Inquizitive: Integrating Sources
A writer is writing a research paper about rising sea levels and wants to mention a variety of general theories in the introduction. She's found multiple passages in a few articles about sea levels rising, and she wants to talk about some of the main ideas they bring up. Would it be best for the writer to quote, paraphrase, or summarize the articles?
Summarize
Click or tap on each signal phrase in the passage below. If there are no signal phrases, click or tap "No signal phrase."
A 2016 study at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine suggested that The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates
Read the following sentences and determine whether the MLA-style documentation in each is correct.
Correct Charles Puzzanchera notes that almost half of the people arrested for arson in 2008—47 percent—were juveniles (2). Almost half of the people arrested for arson in 2008—47 percent—were juveniles (Puzzanchera 2).
What are some of the commonalities among the MLA, APA, Chicago, and CSE documentation styles?
Correct Each requires acknowledgment of sources within the text and a detailed list of sources at the end of the text. Each requires basic information about the authors, titles, and publication of sources. Incorrect Each values a thorough introduction to a source using a signal phrase. Each requires a works-cited page.
Which of the following style decisions should be made for long quotations that need to be formatted in block style?
Correct Set the quotation off from the text by indenting it from the left margin. Document the source. Incorrect Use quotation marks around the quotation.
Which of the following are attributes of a paraphrase?
Correct Writers paraphrase when both the details and the main points of the original text are relevant. A paraphrase is usually about the same length as the original text. Incorrect A paraphrase contains directly quoted material. A paraphrase maintains the same sentence structure as the original text.
Consider the following passage from a poem about the Statue of Liberty: Give me your tired, your poor,Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,I lift my lamp beside the golden door! —Emma Lazarus, "The New Colossus" Which of the following sentences accurately quotes from this passage (using MLA style)?
Emma Lazarus almost speaks for the Statue of Liberty with the words inscribed on its pedestal: "Give me your tired, your poor,/ Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,/ The wretched refuse of your teeming shore."
A paraphrase does not need to be cited; the information is considered common knowledge. Only direct quotations need to be cited.
False
A student comes across the statistic that more than five million men and women worldwide make use of Planned Parenthood's services annually. He finds this information in the following article: "Planned Parenthood: Should the federal government allocate taxpayer money to Planned Parenthood?" Issues & Controversies, 19 Feb. 2016. Infobase, http://icof.infobaselearning.com.cscc.ohionet.org/recordurl.aspx?ID=2505. Accessed 20 May 2018. Because he's using just the statistic, he only needs to include this citation in his works-cited list, reference list, or bibliography. He does not need to include a signal phrase or in-text citation in his paper.
False
As long as a writer introduces the source in a signal phrase, words and phrases from the original source may be used without quotation marks.
False
Consider the following passage about the color pink: "After some psychologists were able to show that certain shades of pink reduced aggression, it was famously used in prison cells to limit aggression in inmates. Yet pink toes a shaky line. Is it a benign means of subtle manipulation? a tool to humiliate? an outgrowth of gender stereotyping? Or [is it] some combination of the three?"
False
It's never okay to omit words from a quote, even when they are tangential to the main idea.
False
Consider the following passage from a document about increases in college tuition and fees: "Whether your kids are off to nursery school, college, or a private elementary or high school, paying for tuition, housing, textbooks, and other school-related expenses may pose a challenge to the family budget. From January 2006 to July 2016, the Consumer Price Index for college tuition and fees increased 63 percent, compared with an increase of 21 percent for all items. Over that period, consumer prices for college textbooks increased 88 percent and housing at school (excluding board) increased 51 percent."
From 2006 to 2016, "consumer prices for college textbooks increased 88 percent."
Consider the following passage from an article about academic exclusivity: "It examines some overlooked ways in which schools and colleges themselves reinforce cluelessness and thus perpetrate the misconception that the life of the mind is a secret society for which only an elite few qualify." —Gerald Graff, Clueless in Academe, page 1 Which of the following sentences accurately quotes from this passage (using MLA style guidelines)?
Gerald Graff argues that colleges leave many students with "the misconception that the life of the mind is a secret society for which only an elite few qualify" (1).
Consider the following passage from an article about hate speech in social media: Shortly after the synagogue shooting in Pittsburgh, I noticed that the word 'Jews' was trending on Twitter. As a social media researcher and educator, I became concerned that the violence would spread online, as it has in the past. The alleged synagogue shooter's activity on the Gab social media site has drawn attention to that site's role as a hate-filled alternative to more mainstream options like Facebook and Twitter. Those are among the social media platforms that have promised to fight hate speech and online abuse on their sites. However, as I explored online activity in the wake of the shooting, it quickly became clear to me that the problems are not just on sites like Gab. Rather, hate speech is still easy to find on mainstream social media sites, including Twitter. I also identified some additional steps the company could take.
In "Hate Speech Is Still Easy to Find on Social Media," Jennifer Grygiel, assistant professor of communications at Syracuse University, writes, "[H]ate speech is still easy to find on mainstream social media sites, including "Twitter." Grygiel is suggesting that hate speech occurs on many popular social media sites, not just on sites known specifically for hate speech.
_____________, "When we look back in time and study old cultures and people, we are impressed that death has always been distasteful to man and will probably always be" (195). Perhaps this distress comes from people's own fear of death or the signs of advancing age and frailty. ______________, "From a psychiatrist's point of view this is very understandable and can perhaps best be explained by our basic knowledge that, in our unconscious, death is never possible in regard to ourselves. It is inconceivable for our unconscious to imagine an actual ending of our own life here on earth" (195). It is understandable for people to feel the emotions Kubler-Ross describes, though they should not let these feelings control their actions.
In "On the Fear of Death," Elisabeth Kubler-Ross observes Kubler-Ross explains
A writer is researching joblessness in the European Union, and he decides to use information from the chart on the right in his paper. Which of the following options is the most appropriate way to discuss this type of source material?
In 2018, according to the Pew Research Center's analysis of Eurostat data, the united Kingdom had a 4.2% jobless rate compared to Austria, which was 5.0% (see Figure A).
Which sentence better incorporates the following quotation from Antonia Peacocke's essay "Family Guy and Freud: Jokes and their Relation to the Unconscious," which appears on page 266 of a textbook? "I believe Family Guy has its intelligent points, and some of its seemingly 'coarse' scenes often have hidden merit. I must concede, though, that a few of the show's scenes seem to be doing just what Will claims; sometimes the creators do seem to cross—or, perhaps, eagerly race past—the line of indecency."
In her essay, Antonia Peacocke argues that Family Guy an astute satire of American society, though she concedes that is does sometimes "seem to cross.... the line of indecency" (266).
Each documentation style has its own conventions regarding the verb tenses that are used in signal phrases. Match the signal phrases to the citation style, according to their verb types.
MLA Franklin notes, ... APA Dowdall (1998) observed ... Dowdell, et. al (1998) have observed ...
Match each set of disciplines with the documentation style that it commonly uses.
MLA (Modern Language Association) English, foreign languages, and other humanities Chicago (University of Chicago Press) history, philosophy, and other humanities CSE (Council of Science Editors) physical and biological sciences and mathematics APA (American Psychological Association) psychology and other social sciences
Consider the following passage from an article about teenagers and anxiety: Adolescence is the life stage when mental illnesses are most likely to emerge, with anxiety disorders being the most common. Recent estimates suggest that over 30 percent of teens have an anxiety disorder. That means about one of every three teenagers is struggling with anxiety that significantly interferes with their life and is unlikely to fade without treatment. Kayla is the anxious teen protagonist in the recent movie Eighth Grade. From the acne peeking out through her makeup to the frequent "likes" that punctuate her speech, she seems to be a quintessentially awkward teen. Inside her mind, though, the realities of social anxiety meet the typical storm and stress of adolescence. Through its warm yet heart-wrenchingly truthful portrayal of an awkward and anxious teen, Eighth Grade provides a relatable character for identifying and understanding how teen anxiety can really look and feel.
Odriozola and gee write, "Adolescence is the life stage when mental illnesses are most likely to emerge, with anxiety disorders being the most common.... Through its warm yet heart-wrenchingly truthful portrayal of an awkward and anxious teen, Eighth Grade provides a relatable character for identifying and understanding how teen anxiety can really look and feel."
Patchwriting while paraphrasing is considered plagiarism, even when the source is documented. To avoid patchwriting, which of the following should you do?
Read a passage carefully, then put it away and try to write the idea in your own words. Look back and check for accuracy.
Consider the following passage from a document about drunk driving: Alcohol level is measured by the weight of the alcohol in a certain volume of blood. This is called Blood Alcohol Concentration, or BAC. At a BAC of .08 grams of alcohol per deciliter of blood (g/dL), crash risk increases exponentially. Because of this risk, it's illegal in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico to drive with a BAC of .08 or higher. However, even a small amount of alcohol can affect driving ability. In 2016, there were 2,017 people killed in alcohol-related crashes where drivers had lower alcohol levels (BACs of .01 to .07 g/dL).
Research shows that people can be affected even from very small amounts of alcohol.
Consider the following passage from an article about online social networking and addiction: Researchers have suggested that the excessive use of new technologies (and especially online social networking) may be particularly addictive to young people. In accordance with the biopsychosocial framework for the etiology of addictions and the syndrome model of addiction, it is claimed that those people addicted to using [social networking sites] experience symptoms similar to those experienced by those who suffer from addictions to substances or other behaviors. This has significant implications for clinical practice because unlike other addictions, the goal of [social networking sites] addiction treatment cannot be total abstinence from using the Internet per se since the latter is an integral element of today's professional and leisure culture.
Some research uses the term 'addiction' in relation to an obsession with using social media and suggests that this might be especially problematic for young people. The research also raises the problem that unlike with other addictions, people cannot simply abandon the internet as they seek treatment because it is so integrated into everyone's everyday lives.
A writer references a source entitled "Can Seabiscuit's DNA Explain His Elite Racing Ability?" in his paper. Which signal phrase best establishes the source's authority and credibility?
Steven Tammariello, associate professor of biological sciences at Binghamton University, writes,
When you quote from a source, you reproduce the source exactly, though you can omit unnecessary details or modify the quotation to fit smoothly into your text. When should you use the following punctuation marks to indicate that you've modified a quotation?
This punctuation is used to show that you have omitted unnecessary information from the quotation. .... This punctuation is used to show that you have added or modified words to make the quotation fit smoothly into your text. []
Consider the following passage from an article about the relationship between meat and the environment: "As the scale and impacts of climate change become increasingly alarming, meat is a popular target for action. Advocates urge the public to eat less meat to save the environment. Some activists have called for taxing meat to reduce consumption of it."
True
Click or tap on each signal phrase in the passage below. If there are no signal phrases, click or tap "No signal phrase."
Wired's Clive Thompson has written, As the media theorist Marshall McLuhan pointed out in the 1960s,
Consider the following passage from an article about the rise in three-generation households: In a recent study, I discovered that the number of kids living with their parents and grandparents—in what demographers call a three-generation household—has nearly doubled over the past two decades. Why has this been happening? And is it a good thing or a bad thing? The answers are complex. The reasons for the trend are as broad as social forces—like a decline in marriage rates—to unique family circumstances, like the loss of a parent's job.The trend is worth studying because by better understanding who children live with, we can design better policies aimed at helping kids. Programs targeting kids usually overlook these other people living under the same roof. But odds are that if grandma's there, she matters, too.
Yes, some material was plagiarized. The writer used the ideas of a source without acknowledging and documenting the source.
Consider the following passage from an article about the rise in three-generation households: In a recent study, I discovered that the number of kids living with their parents and grandparents—in what demographers call a three-generation household—has nearly doubled over the past two decades.Why has this been happening? And is it a good thing or a bad thing?The answers are complex. The reasons for the trend are as broad as social forces—like a decline in marriage rates—to unique family circumstances, like the loss of a parent's job.The trend is worth studying because by better understanding who children live with, we can design better policies aimed at helping kids. Programs targeting kids usually overlook these other people living under the same roof. But odds are that if grandma's there, she matters, too.
Yes, some material was plagiarized. the writer used the ideas of a source without acknowledging and documenting the source.
Consider the following quotation from an article about the horse Seabiscuit: "Seabiscuit was not an impressive-looking horse. He was considered quite lazy, preferring to eat and sleep in his stall rather than exercise. He'd been written off by most of the racing industry after losing his first 17 races."
[Seabiscuit]
Drinking milk as an important health practice is not something that everyone accepts without question anymore. Substitute milks are very popular on the market for various health, environmental, and animal-related reasons, but for those who can and do want to drink dairy milk, the question arises as to whether they should just because they might like it, or whether there is a health-related purpose as well. Milk producers support the idea that milk is an important component of daily health. The International Osteoporosis Foundation (IOF), in an ... article for iofbonehealth.org titled "Milk and Other Dairy Foods Are Good for Bone Health," _______: "Evidence strongly supports the benefits of dairy products for bone and muscle health. Studies have shown that bone loss is reduced and there is an improvement in muscle mass and strength with adequate dairy intake." In contrast, however, Emil Q. Javier, PhD, former president of the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) (Philippines), in an ... article for the Manila Bulletin titled "Whole Foods and Plant-Based Diets for Longer Healthier Lives (Part III)," ___________ the claim of increased health through milk: "American women aged 50 and older who consume more cow's milk and dairy products per person than the rest of the world have one of the highest rates of hip fractures. The only countries with higher hip fracture rates are Australia, New Zealand and those in Europe where they consume even more milk than the United States."
concurs disputes
Why do writers document sources?
correct It helps them establish credibility on a topic. It enables readers to find the sources referred to. Incorrect It's an old-fashioned practice that writers never stopped to question. It makes writing seem harder so that only experts will want to do it.
Sort the following signal phrase verbs by whether they show agreement or disagreement with a source or whether they are neutral.
disagreement deny disagree reject dispute argue agreement confirm agree concur acknowledge neutral observe assert respond claim
A writer has included the following sentence in his paper about daylight savings time, but he isn't sure that his readers will know what biannual means. Edit the sentence to clarify the definition of biannual.
ending the biannual [twice-a-year] practice
Consider the following passage from an article about cyberbullying: "Demands for improving online safety continue to capture headlines, often for the worst reasons. While this outcry has signalled renewed interest in 'stamping out' cyberbullying and reinvigorated health and wellbeing protocols for young people, interventions continue to fall behind the fast-paced development of communication devices and the take-up of new social media by teenagers."
make the internet safer lag behind
A writer is doing a research project about lead and finds an interesting article with a small section about lead levels in paint. There are details that she thinks she needs to include, but the wording isn't important.
paraphrase
A writer is reading an article on the sexualization of women in advertising. He wants to use an idea from the source and include the author's main point and associated details. What is his best option?
paraphrase
A writer is doing a research project about whether athletes' self-talk affects their performance. He collects some interviews with well-respected athletes in his community and decides to include a particular response from one of the athletes. Would it be best to quote, paraphrase, or summarize the response?
quote
A writer is doing a study of his campus's efforts to alleviate food insecurity for students. He interviewed some faculty and staff about what they were doing, and one of the statements by a faculty member really stood out to him as a great way to express what faculty were doing and why they were doing it. Would it be best to quote, paraphrase, or summarize the faculty member's response?
quote
A writer is writing a literary analysis of To Kill a Mockingbird, and she finds several earlier scholarly analyses of the book that she disagrees with. She disagrees with one analysis in particular, and she decides to argue against its thesis statement. Would it be best for the writer to quote, paraphrase, or summarize the thesis statement she disagrees with?
quote
A writer presenting an argument about athletes kneeling during the national anthem reads Martin Luther King Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail" and is struck by the following sentences in his fifth paragraph: "You deplore the demonstrations that are presently taking place in Birmingham. But I am sorry that your statement did not express a similar concern for the conditions that brought the demonstrations into being." What would likely be the writer's best option for including this material in his paper: quoting, paraphrasing, or summarizing it?
quote
When you incorporate source materials into your own writing, you'll need to decide how to do so—whether to quote, paraphrase, or summarize. Usually, you'll decide what to do based on how you are using each source. In the following situations, should you quote, summarize, or paraphrase?
quote when the writer wants to cite the exact words of a known authority on the topic when the wording is worth repeating when a source's specific opinions challenge or disagree with those of others summarize when the main points are important but the details are not paraphrase when the wording isn't important but there are details you need to include
A writer is trying to decide whether a quotation, paraphrase, or summary would be more appropriate in a particular paragraph. She wants to convey a sense of the whole of a source in a few sentences. Which of the following options should she choose?
summary
What does the ellipsis in the following example indicate? According to Kathleen Welch, "Television is more acoustic than visual. ... One can turn one's gaze away from the television, but one cannot turn one's ears from it without leaving the area where the monitor leaks its aural signals into every corner" (102).
the omission of a sentence or more in the middle of the quotation
A writer working on a research paper finds an article with some information that she thinks might be useful for her project. Which of the following factors is most important to consider when deciding whether to quote or paraphrase the information?
whether the exact wording of the source material is worth repeating