The ideal situation to which Wikipedia contributors\editors are striving for kinda makes desires to cite Wikipedia itself pointless. Well written Wikipedia article should not contain any information that has no original source attached. So it should always be available to switch from wiki article to original material doing citing. And it is that way as far as my experience goes.
Regarding alternatives. Academic papers serve different purpose and must not be used as navigation material. The only real alternative i know is the field handbooks.
The ideal situation to which Wikipedia contributors\editors are striving for kinda makes desires to cite Wikipedia itself pointless. Well written Wikipedia article should not contain any information that has no original source attached. So it should always be available to switch from wiki article to original material doing citing.
I see what you’re saying, but citing Wikipedia has the benefit that a person looking at the source gets to read Wikipedia (which is generally easier to read) rather than the academic paper. Plus, it’s less work for the person doing the citation.
It’s less work for the citer, but that extra work helps guide against misinformation. In principle, you are only supposed to cite what you’ve actually read, so if someone has misdescribed the content of the citation, making the next citer check what the original text says helps catch the mistake.
And while citing the original is extra work for the citer, it’s less work for anyone who wants to track down and read the original citation.
The ideal situation to which Wikipedia contributors\editors are striving for kinda makes desires to cite Wikipedia itself pointless. Well written Wikipedia article should not contain any information that has no original source attached. So it should always be available to switch from wiki article to original material doing citing. And it is that way as far as my experience goes.
Regarding alternatives. Academic papers serve different purpose and must not be used as navigation material. The only real alternative i know is the field handbooks.
I see what you’re saying, but citing Wikipedia has the benefit that a person looking at the source gets to read Wikipedia (which is generally easier to read) rather than the academic paper. Plus, it’s less work for the person doing the citation.
It’s less work for the citer, but that extra work helps guide against misinformation. In principle, you are only supposed to cite what you’ve actually read, so if someone has misdescribed the content of the citation, making the next citer check what the original text says helps catch the mistake.
And while citing the original is extra work for the citer, it’s less work for anyone who wants to track down and read the original citation.