Learning About Web Pages

This page is where you can learn about web pages, how to evaluate them, and how to find the best ones for your research projects. There are sites that cover search engines, site evaluation from a variety of approaches, an in depth tutorial, and a guide that lists starting places for finding credible material on the web.

   Finding Web Sites

For medical topics, a library source that routinely features high quality web content is MedlinePlus. MedlinePlus includes web content under News.

Great Web Sites offers numerous starting places for finding credible web material on a wide variety of subjects. Web 2.0 also offers informative and current news blogs, places to store your research notes, sites for collaboration, and more. For a guide to the academic side of Web 2.0, try Making the Most of Web 2.0.

For those interested in learning more about search engines, try the Search Engine and Directory Snapshot. The handout describes a variety search engines and directories, sites that help you find more we pages. It is slightly out of date, but the information there is still reasonably current.

Evaluating Web Sites   

Examining Web Pages introduces web site evaluation in plain language with techniques even a novice can easily apply. It also covers common web issues such as: advertising, registration, copyright, and Wikipedia's credibility.

Additional Starting Points for High Quality Web Content

Here are some lists of blogs and news sites that provide credible content and links on the web. Most have human compilers/editors behind them or are nestled in credible directories such as Curlie.org.

Curlie -- Society and Culture -- Politics -- News and Media -- Weblogs and
Curlie -- News -- Weblogs provides a list of reasonably current, A-List, political blogs from all over the left-to-right spectrum. Note: a few of the blogs may have not received updates or their authors may not give their names. Use a small amount of caution.

Curlie -- Science -- Social Sciences -- Publications offers mainly journal and news articles about such topics as families, sexuality, criminal justice, and more.

Curlie -- Personal Fiance -- Money Management -- Weblogs feature articles on student debt, credit cards, investing, saving, and financial literacy. Many list authors with first and last names as well as qualifications. Most are up-to-date. Business is the most popular major at Perimeter College, and these blogs for for business majors or anyone with an interest in improving their finances.

Curlie -- Science -- News and Media : For credible science coverage, these sites (There are blogs as a subcategory) offer it, with article authors who usually sign their names and reasonably up-to-date coverage in all branches of the sciences. Click the subtopic and subcategory list to increase your options.

Curlie -- Health -- News and Media and
Curlie -- Health -- Nursing -- Resources If you need web articles or information on health or nursing related topics, including nursing as a career or a particular disease or therapy, these sites offer an excellent starting point or compliment to Medline Plus.

Science Magazine -- News and
Science Magazine -- Science Insider. Although Science is one of the world's two most prestigious science journals, its two blogs offer reasonably, readable articles about all aspects of science as well as science and public policy. The articles offer both meaty information, and impress your professor.

Biomedcentral Blog Network -- This peer reviewed, open access, collection of life science, primary source, literature also features more readable blogs that cover all aspects of the life sciences. Though the material may be challenging, it is never dull, and always credible.