Learning Commons

When researching online, consider who created the information, where it came from and why it was published.

When evaluating a source, consider:

• Currency: When was the information published or last updated?
• Reliability: Where does the information come from, and is evidence provided?
• Authority: Who created the information, and what makes them a credible source?
• Accuracy: Can the information be verified through other reliable sources?
• Purpose: Why was the information created? Consider whether it is intended to inform, persuade, entertain or sell something.

Cresthill Research Tips

A Note About Web Addresses

A website's domain can provide context about its source, but a domain alone does not determine whether information is credible.

Common domains include:

• .gov – U.S. government agencies
• .edu – Colleges, universities and other eligible educational institutions
• .org – Commonly used by nonprofit organizations, although registration is not restricted to nonprofits
• .com – Commercial and general-purpose websites
• .net – General-purpose domain originally associated with network organizations

Always evaluate the actual source, author and evidence rather than relying on the domain alone.

When using images, music, videos or other media in a project, it's important to understand who created the work and how it may be used.

Whenever possible, use resources that clearly identify their copyright or Creative Commons licensing terms and provide attribution when required.

Images & Media

[Creative Commons Search]
Find Creative Commons-licensed content.

[Wikimedia Commons]
Search freely licensed and public-domain media.

[NASA Image Library]
Explore NASA images and multimedia.

[Pexels]
Find free stock photography and video.

[Unsplash]
Find free photography.