venture:
"Scholarpedia feels and looks like Wikipedia - the free encyclopedia that anyone can edit. Indeed, both are powered by the same program - MediaWiki. Both allow visitors to review and modify articles simply by clicking on the edit this article link.However, Scholarpedia differs from Wikipedia in some very important ways:
* Each article is written by an expert (invited or elected by the public).
* Each article is anonymously peer reviewed to ensure accurate and reliable information.
* Each article has a curator - typically its author - who is responsible for its content.
* Any modification of the article needs to be approved by the curator before it appears in the final, approved version.Herein also lies the greatest differences between Scholarpedia and traditional print media: while the initial authorship and review processes are similar to a print journal, articles in Scholarpedia are not frozen and outdated, but dynamic, subject to an ongoing process of improvement moderated by their curators. This allows Scholarpedia to be up-to-date, yet maintain the highest quality of content. "
Wikipedia is still the master when it comes to quantity of information. But, I think ensuring quality my be well worth the extra effort. Will unpaid contributors be willing to jump through the extra hoops necessary? Only time will tell.
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