30 Activity: Find Top Authorities for a Subject
Get together in small groups, and by both pooling group knowledge and doing research, develop a list of three authoritative books/websites for information on one of the following subjects:
- Lead Poisoning in Homes
- American Hate Groups
- Weight Loss
- Nuclear Policy
- Philosophy of Stoicism
- Civil War and Race
- The Deficit and Deficit Spending
Your sources should be:
- Written, edited, or curated by people with a high-level of subject expertise
- Have a process in place that ensures accuracy and verification
Or, the sources should be:
- Written and published by someone with a reputation for accuracy
- Informed by a broad array of expert interviews and perspectives
When each group has finished their selection, trade your list of expert books/sites with another group and have that group critique the list.
Some questions for reflection:
- Do the best sources show up at the top of Google search results?
- If not, what does show up? Why do you think that result shows up instead?