How to optimize research in a modern world

For millennia humans had to rely on making physical contact with bound paper or chiseled stone in order to explore any isolated piece of information. Humanity has adapted to this model; refining society around this very method of spreading knowledge. Today things have changed. To the envy of the past world, our current society has a constant flow of a vast wealth of information right at our fingertips. This new method brings with it many benefits, but with it comes some growing pains. With so much information the new challenge is learning how to sort through all of the material and distinguishing what is credible.

First, it is important to get a handle on the differences between primary and secondary sources. Primary sources function as an original source of reported information such as government reports, economic documents or scientific journals. Secondary sources take information from primary documents and reduce it to a comprehensive report for the public to consume. Tertiary sources also exist which function as the next step down from secondary sources. Society functions on non-primary sources. This introduces a problem as news organizations can pick and choose which sources they want to report on and twist the narrative to however they see fit. The cycle of information can undergo any amount of further filtration the more the consumer strays from primary sources. It is not uncommon for people to get their news from entertainment personalities discussing the news which filters the information once more. This is why it is always important to trace information back to their source. This may seem impossible to do with the vast amount of information to look through, especially when a website has neglected to source a claim. Thankfully, there are many methods that can reduce the work to more manageable chunks.

You can start researching a particular topic by first comparing the work that others have done. This can be accomplished by analyzing any number of outlets. After searching the internet for any given topic, make sure to analyze which websites provide the information listed on the first page of the search engine and be mindful of which resource you want to dedicate energy towards. Topics related to science, for example, can be reported by news outlets for free, while scientific journals may have a paywall attached. This adds an economic filter towards primary sources. Though, there are certain methods of gaining access to original research for free. These include things such as asking the author for a copy of their work or enabling browser extensions that can automatically search the web for a free copy of the paper. Scholarly material can be found using various databases that have search engines specifically dedicated to bringing up scholarly material. This material can be identified as having been written by a professional in the field, or by sourcing to other original works by professionals. The references section of any academic piece is another great way to find more credible information on a topic.

Some organizations are dedicated to producing research such as think tanks. Pew Research is an example of a think tank that performs research on public opinion which is crucial to have an awareness of in today's democracy. In addition, institutions like Pew Research provide comprehensive graphs of their data so that the information is digestible to the reader. Think tanks can be funded by a wide range of sources and can, therefore, be subjected to left or right-wing bias, so it is necessary to always research how the source stacks up against bias.

Contrary to popular belief, even Wikipedia has proven itself to be a useful tool among a number of studies including one conducted by Nature which indicates that it is about as credible as Encyclopedia Britannica. This is, of course, a case by case scenario. Some wiki articles, such as those of political figures, are more subject to vandalism than others. If nothing else, Wikipedia is a good collection of user-generated references that can take the reader to some scholarly sources. You can jump right into the sources, or you can read the wiki and treat it as a rough summary of the relevance of each piece of source material provided in the reference section. Any misinformation will be filtered out the more that research is performed, which is a general rule that applies to all research.

Instead of being treated as a binary true or false value, how true something is should be treated as a spectrum of probability where the probability of something being true increases the more that credible support is found for such information. It is okay to consume misinformation as long as you always remain skeptical of all the sources that you take in. Always try to contextualize vague claims. For example, it is important to question a source when it says: “some believe,” or “studies show.” These phrases can be used to enlist the illusion of credibility but without knowing what exactly the source is referring to, it is nothing more than a vague statement. Always have the standard: “who, what, where, when, why, how,” questions in the back of your mind when consuming any material. In the case of a source appealing to studies, it is necessary to find the original source material to see if the study supports the claim by the source using honest and effective methods. It is not unheard of for a news agency to blow up a small causal relationship reported by a study. In addition, it doesn’t hurt to see who is funding the material that is being reported to ensure what monetary biases could be at play. Some scientific material explicitly recites how it is being funded so that the reader knows if there are any conflicts of interest.

Relevant information can be filtered using various google search procedures. Quotation marks can allow Google to add significance to specific words or phrases. Including a minus symbol before a word can also tell Google to redact the word in question. For example, if you are interested in space and want to search for “the big bang theory,” but keep getting results for the sitcom television show of the same name, you can put “-television” to let Google know to filter out websites that include these tags. One can also include items like .edu, .gov, or .pdf in their searches to find websites that adhere to those specific formats. Even including terms such as “intro to” or “(TOPIC) 101” can provide textbook material relevant to whatever you want to learn. A few extra time savers for those who are especially adamant on tracking down information reside in a few keyboard shortcuts. Ctrl+C can copy text and ctrl+V pastest it (or in the case of Mac users, replace Ctrl with command). The letter choice for the paste shortcut may not be very intuitive but it at least earns its place by being right next to the copy key. Ctrl+F will bring up a search bar that will allow you to search any text on that page. This is especially useful when you are trying to track the origins of a single claim.

New venues of spreading information will always spring up in our society. Each time it will be up to the people to ensure that these sources are used properly to advocate a public that is informed to its fullest potential. Over time the methods of internet-savvy research will become normalized and the population will become more educated and powerful than it has ever been. Let ignorance be afraid for nothing can stop us now.