Incorporating Source Material

Expository Writing

Paraphrasing MaterialDefinition: To paraphrase is to put another's ideas into your own words.

(restating their ideas in different words)– It does not mean using a thesaurus to change a word

here or there; that's plagiarism!– Paraphrased material is not enclosed in quotation marks. – You MUST cite paraphrases.

When to use it:If you can get the author’s point across in your own words. (using the author’s exact words isn’t important or necessary).

Example of Paraphrase from an article entitled “Water World?” by Jeff Goldberg

Original: “But even Richard Alley, a Penn State University

geologist, admits that a polar meltdown would take time. The ice in Antarctica and the Arctic locks up nearly nine times the volume of water contained in all the world's rivers and lakes” (Goldberg).

Paraphrased version: Many scientists acknowledge that the melting of

polar ice caps will not happen quickly. The amount of water trapped in ice at both poles is nine times more than the water in all the lakes and rivers in the world (Goldberg).

Summarizing MaterialDefinition:

• To condense another's ideas using your own words. – Summaries are not enclosed in quotations

marks.– MUST cite summaries.

When to use it:

• When you need to condense the author’s ideas (shorten/make more concise)

Example of summarizing

• Summarizing the last 6 paragraphs of the Water World article on global warming:

There is great debate among scientists over global warming and the potential for the polar ice caps to melt. Some feel it will not happen at all, while even those who do feel some melting is inevitable disagree on how long such melting would take. Richard Alley, a Penn State University geologist, feels it could take thousands of years to melt the ice caps, while Charles Bentley, a glacier scientist at the University of Wisconsin, doesn't think a meltdown will ever happen. Climate researcher Judith Curry, a climate researcher, even says that the recent temperature rise in the Arctic may not be a sign of global warming at all (Goldberg).

When you want to restate the author’s ideas in your own words

Paraphrase

When you want to condense (shorten) what the author said.

Summarize

Paraphrase/Summary Exercise

Take out a scratch sheet of paper…

Paraphrase this information (put into your own words)

“Scientists first predicted in the 1970s that heat trapped in Earth’s atmosphere could cause a polar meltdown. Many now believe that human activities are turning up the heat” (Goldberg 7).

Summarize this paragraph in one to two sentences (condense)

“When we burn fossil fuels like coal and oil (to drive our cars, run televisions, and heat our homes), we add carbon dioxide gas to Earth's atmosphere. Cutting down trees also makes carbon dioxide levels rise because trees normally soak up carbon dioxide to make food. Carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, explains climate researcher Judith Curry, acts like the glass ceiling of a greenhouse: It allows sunlight to pass through to warm the planet, but keeps the heat from escaping back into space. Scientists say higher levels of carbon dioxide intensify this "greenhouse effect" - and could increase Earth's temperature” (Goldberg 8).

Quoting MaterialDefinition:- A quote is a verbatim (word-for-word) copy of a

source. It is enclosed within quotation marks. - You MUST cite quotes.

When to use quotes:• Most often you should paraphrase and summarize

source material.• Quote only when you want the exact words of a source

for some important reason (for effect, good wording, etc.)

• Keep quotations as brief as possible. Only rarely are extensive quotations of more than 4 lines necessary.

Good reasons to use quotes:

• For support -- to bring the voices of experts into your paper.

• For vivid language -- the wording of the original sources is clearer and more effective than any paraphrase you could write.

• To represent the source fairly -- when you quote accurately and directly, no one can claim you misrepresented the source.

Example of Quoting(Taken from Water World article)

"These are such big ‘ice cubes,’” says Richard Alley, a Penn State University geologist, "it would probably take thousands of years to melt them."

Why is a quote used here?

Author wanted the exact wording the author used for effect and to get the author’s exact meaning across.

Rule of Thumb:

Don’t let quotes stand alone

Work the quote in smoothly by leading into it with:

• proper attribution (giving the name and credentials of the person being quoted)

• and punctuation. You can lead into a quote using a comma

Do:

As lion authority John Seidensticker remarks, “The boldness displayed by mountain lions just doesn’t square with the shy, retiring behavior familiar to those of us who have studied these animals” (177).

Don’t:

John Seidensticker is an authority on mountain lions. “The boldness displayed by mountain lions just doesn’t square with the shy, retiring behavior familiar to those of us who have studied these animals” (177).

or you can lead into a quote using a colon:

Do:

For example, writing on the internet in an attempt to sway voters, lion population control advocate Steven Arroyo appeals to human fears of being eaten: “Two small children woke up one morning without a mother because a lion ate her.”

Don’t: Lion population control advocate Steven Arroyo appeals

to human fears of being eaten. “Two small children woke up one morning without a mother because a lion ate her.”

Always set up and analyze the quote

Remember the OREO rule

Step One: The Cookie -- Start with a few sentences, building up to and explaining the quote and why you are using it.

For example:

Without population control, the number of attacks on Californians will almost certainly continue to rise, and the lions may become even bolder.

Remember the OREO rule

• Step Two: The Cream -- Once you have built up to the quote, you are able to smoothly insert the quote into the context.

For example:

As lion authority John Seidensticker remarks, “The boldness displayedby mountain lions just doesn’t square with the shy, retiring behavior familiar to those of us who have studied these animals” (177).

Remember the OREO rule

• Step Three: The Cookie –

Now you may explain why the quote is important, how it relates back to your thesis/argument, and/or what you want the reader to take from it.

This part may come in the form of a transition in the next paragraph that links the quote to your next point.

For example:

He surmises that the lions have become emboldened because they no longer have to contend with wolves and grizzly bears, which dominated them in the past. The only conceivable predator to reinstill that fear is the human.

Putting the OREO togetherWithout population control, the number of attacks on Californians will almost certainly continue to rise, and the lions may become even bolder. As lion authority John Seidensticker remarks, “The boldness displayed by mountain lions just doesn’t square with the shy, retiringbehavior familiar to those of us who have studied these animals” (177). He surmises that the lions have become emboldened because they no longer have to contend with wolves and grizzly bears, which dominated them in the past. The only conceivable predator to reinstill that fear is the human.

50/50 Rule:• When incorporating external research into a paper:

– 50% should be from the source (quote, paraphrase, summary)– 50% should be your own analysis.

• Analysis = to break things down

• You should explain and/or interpret the information:

– How does this information relate to my thesis?– What are they really saying?– Why is this information important?

Using the OREO & 50/50 rules

• Choose one piece of information from either Source Journal 1 or 2.

• Write a paragraph (3-5 sentences) using that information to support your paper’s thesis/main argument.

– Include all three steps of the OREO rule (which should include both citation and analysis)