Online source 3

“Specific Page Title or Article Title”	"Pollution in Freshwater Ecosystems"
Primary Contributor to the Website (if given) (author, editor, producer, etc)	N/A
Title of the Entire Website (not www. )	Biology Online
Publisher or Sponsoring Organization of the website (if given)	N/A
Date Page was Last Revised	January 1, 2000
Date You Read It	February 3, 2012
<URL address> (ALL of it)	http://www.biology-online.org/6/17_pollution.htm

FIVE FACTS FROM THE SOURCE (Embedded):

The article is opened by stating "As with all ecosystems, the existence and operations of human society inevitably have an effect on the way of life in a freshwater community," arguing that humans will always have an effect on ecosystems.

The article continues to say, "For each action that man takes in this lifestyle, there is a resultant effect on the ecosystem," stating that almost everything we do affects the ecosystem, not just the widely publicized polluters.

By stating, "we are upsetting the fine balance of the ecosystem as a whole, which then has a knock on effect on other organisms living in that particular ecosystem." the article is trying to persuade readers to be more conscious with their actions and the consequences they may have on wildlife.

The article argues that "human action results in a response from the ecosystem, either physically or chemically, which in the long run affects the lives of organisms that live in these communities" implying that even if we can physically see any damage, there could still be damage being caused by human pollution.

Summary of Source (Three-Four Sentences of the Who, What, Where, Why, and How in your own words. NO OPINION):

This article examines the effect that hmans have on ecosystems. It provides examples of human behavior that causes detrimental effects on organisms living in ecosystems, particularly in freshwater ecosystems. It goes on to say that humans should be more considerate with how they expose of their waste and treat the environment.

Credibility of Source:
Author or Site: Who is the author? What training have they had? If there is no author, examine the site. What is the purpose of the site? Who funds the site?

The site is an imformational biology site. It has no personal gain from the article, and its main goal is to be educational.

Attachment: Does the author or site have anything to gain from writing this, or is it simply informative? For example, is it a cigarette business posting an article about the benefit of cigarettes, or is it a scientific community unaffiliated with the cigarette business?

This article is purely informative. The website has no benefit from this article except for educating readers.

Bias: Do you detect a bias (a favoring of either side) in the author's writing?

There is no bias, the article provides facts on what is happening to the ecosystem and why.

References: Does the author cite references in the writing? If so, do these add or take away from the credibility?


There are no references. This slightly takes away from the arguments since there is no evidence to support the claims.


Use of Source: How will you use this source in your project?

I will use this source to provide facts and evidence of how pollution is negatively affecting our ecosystem, particularly in freshwater ecosystems.