MLA Jeopardy
Fun With
Formatting Name That
Source Interpreting In-Text Citations
Partying Like it’s MLA 2009
P-Words
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200 200 200 200 200
300 300 300 300 300
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500 500 500 500 500
In MLA style, the titles of books, magazines, and films
should have this type of
formatting.
Italics
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TRUE or FALSE:
When citing a work with only one author, the author’s last
name should come first.
TRUE
If there is just one author, list his or her last name first.
(When there are multiple authors, the rules change).
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In MLA style, your paper as a whole should have certain formatting
characteristics: 1 inch margins, for example. Name at least two more of
these characteristics.
Possible answers:
• Double spacing
• A title
•A heading
• Your last name and page number in the top left corner
• A readable, standard font in a standard size (usually 11 or 12 point)
•A list of works cited
•Parenthetical citations
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Your list of works cited, as a whole, should be formatted according to specific guidelines. For example, the
whole list should be double-spaced.
Name two more guidelines for your
list of works cited.
Possible answers:
•Alphabetized
•Center the title “Works Cited” at the top of a new page
•All entries should have “hanging indentation”
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TRUE or FALSE
If you are citing a website and you cannot find out who the author was,
you should put “Author Unknown”
(or something similar) for that entry
in your list of works cited.
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FALSE.
When citing web sources, list only the information that is applicable and
available. This means that if no author is given, you do not list an author. (However, be sure to look
thoroughly for each piece of
requested information.)
The following is a citation for what type of source:
Fischer, Daniel. Mission Jupiter:
The Spectacular Journey of the Galileo Spacecraft. New York: Copernicus, 2001.
Print.
A print book.
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You use one of the library’s online research databases, Academic Search Premier, to find information for a paper. You find several
articles from Newsweek. How should you cite these articles?
a.As print magazine articles, since they also appeared in print.
b.As electronic articles, since you found them using an online database.
b. As electronic articles, since you found them using an online database.
(Always cite the version of the source you actually used.)
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The following is a citation for what type of source:
Johnson, Carrie. “Report Faults Handling of Wiretap Notes.”
Washington Post 2 Sept.
2008. Newspaper Source. Web.
14 Oct. 2008.
The online version of a newspaper article.
(This article was found using Newspaper Source, one of the library’s
research databases.)
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In the following citation for a magazine article, what does “Academic Search
Premier” refer to?
Berman, Sanford. “Time to Renew Darfur Stand.” American
Libraries June/July 2007.
Academic Search Premier. Web.
14 Oct. 2008.
It is the name of the library research database in which
you found the article.
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The following is a citation for what type of source?
“What Alternatives to Milk are Consumed by Humans?” Milk:
Procon.org. Procon.org, 8 April 2008. Web. 15 May 2009.
An article from the website procon.org
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The purpose of in-text citations (AKA parenthetical citations) is:
a.To annoy students
b.To make it easier for the reader to find the original source
c.To establish authority and credibility for your argument and for the facts you are citing
d.B and C
d. B and C
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TRUE or FALSE:
If you are citing information from a website, you do not need to include a
parenthetical citation, since websites
don’t have page numbers.
FALSE.
•If a source does not have page
numbers, use the author’s name for the parenthetical citation.
•If a source does not have an author OR page numbers, cite the title of the source.
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This type of phrase, which states the name (and sometimes the credentials)
of an author or other source, is used to alert the reader that information from an outside source will follow.
Example: “According to historian
Nancy Cott, ….”
A signal phrase.
“A 2007 study from the Pew Research Center found that…”
“In his 2009 State of the Union Address, President Obama stated
that…”
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What is the correct in-text citation for a quote on page 112 from the book
Race Matters by Cornel West?
a. (West, p. 112.)
b. (Cornel West 112).
c. (West 112).
d. (Race Matters, 112.)
e. C or D
c. (West 112).
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TRUE or FALSE
If you state a fact in your paper that is considered to be “common
knowledge,” you do not need to cite
a source for it.
TRUE
Information that is considered common knowledge does not need to be cited.
“Common knowledge” is information that is broadly known and not disputed by scholars, such as MLK’s birthday or the date on which
the Declaration of Independence was signed.
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Web, Print, and Film are all
examples of what?
A “medium of publication.”
All entries in your list of works cited must list a medium of publication.
Use Print for: Print versions of books, newspapers, magazines, encyclopedias, etc.
Use Web for: Websites, e-books, articles you find using one of the library’s online
research databases, etc.
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If you are having trouble figuring out how to cite a source using MLA
2009, where can you go for help?
•Ask your instructor
•Ask an ARC librarian
•Look in the index of the MLA
Handbook or another writing guide.
•owl.english.purdue.edu (A great website from Purdue University)
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You go online to do research, and you find a good news article on the New York Times website. When you
are citing this source, what should
the “medium of publication” be?
Web.
(Even though the article may also appear in print.)
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TRUE or FALSE:
When you are citing a website, you
no longer have to list the URL.
TRUE.
Just remember to list the medium of publication.
(Web).
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When citing a website, you must list the website’s “publisher or sponsor.”
Where might you look for that
information? Give one example.
Possible places to look:
• “About Us” section
• Copyright statement on the bottom of the page
• Go to the site’s home page
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Another name for in-text
citations is what?
Parenthetical citations.
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Using another person’s
words or ideas in your paper without giving that person proper credit is considered
what?
Plagiarism.
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To paraphrase means to:
a.Quote an author’s exact wording.
b.Summarize or re-phrase an author’s ideas in my own words.
c.Use an author’s words without
giving her proper credit.
b. Summarize or re-phrase an author’s ideas in my own words.
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List at least two instances in which you would need to
provide a parenthetical
citation in your paper.
Possible answers:
•You use a direct quote.
•You paraphrase or summarize an author’s idea.
•You state a fact or statistic that is not considered common knowledge.
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TRUE or FALSE:
If you paraphrase an author’s
words or ideas, you do not need to
cite that author in your paper.
FALSE.
Even if you re-phrase another author’s idea, you still need to
give credit to that person through an in-text citation.
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