I had forgotten all about MLA vs APA. Thank you! mas
On Tue, Jul 21, 2015 at 9:28 AM, Tomas Leal <[email protected]> wrote: > The English teacher in me writes: > > "Proper" citation depends upon the discipline involved and the specific > reading audience. The two main styles used throughout the U.S. are those of > the Modern Language Association (MLA) and the American Psychological > Association (APA). The two are similar and also significantly different. > Every English department uses MLA and social sciences use APA. Each style > differs because of the type of sources used and what aspects of those > sources are more important. For example, for an in-text citation, MLA > requires name and page number but APA requires name and year of > publication. MLA is more interested in exactly where the citation came from > and APA is more interested in how current the information is. MLA requires > a "works cited" page that provides full publication information in a > particular order and APA requires a "references list" with information in a > different particular order. There are several other styles in use as well. > > "How do I cite . . . ?" depends on what audience you're writing for. > Regardless of audience, you know some things need to be available for your > reader: > > - The source you used for the information you cite. For a general > audience, a simple "signal phrase" at the start of the sentence telling > readers where you got it is sufficient. In terms the information frommy > grandfather's birth registration, that I read the physical record book in > the Horta archives, accessed the same page online via the CCA site, and had > Vanda Fraga, a notary in Madalena, Pico, get a certified record for me > doesn't really make any difference in terms of the information. All three > provided me the same basic information. If I just say where I got it in the > sentence, that's probably good enough. > - What should the reader be able to do with your source? If the reader > should be able to duplicate your method and find the exact same > information, then you need to tell the reader exactly where you looked. If > there is no reason for the reader to duplicate your effort, there's no need > for a formal citation. > - If you are publishing an article in a professional journal, your > readers have specific expectations of how you cite your sources. Follow > those guidelines. Without researching the point at all, I have a hunch > genealogy falls within the general umbrella of social sciences, so journals > would use APA. Posts to this list would not. > > Can you tell I'm teaching Freshman Composition online while spending the > summer here in the Azores? :-) > > Tomás Leal > > -- > For options, such as changing to List, Digest, Abridged, or No Mail > (vacation) mode, log into your Google account and visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/Azores. Click in the blue area on the > right that says "Join this group" and it will take you to "Edit my > membership." > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Azores Genealogy" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/azores. > -- *MaryAnn Santos* Senior Advisement and Student Affairs Administrator Department of Art and Art Professions NYU/Steinhardt 212.998.5702 [email protected] Follow us at *Twitter / @NYUart <https://twitter.com/NYUart>Instagram / @nyuart <http://instagram.com/nyuart>* *Facebook / NYU Art Department <https://www.facebook.com/pages/NYU-Art-Department/53833145389>* -- For options, such as changing to List, Digest, Abridged, or No Mail (vacation) mode, log into your Google account and visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Azores. Click in the blue area on the right that says "Join this group" and it will take you to "Edit my membership." --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Azores Genealogy" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/azores.
