Provide Your Sources

MelanieCN77

There should be a posting rule, where if you say something like "research says" or "studies show" or "I read somewhere that" that you have to provide a link or at least a title and author reference to your source.

mph323

Good thought but probably superfluous - as a community we're good at holding each other accountable

Aaron_K123

If we did that we would have higher standards than modern journalism does.

MelanieCN77

Modern journalism has a tough time already in this age of "facts are partisan."

Aaron_K123

MelanieCN77 wrote: »

Modern journalism has a tough time already in this age of "facts are partisan."

Thats not what I heard last night*

*Citation: yo mamma


...

Sorry. I realize that didn't even make sense, but I had to do it because when faced with a sad reality you have to laugh sometimes.

Problem is even if this was somehow an enforced rule, that you have to cite sources, there is nothing inherient in that requirement that people have to actually have read said sources before citing them. How many times have you seen a person say "OMG science proves X is really toxic" and then proceeds to "cite" 15 different scientific studies they copy-pasted the links off of their google scholar search of "X is really toxic". It forces the reader of their comment to either believe those links are valid or put in the effort to read them which the original poster didn't bother to do. So it still ends up falling to the reader to check sources whether the originator cited their sources or not.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

Studies show that most people on MFP don't actually read the studies they post anyway.

mph323

God we sound like a bunch of old farts

Aaron_K123

mph323 wrote: »

God we sound like a bunch of old farts

Kids these days....

snickerscharlie

Whippersnappers.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

For what it's worth, OP, I don't disagree with the premise that if a person is going to cite "studies" they should put up their sources. I'm just also a smartass.

MelanieCN77

I think I just want people to be more curious for themselves. Some results for "I read somewhere:"

- a potato at night time is good
- it's bad for you to cook with [olive oil]
- that popcorn has fibre
- that you should not call them cheat meals
- that it's best to eat fruits in the morning and afternoon
- that long running sessions are really bad for you
- that sugar calories from fruit do not count
- that we eat about a pound of bugs a year
- that if you have a high body fat % it's pointless to do an exercises until you loose some weight

queenliz99

I'd rather be a smart *kitten*!

AnvilHead

It wouldn't solve anything. I've seen plenty of people cite "sources" that are complete garbage. Sources that make Dr. Oz look credible by comparison.

ladyreva78

MelanieCN77 wrote: »

- that we eat about a pound of bugs a year

That would explain why I'm not losing weight... I'm not accounting for the calories in that pound of bugs!

On a more serious note:

I all the awesome people here on MFP who are teaching me (by me lurking in threads) to double check the sources and actually READ the sources I quote and use (applicable not just on an online forum but also in my work). It makes me realize just how little I know, especially about checking and validating my sources (literature studies don't provide much rigor in that regard. I'm good at taking apart a text and picking at its flaws, but not so much at checking that it's a valid source.

magicpickles

As someone with the tendancy to do that, I don't like your idea, because sometimes you read the information or heard it a few years ago, or from someone else so you don't know the original source. You just feel it in your gut.

Alatariel75

magicpickles wrote: »

As someone with the tendancy to do that, I don't like your idea, because sometimes you read the information or heard it a few years ago, or from someone else so you don't know the original source. You just feel it in your gut.

You'll forgive me if I'd prefer to rely on information from legit sources, rather than someone's 'gut'.

psuLemon

I hear this thread is giving out werther's original and other assorted hard candy? Where can I get some?


Unfortunately, controlling information on the internet is very hard. At best you should question everything. But that is if you care about having the correct information. Even if that information is from "reputable" sources. In fact, Dr. Layne Norton (one of the people I follow very closely) even recommends that you question everything he says. And his background is in bodybuilding, powerlifting and holds a PhD in nutritional science.

mph323

Question Authority! (I graduated HS in 68)

jjpptt2

FWIW, I read to learn, not so I can prove a point on some message board. I don't bookmark studies, articles, etc, so I rarely have sources at the ready if my thoughts don't fit all nice and tidy with what others think.

mph323

jjpptt2 wrote: »

FWIW, I read to learn, not so I can prove a point on some message board. I don't bookmark studies, articles, etc, so I rarely have sources at the ready if my thoughts don't fit all nice and tidy with what others think.

That's really OK as long as you're not presenting your opinion as scientific fact. Most of the discussions on the message boards are informal - this is the debate forum so here you would be expected to back up what you say.

jjpptt2

mph323 wrote: »

jjpptt2 wrote: »

FWIW, I read to learn, not so I can prove a point on some message board. I don't bookmark studies, articles, etc, so I rarely have sources at the ready if my thoughts don't fit all nice and tidy with what others think.

That's really OK as long as you're not presenting your opinion as scientific fact. Most of the discussions on the message boards are informal - this is the debate forum so here you would be expected to back up what you say.

Isn't there also an expectation that, in a debate forum, people would be open minded to differing points? Don't forget, facts change over time (i.e. the world is no longer flat)... and nowhere is that more evident than in topics of health.

And just to be clear, I'm mostly playing devil's advocate here. I think the overwhelming majority of the MFP regulars enjoy the learning and the helping as much as anything else.