The limits of my
language mean the
limits of my world.
- Ludwig Wittgenstein
An Introduction to
Documenting Research
Sources
ENL 111, Dr. Vavra
What IS “Documentation”?
“Documentation” denotes various
formats for indicating in your writing
where your source materials (articles,
books, interviews, web pages, etc.)
come from. In other words,
“documentation” enables readers of
your writing to find your sources.
Why Are We Looking at
Documentation Now?
A requirement of this course is that you learn
how to research for information on a topic and
then efficiently document that research in one or
more papers. But before you start to do
research, it makes sense to know what you will
need to efficiently use the sources in writing a
paper. That is the purpose of this presentation.
The Purposes of Documentation
Documentation has four primary purposes,
one negative, and three positive:
 To
avoid plagiarism,
 To give credit where it is due,
 To enable readers to find your
sources, and
 To add to your own credibility.
The Formats of Documentation
We live in a free country. As a result,
there is no one who can tell us how to
format documentation. As a result, there
are several different formats for
documenting sources.
(Don’t complain. If we want freedom,
we need to pay for it.)
Formats for Documentation - 1
MLA (from the Modern Language
Association)
 APA (from the American Psychological
Association)
 Various formats in databases

Formats for Documentation - 2
We will be using the MLA format. In
some courses you will be expected to use
APA, but the differences between the two
are mainly a question of what information
goes where in the format. (We will look at
the differences in a later class.)
Formats for Documentation - 3

In MLA format, for example, the title of the work comes
immediately after the author’s name:


In APA format, the date comes right after the author’s
name:


Carr, Nicholas. The Shallows – What the Internet is Doing to Our
Brains. N.Y.: W.W. Norton, 2010.
Carr, Nicholas. (2010) The Shallows – What the Internet is Doing
to Our Brains. N.Y.: W.W. Norton.
When there are several works in a list by one author, in
MLA they are arranged in alphabetical order by title. In
APA, they are arranged by date, with the most recent
first.
The Two Parts of Documentation

Works Cited (and/or) Bibliography

Framing - We will explore framing later in
the course.
Works Cited and/or Bibliography
A “Works Cited” is an alphabetical list
of all the sources (works) that you cited
(used) in your paper.
 A “Bibliography” usually includes
everything in the Works Cited, but also
includes other sources that the writer
believes are relevant to the topic.

The following is an example of part
of an MLA Works Cited list.
Foster, Kristy. "Marcellus Shale Drilling: Can Safe Water
Supply Be Sustained?" Farm and Dairy - The Auction
Guide and Rural Marketplace. Farm and Dairy, 24 Sept.
2010. Web. 01 Nov. 2010.
Hartstein, Arthur M. Environmenta Benefits of Advanced Oil
and Gas Exploration and Production Technology.
Washington DC: US Department of Energy Office of
Fossil Energy, Oct. 1999. Pdf. 01 Nov. 2010.
"Science Centric | News | 'Fracking' Mobilises Uranium in
Marcellus Shale." Science Centric -- Science, Health and
Technology, Breaking News. Science Centric, 26 Oct.
2010. Web. 01 Nov. 2010.
The Parts of a Works Cited Citation
What is included in a “Works Cited”
citation depends upon the kind of source
you have used—a book, a magazine or
journal article, a web page, a personal
interview.
 You will be shown how to use the Purdue
OWL, a widely recognized source for
formatting documentation.

In-text Citations for MP # 2
We will be looking at in-text citations in
more detail later in the course. For MP # 2
what you need to know is that an in-text
citation is placed in parentheses after the
material that you quote or paraphrase.
What goes in the in-text citation is the
minimal amount of information needed to
find the source in the “Works Cited” list
plus the page number on which that
material appears.
An Important Suggestion
As you write your draft of a paper,
include the in-text citations in the draft. Far
too many students do not do this. Then
they can’t find the sources when they go
back to “revise” the paper. The result is
that they end up with a serious plagiarism
problem. (Remember that part of my job is
to check your citations against the copies
of your sources that you will be giving me.)
Quiz (You can use your notes.)
1.
2.
What are the four purposes of
documentation? (20 each)
Explain the difference between a “Works
Cited” and a “Bibliography.” (20)