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Subject:RE: the Netherlands vs. The Netherlands From:"Joe Malin" <jmalin -at- tuvox -dot- com> To:"John Cornellier" <jcornellier -at- abingdon -dot- oilfield -dot- slb -dot- com> Date:Wed, 12 Jul 2006 12:58:06 -0700
Wikipedia balances accuracy/authority with breadth/currency/provenance.
Wikipedia *may* be inaccurate, and may exhibit bias. Wikipedia's stated
goal is to fight inaccuracy with openness. Wikipedia does have editors,
who try to fight bias as best they can.
Wikipedia is certainly broader in scope than any encyclopedia currently
in print. One hopes that it is also more current; we can certainly keep
it more current than a print reference. Because one must register with
Wikipedia to create and edit pages, we can trace the source of an entry.
We have to face an uncomfortable, limiting barrier. *Any* information
presented to humans necessarily contains the bias of the presenter *and*
inaccuracies due to the limitations of time, space, and context.
Everything from the speed of light in a vacuum to the name of the
country north of Belgium is subject to interpretation.
Therefore, we should trust Wikipedia as much as we trust anything, and
we should also beware of answers. Life, it seems to me, is much more
about questions.
-----Original Message-----
From: techwr-l-bounces+jmalin=tuvox -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
[mailto:techwr-l-bounces+jmalin=tuvox -dot- com -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com] On Behalf
Of John Cornellier
Sent: Wednesday, July 12, 2006 10:13 AM
Cc: techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com
Subject: Re: the Netherlands vs. The Netherlands
According to a BBC article, "Wikipedia is about as accurate on science
as the Encyclopedia Britannica ... the British journal Nature examined a
range of scientific entries on both works of reference and found few
differences in accuracy."
This notion that Wikipedia lacks authority is becoming something of an
urban legend.
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