research paper question

[Kev]

if i'm writing a paper and i'm supposed to list all my references at the end (we needed to get books and journals and use them as references), does that mean i have to footnote which reference source each of the ideas in my paper come from?

if so is it required or just suggested? because i am way too lazy to go thru all these sources. ps i hate school.

 

[Platypus]

Depends on the formatting style. Footnotes usually aren't used at the college leve for research, more like paraphrasing with credit given inside the body. Then, a works cited.

 

[KingNothing]

It really depends on the teacher, some are anal and some are not. If you can get away with just a page at the end with all your books, go for it. Most of my papers in high school had a "(Author, page)" inline notation where I quoted stuff or lifted ideas out of a book.

 

[LittleNicky]

yea, just cite within the body author's last name and page number.
Footnotes are to help further explain something out of the body of the
paper so you won't disrupt the flow.

 

[Kev]

ok so if i'm not directly quoting one of the sources, am i safe not referring to which source it is in the body? i really don't want to go through all that...

did i mention i hate school

 

[Kev]

Originally posted by: LittleNicky
yea, just cite within the body author's last name and page number.
Footnotes are to help further explain something out of the body of the
paper so you won't disrupt the flow.

ugh thats even worse. i refuse to flip through the book to find out which page some idiot said something... i'm finding all the same info on google and i'm just using these stupid "references" to appease my teacher. btw i am not plaigarizing, it's just easier to search through electronic info than flipping through hundreds of pages.

 

[Platypus]

Originally posted by: maladroit
ok so if i'm not directly quoting one of the sources, am i safe not referring to which source it is in the body? i really don't want to go through all that...

did i mention i hate school

No. if you use ANY idea whatsoever from another author you must cite the source. Plagerism = expulsion in must credible universities.

 

[Zrom999]

Depends on your instructor, for some a bibliography is sufficient, if not don't use footnoting if you don't have to... use in line citations (authorlastname page#)...instead (much easier), but you would also need to make a Works Cited list (same a bibliography different title).

Note: They never check the sources, feel free to bs away.

You also might want to look up MLA style online.
Here is a not so great LINK but it might help.

 

[KingNothing]

Another thing you can do is if you only take ideas from a certain section of a book, cite only those pages on your Works Cited page.

What is required totally depends on your teacher, seriously. Ask them to see what they say. "It's easier to ask forgiveness than to ask permission" does not apply here.

 

[white]

how far along in your education are you? what i do is cite specific facts in line with a numbered reference and then list the numbered reference at the end. it's the way the journals i read do it, so i should get into the habit of doing it too.

 

[Kev]

Originally posted by: CorporateRecreation

Originally posted by: maladroit
ok so if i'm not directly quoting one of the sources, am i safe not referring to which source it is in the body? i really don't want to go through all that...

did i mention i hate school

No. if you use ANY idea whatsoever from another author you must cite the source. Plagerism = expulsion in must credible universities.

is a "fact" the same as an "idea"

i.e. if what i'm writing is found on MANY sources and is a concrete fact, then is it still necessary to cite? if thats the case there will be a citation after almost every single sentence

 

[Kev]

Originally posted by: white
how far along in your education are you? what i do is cite specific facts in line with a numbered reference and then list the numbered reference at the end. it's the way the journals i read do it, so i should get into the habit of doing it too.

in college but i dont do a lot of "research" papers. most of the time i'm just bs'ing.

 

[Platypus]

Originally posted by: maladroit

Originally posted by: CorporateRecreation

Originally posted by: maladroit
ok so if i'm not directly quoting one of the sources, am i safe not referring to which source it is in the body? i really don't want to go through all that...

did i mention i hate school

No. if you use ANY idea whatsoever from another author you must cite the source. Plagerism = expulsion in must credible universities.

is a "fact" the same as an "idea"

i.e. if what i'm writing is found on MANY sources and is a concrete fact, then is it still necessary to cite? if thats the case there will be a citation after almost every single sentence

It has to be a pretty profound idea, a la the sky is blue type thing. If you're writing a research paper and you personall KNOW things about it then you yourself are a source in a sense. It REALLY depends on the type of paper you're writing. You never cite yourself in a paper, but you're walking a fine line if you don't know much about the topic yourself. If a lot of people say the same thing, it doesn't mean that you came up with the idea yourself. If you want to talk about this more, feel free to AIM me, it's in the profile. I am an English assassin.

 

[Kev]

ok thanks for the info. you didn't tell me what i wanted to hear though!

this thing is really giving me a headache, i think im just gonna go to sleep and wake up early and do it. right now i'm at 2 out of 10 pages... i'll be lucky if i get to 7... hope my prof enjoys "quality over quantity"

 

[Platypus]

Originally posted by: maladroit
ok thanks for the info. you didn't tell me what i wanted to hear though!

this thing is really giving me a headache, i think im just gonna go to sleep and wake up early and do it. right now i'm at 2 out of 10 pages... i'll be lucky if i get to 7... hope my prof enjoys "quality over quantity"

Seriously I'd be more than willing to look over your stuff for you.

 

[Kev]

Originally posted by: CorporateRecreation

Originally posted by: maladroit
ok thanks for the info. you didn't tell me what i wanted to hear though!

this thing is really giving me a headache, i think im just gonna go to sleep and wake up early and do it. right now i'm at 2 out of 10 pages... i'll be lucky if i get to 7... hope my prof enjoys "quality over quantity"

Seriously I'd be more than willing to look over your stuff for you.

thanks for the offer, but really there's nothing to look over yet. i still have a bunch of pages to write. i was supposed to send it to a writing tutor to have it reviewed before it is due on tuesday, but that's probably not happening. i usually have to be under the gun to get anything written.

 

[Platypus]

Originally posted by: maladroit

Originally posted by: CorporateRecreation

Originally posted by: maladroit
ok thanks for the info. you didn't tell me what i wanted to hear though!

this thing is really giving me a headache, i think im just gonna go to sleep and wake up early and do it. right now i'm at 2 out of 10 pages... i'll be lucky if i get to 7... hope my prof enjoys "quality over quantity"

Seriously I'd be more than willing to look over your stuff for you.

thanks for the offer, but really there's nothing to look over yet. i still have a bunch of pages to write. i was supposed to send it to a writing tutor to have it reviewed before it is due on tuesday, but that's probably not happening. i usually have to be under the gun to get anything written.

Well I am off tommorow so if you get something done at least I can tell you pretty much what English professors are looking for. I graded most of my classes' papers for them and they all got A's out of it.

 

[Kev]

cool, i hope i can get it done by 2pm tomorrow cause i just found out i have ANOTHER paper due tuesday. i'm just gonna go to sleep now and have nightmares...

 

[Platypus]

Originally posted by: maladroit
cool, i hope i can get it done by 2pm tomorrow cause i just found out i have ANOTHER paper due tuesday. i'm just gonna go to sleep now and have nightmares...

Hahah, yeah just send me a PM, i'll try to check it sometime during the day for you.