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Where You Give Credit

Bibliographies, footnotes and parentheticals

You give credit in two ways: within the paper in footnotes or parentheticals and at the end of a paper in the bibliography.

Bibliography

BIBLIOGRAPHY
DEFINITION: A list of sources used in a research paper.

It is composed of a list of citations. Citations include the author, when listed on the work, the title, and the publication information of a work. The bibliography usually appears at the end of a research paper. Depending on the style used, it may be called bibliography, references, works cited, or other terms.

WANT TO SEE some citations?
> Unit 4 > A Primer on Databases and Catalogs
> Unit 5 > The Great GALILEO

Footnotes and parentheticals

Most styles use either footnotes, endnotes, or parentheticals. Footnotes are placed at the bottom of a page, and endnotes are placed on a separate page at the end of the paper. Most word processors will do these for you automatically.

A parenthetical is a brief reference in parentheses at the end of a sentence referring the reader to a full citation in the bibliography. The name 'parentheticals' comes from the fact that this type of citation is enclosed in brackets — which is another word for 'parentheses'.

Both footnotes and parenthicals are ways in which the researcher gives credit within a research paper. For more information on footnotes and parentheticals, refer to a style manual.

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