The document discusses plagiarism and proper citation, defining plagiarism as using someone's ideas or words without credit. It outlines Towson University's academic integrity policy and covers citing sources properly using MLA style through examples and discussion of citing quotes, paraphrases, and various source types like articles and websites. The presentation aims to help students avoid plagiarism and understand the importance of citing sources.

1. COSC 111 : Plagiarism and
Proper Citation
Laksamee Putnam – Research & Instruction Librarian
Slides: http://bit.ly/COSCschmittplagiarismslides12

2. First…
 Laksamee Putnam
 lputnam@towson.edu
 Cook Library Reference:
◦ 410.704.2462.
◦ IM/email
 Phone: 410.704.3746.
 Twitter: @CookLibraryofTU
 Albert S. Cook facebook profile
 Slides:
http://bit.ly/COSCschmittplagiarismslides12

3. A quick plug…
 Bringing Political Cartoons to Life: An
Evening with Cartoonist Kevin “KAL”
Kallaugher
 When: Thursday, September 20 from 7-
9pm
 Where: West Village Commons
Ballrooms
 What: Cartoonist for The Baltimore Sun
and The Economist, Kevin “KAL”
Kallaugher will speak about how he
creates his political cartoons. The talk
will be followed by Q&A, book signings
and an opportunity to meet KAL.

4. Agenda
 Define plagiarism
 Real world examples and discussion
 Towson Policy – Academic Integrity
 MLA citation style

5. What is your definition of
plagiarism?
http://bit.ly/COSCpollplagiarism2012

6. What is your definition of
plagiarism?
http://bit.ly/COSCpollplagiarism2012

7. What is your definition of
plagiarism?
◦ Using someone’s ideas or expression of
those ideas (words, pictures, music, etc)
◦ Without giving proper credit

8. An interesting side story
 A quote attributed to Martin Luther King
Jr. went viral after the death of Osama bin
Laden
 But part of it was never said or written by
him
 http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archiv
e/2011/05/anatomy-of-a-fake-
quotation/238257/
 What’s the big deal?

9. www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32657885
It’s out there, why not reuse it?
Gabriel, Trip. “Plagiarism Lines Blur for Students in the
Image by Duane Hoffmann
Digital Age.” nytimes.com. The New York Times, 1
Aug 2010. Web. 14 Feb. 2012.
<http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/02/education
/02cheat.html>
“If you are not so worried about presenting yourself as absolutely unique, then
it’s O.K.
…if you say other people’s words, it’s O.K. if you say things you don’t believe,
…it’s O.K. if you write papers you couldn’t care less about because they
accomplish the task, which is turning something in and getting a grade
… and it’s O.K. if you put words out there without getting any credit.”
~Susan D. Blum anthropologist at The University of Notre Dame,
author of “My Word!: Plagiarism and College Culture” on student attitudes
toward plagiarism

10. It’s out there, why not reuse it?
 What does intellectual property mean to you? Is it
an important idea, why or why not?
 With so much information out there, is there such
a thing as an original idea? Does that mean you
have to credit every single person?
 How does plagiarism affect academia?

11. Information Junk Food
 Prater, E. (2011) Beware online filter
bubbles. TED: Ideas worth spreading.
http://www.ted.com/talks/eli_pariser_bew
are_online_filter_bubbles.html

12. Why does it matter?
Appelbaum,Y. (2012). How the professor who fooled
Wikipedia got caught by Reddit. The Atlantic.
May 15.
http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/
05/how-the-professor-who-fooled-wikipedia-
got-caught-by-reddit/257134/#
“The students may have failed to pull off a spectacular hoax, but they
surely learned a tremendous amount in the process.”

13. Why does it matter?
 What are the pros and cons of so much
information being online?
 What do you do to be sure you’re finding
more than “information junk food”?
◦ How do you evaluate the information you find
while researching?
 Why is it important to support your
argument with valid sources?

14. Common Knowledge Quandary
 “I’ve heard that common knowledge doesn’t
have to be cited. What is common
knowledge?”
 Some examples:
◦ Waste not, want not.
◦ George Washington was the first president of the
US
◦ College students like pizza…
 When in doubt, cite it.

15. The point is…
 No matter where you are, you will
constantly need to assess the information
around you
 In order to be an informed consumer you
should know how to evaluate the
information you acquire
 In order to support your own arguments
you should know how to research your
question and cite your sources

16. What is the policy at Towson?
 Policy for Academic Integrity:
◦ http://bit.ly/PiX2z2
 Two Strike System
 100 reported cases a year
 One suspension a year

17. Why is it important to cite your
sources?
 Poll
◦ http://bit.ly/COSCpoll2plagiarism2012

18. Why is it important to cite your
sources?
 Allows your readers to verify and identify
your information
◦ Support your argument
 Gives credit to the owners of the ideas
◦ Not plagiarizing
 Get credit for your ideas!
 Required for your assignment!

19. What needs to be cited?
 Books Examples: images
from Web,
 Web Pages statistical tables
 Magazine articles
 Graphics
 VHS,DVD, audio, etc.
 Government reports
 Statistics
 Encyclopedia articles
 Any source of information!

20. Example A http://bit.ly/COSCschmitt12A
 Original  Student
 Don't look for one of these  Google's approach may win
tech heavyweights to knock out over the long term. In the
out the other.Yet if history is early 1980s Apple lost its lead
any guide, Google's approach in the PC market as Microsoft
may win out over the long enlisted the aid of hordes of
term. Recall that in the early software developers and
1980s Apple lost its lead in dozens of PC manufacturers.
the PC market when
Microsoft enlisted the aid of
hordes of software
developers and dozens of PC
manufacturers. Now, if
Google can marshal such a
united front, Apple could
again be swamped by the
collective innovations.

21. Example A
 Original  Student
 Don't look for one of these  Google's approach may win
tech heavyweights to knock out over the long term. In the
out the other.Yet if history is early 1980s Apple lost its lead
any guide, Google's approach in the PC market as Microsoft
may win out over the long enlisted the aid of hordes of
term. Recall that in the early software developers and
1980s Apple lost its lead in dozens of PC manufacturers.
the PC market when
Microsoft enlisted the aid of
hordes of software
developers and dozens of PC
manufacturers. Now, if
Google can marshal such a
united front, Apple could
again be swamped by the
collective innovations.

22. Example B http://bit.ly/COSCschmitt12B
 Original  Student
 Don't look for one of these  History tells us that Google's
tech heavyweights to knock approach may be successful
out the other.Yet if history is over the long term. In the
any guide, Google's approach early 1980s Apple lagged in
may win out over the long the PC market as Microsoft
term. Recall that in the early collaborated with software
1980s Apple lost its lead in developers and dozens of PC
the PC market when manufacturers. Now, if
Microsoft enlisted the aid of Google would only summon a
hordes of software united front, Apple could
developers and dozens of PC again be swamped by the
manufacturers. Now, if collective innovations
Google can marshal such a (Burrows).
united front, Apple could
again be swamped by the
collective innovations.

23. Example B
 Original  Student
 Don't look for one of these  History tells us that Google's
tech heavyweights to knock approach may be successful
out the other.Yet if history is over the long term. In the
any guide, Google's approach early 1980s Apple lagged in
may win out over the long the PC market as Microsoft
term. Recall that in the early collaborated with software
1980s Apple lost its lead in developers and dozens of PC
the PC market when manufacturers. Now, if
Microsoft enlisted the aid of Google would only summon a
hordes of software united front, Apple could
developers and dozens of PC again be swamped by the
manufacturers. Now, if collective innovations
Google can marshal such a (Burrows).
united front, Apple could
again be swamped by the
collective innovations.

24. Example C http://bit.ly/COSCschmitt12C
 Original  Student
 Don't look for one of these  Google stands a chance of
tech heavyweights to knock beating Apple if it can benefit
out the other.Yet if history is from the pooled ideas of
any guide, Google's approach software developers and
may win out over the long device manufacturers,
term. Recall that in the early following the strategy that
1980s Apple lost its lead in Microsoft employed to
the PC market when Apple’s detriment in the early
Microsoft enlisted the aid of ‘80s.
hordes of software
developers and dozens of PC
manufacturers. Now, if
Google can marshal such a
united front, Apple could
again be swamped by the
collective innovations.

25. Example C
 Original  Student
 Don't look for one of these  Google stands a chance of
tech heavyweights to knock beating Apple if it can benefit
out the other.Yet if history is from the pooled ideas of
any guide, Google's approach software developers and
may win out over the long device manufacturers,
term. Recall that in the early following the strategy that
1980s Apple lost its lead in Microsoft employed to
the PC market when Apple’s detriment in the early
Microsoft enlisted the aid of ‘80s.
hordes of software
developers and dozens of PC
manufacturers. Now, if
Google can marshal such a
united front, Apple could
again be swamped by the
collective innovations.

26. Example D http://bit.ly/COSCschmitt12D
 Original  Student
 Don't look for one of these  It is possible that in the battle
tech heavyweights to knock of the “tech heavyweights”
out the other.Yet if history is Google might eventually
any guide, Google's approach prevail over Apple if it follows
may win out over the long the strategy that Microsoft
term. Recall that in the early employed to Apple’s
1980s Apple lost its lead in detriment during the early
the PC market when ‘80s: collaborating, and
Microsoft enlisted the aid of innovating, with software
hordes of software developers and manufacturers
developers and dozens of PC (Burrows 25).
manufacturers. Now, if
Google can marshal such a
united front, Apple could
again be swamped by the
collective innovations.

27. Example D
 Original  Student
 Don't look for one of these  It is possible that in the battle
tech heavyweights to knock of the “tech heavyweights”
out the other.Yet if history is Google might eventually
any guide, Google's approach prevail over Apple if it follows
may win out over the long the strategy that Microsoft
term. Recall that in the early employed to Apple’s
1980s Apple lost its lead in detriment during the early
the PC market when ‘80s: collaborating, and
Microsoft enlisted the aid of innovating, with software
hordes of software developers and manufacturers
developers and dozens of PC (Burrows 25).
manufacturers. Now, if
Google can marshal such a
united front, Apple could
again be swamped by the
collective innovations.

28. Tips to avoid plagiarism
 Documentation
- keep track of materials
used for your working
bibliography
 Quote carefully – color
code or use quotes
when taking notes.
Beware cutting & pasting.
 Note key ideas then
“Shut the book”
 Try to boil down the
info—summarize
 Proofread!

29. Style Manuals
 Different disciplines use
different style manuals
◦ Social Sciences = American
Psychological Association (APA)
◦ Humanities = MLA Handbook for
Writers of Research Papers
(MLA)

30. Library Resources for MLA

31. Citing correctly in MLA – Exact
Quote
Every in-text
 1. “x” citation should
have a match
in the
 2. In-text citation bibliography
(Smith 35) or (Smith)
 3. An entry in the Works Cited list (the
bibliography) at the end of the paper

32. Citing correctly in MLA -
Paraphrase
 1. Legitimate paraphrase
Again, every in-text
 2. In-text citation citation should have a
match in the
(Smith 35) or (Smith) bibliography!
 3. An entry in the Works Cited list at
the end of the paper

33. In-text Citation for an Article (HTML)
from a Database (Business Source Complete)
 In-text:
◦ Mobile devices increase access to sensitive
corporate data (Swartz 25).
 In-text with signal phrase:
◦ Swartz points out that mobile devices increase
access to sensitive corporate data (25).

34. Works Cited Entry for an Article (HTML)
from a Database (Business Source Premier)
Swartz, Nikki. “Safeguarding Corporate
Secrets.” Information Management Journal
40.5 (2006): 24-30. Business Source
Complete. Web. 8 Feb. 2012.

35. Works Cited
Association of Associations. Surprising Statistics: A
Study. AA, 2009. Web. 9 Sept. 2011.
<http://www.theassociation.org/stats.>
Santana, Beverly. “Why Is Research So
Challenging?” Journal of Puzzling Questions
22.4(2011): 110-145. Academic Search Premier.
Web. 14 Feb. 2012.
Wolfensohn, Hans David. You Will Enjoy This Book:
Read It Now. Towson, MD: Towson Press, 2011.
Print.

36. Sample Paper in MLA style
 Would you like to see how a sample
paper in MLA Style looks, headings, in-
text citations, Works Cited list and all?
◦ http://bit.ly/A6LUEk
 If you need more than the resource
guides on the library website
◦ Diane Hacker
◦ OWL

37. Questions?
 Feel free to contact me:
◦ Laksamee Putnam
◦ lputnam@towson.edu
◦ 410.704.3746.
◦ Twitter: @CookLibraryofTU
 Or any reference librarian:
◦ Visit Cook Library Reference Desk
◦ 410.704.2462.
◦ IM – tucookchat