Introduction
It is critical to use reliable and valid sources for any academic work. For my persuasive essay about coral reefs, I have chosen four sources. They provide general facts about coral reefs, information on the contribution of coral reefs to tourism revenues, the impact of global warming on them, and how coral reefs are different across various geographical regions. There is much information available on the topic. Common points of discussion in the field are that coral reefs are influenced by deteriorating effects of global warming, and, in some regions, they are vulnerable to environmental changes, and that coral reefs may generate significant amounts of revenue for tourism. The criteria for the evaluation of sources are bias level, credibility, reliability, and date of publication. This paper will also discuss the limitations of each source and how the works will be used in the essay. Considering bias level is essential because works that mostly rely on personal beliefs and experiences cannot be used for objective reasoning. The credibility of both the author and the publisher influences the expectations we have about the source. Also, if the work is not reliable and outdated, its usage in other academic papers will render the works as unreliable as well.
Assessment of Sources
“Global Warming Transforms Coral Reef Assemblages,” Hughes et al. Bias level in this source is low because the paper relies on statistical facts, and was written and reviewed by a large number of scientists before being published. The article is credible because most of the authors are professors at James Cook University, and the publisher, Nature is well-known in the scientific community. The reliability of the work can be shown by the fact that the authors used official statistics provided by the Australian Bureau of Meteorology (Hughes et al. 493). The paper provides an up-to-date perspective on the effects of global warming on coral reefs because the statistical data was collected within the last three years. Because the authors relied only on the data provided by the Australian government, the paper is limited in scope. I will use this paper in order to obtain information about how climate change is negatively affecting coral reefs.
“What are Coral Reefs?” Ross. This source provides only facts and is written to inform rather than persuade, and therefore, has a low bias level. Credibility can be questioned because the author is not an academic worker but an individual contributor. However, the work is reliable because it is easy to check the provided information for validity through encyclopedias and other books. Also, the publisher is not a casual website but a popular science magazine. The work was published within the last two years, which makes the source recent enough for use in academic papers. The limitation is similar to the previous article – it discusses coral reefs only in the context of the Australian ecosystem (Ross). It would have been much more comprehensive if the author included examples of coral reefs in other regions of the world. This work will be used to attain a general understanding of coral reefs.
Identifying Coral Reef Resilience Potential in Tutuila, American Samoa Based on NOAA Coral Reef Monitoring Data, Schumacher et al. The authors published the work on behalf of the United States Department of Commerce and provided only objective information in the form of statistical calculations; therefore, the level of bias is low. Because it is a government publication, it is credible and reliable. Furthermore, the authors are academic workers at universities and government research centers. The work was published only two years ago, and therefore, can be considered as a recent publication. The major limitation of this paper is that it does not explain why coral reefs in certain areas are more resilient to environmental changes than in others (Schumacher et al. 10). However, it stays as a useful source of information – it shows that the geographical region has a significant influence on the coral reef ecosystem. I will use this source to support my claim that there cannot be a single approach suitable for supporting all coral reefs.
“Mapping the Global Value and Distribution of Coral Reef Tourism,” Spalding et al. The authors discuss the contribution of coral reefs to tourism revenues (Spalding et al. 104). There is some bias in the paper because the authors do not provide any information about the implications of using coral reefs as a tourism destination. The authors only concentrate on the financial aspect of coral reef tourism. The work is credible and reliable, however, because it was published by Elsevier, a notable publishing company. Also, the authors are professors and researchers at various universities around the world. The work was published within the last three years, which is recent. The limitation of the work is the cause of bias – the authors do not discuss the negative impact tourism may have on the coral reef ecosystem. This source will be used to address some of the reasons why sustainability is essential for both global tourism and coral reefs.
Conclusion
Before deciding on academic sources, credibility, reliability, and limitations should be analyzed. It is also critical to consider when the work was published and who the authors are. In summary, the sources I have chosen are valid and reliable. The majority of them have low bias levels and can be used for the construction of objective arguments. Only one work out of four is found to contain biased information. All papers are recent because they were published within the last three years. Only minor limitations were identified, but these shortcomings do not significantly impact the feasibility of my essay.
References
Hughes, Terry P., et al. “Global Warming Transforms Coral Reef Assemblages.” Nature, vol. 556, no. 1, 2018, pp. 492-496.
Ross, Rachel. “What are Coral Reefs?”Live Science,2018. Web.
Schumacher, Brett, et al. Identifying Coral Reef Resilience Potential in Tutuila, American Samoa Based on NOAA Coral Reef Monitoring Data. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, 2018.
Spalding, Mark, et al. “Mapping the Global Value and Distribution of Coral Reef Tourism.” Marine Policy, vol. 82, no. 1, 2017, pp. 104-113.