User:Abknych/sandbox

Wikipedia Genre Study: How to write an article about mammals

To write these instructions on "How to write an article about mammals", I examined two model articles about mammals that are considered either "good" or "featured" articles on Wikipedia. This led me to find similarities in articles about mammals. These similarities allow me to mirror the characteristics that are needed to write an exemplary article about a mammal, and describe these characteristics to others in the form of instructions. These instructions are intended for others to use to write an exemplary article, specifically about mammals. Each heading includes details that are important to include when writing the article.

Lead Section

All mammal articles should include a lead section. The lead section of the article includes details about it including the size of the animal, special behaviors, where they are found, population, and what they are known for. The humpback whale article is a good example of this, since it includes all of these topics, and is featured on Wikipedia as an exemplary article. The lead should introduce the animal, give a pronunciation if needed, and introduce where it comes from, as seen in the humpback whale article.

Information Box

There should be an information box about the mammal on the right-hand side of the article. This should include more specific information about the mammal, including a picture of the animal in its natural habitat, its conservation status, its scientific classification, binomial name, any subspecies of the animal, synonyms, and a diagram of its range of living. The information box can also include additional pictures and recordings/short videos specific to that animal. The humpback whale and cheetah articles both have information boxes that would be good to use as an example to follow. They include all of the specific and important information that makes the information box useful for readers.

Media

The article should include a variety of photos of the mammal in its natural habitat, and of the animal doing what is described in that section. My analysis of humpback whales found that there are usually 20-30 different media types in an article. These include photos, diagrams, videos, and recordings. There should also be short and appropriate captions to describe the photos that are used. Videos are also appropriate to use to show readers the animal in more detail. Other sources of media such as recordings, graphs, and diagrams can be used to show characteristics of the animal that may be hard to describe only using words. For example, the humpback whale article includes sound recordings of them singing.

Neutrality

Articles on mammals should not be bias. Facts about the mammal should be presented clearly and only come from published outside sources. As it states in the featured article criteria, no personal opinions on the animals should be included, and controversies should include both sides of the argument. Mammals are not normally controversial, but topics like their status in the wild and threats should be presented with facts and not opinions, like the humpback whale article does when it talks about the effects of pollution on them and potential injuries that they can experience.

Length

The length of an article on mammals should be from 5,000 to 10,000 words. Good and featured articles are detailed and are usually more lengthy than other articles, but should only include important information within each topic/heading. However if the mammal does not have much research already on it, then the article may be closer to 5,000 words or less, while more popular mammals with a lot of research and details about them may have a word count closer to 10,000 words, like the featured humpback whale article since they are popular mammals throughout the world.

Structure

The article of a mammal should have around 10-12 headings in the table of contents, including taxonomy, ecology, characteristics, behavior, status/threats, relations/interactions with humans, and references, as seen in the Cheetah and Humpback whale articles. Each heading/topic should include around 4-5 pictures relating to that heading, along with a diagram or recording/video where appropriate. The contents should include facts from appropriate sources, but no excessive information. The main facts that are included in the cheetah article include what the cheetah looks like and where it comes from, its anatomy, its speed, and other topics that describe the main ideas of the cheetah. Following the article contents, there should be references, sources, and external links to outside websites about that mammal.

Research & Sources

Research should be found in scientific books and magazines, scholarly journals, online encyclopedias, or research that is published from universities. These are the types of sources that are used in featured articles about mammals, and these sources would be the ideal place to find research for a well-written mammal article. Scientific research should be found from appropriate and reliable resources, and information should be verified by more than one source. Based off of my analysis of the Cheetah and Humpback Whale articles, about 150 sources should be used in a mammal article, from books, scholarly journals, scientific magazines, and research-based sources. Inline citations would be most effective for the article, with references at the bottom of the page in APA format. Many featured articles include inline citations, which are numbered footnotes with a reference list at the bottom of the article, making it easier for readers to note the sources used.

Well-written

Articles should be well-written by doing appropriate research, organizing the article effectively, and using language specific to the mammal. Specific words may include its scientific name of the mammal, which is its binomial name, or genus and species names. There should be no grammar mistakes or misspelling of words. All information should be correct since it is all from verified outside sources, and it is the expectation of featured articles as stated in their criteria. A well-written article may also include interesting facts to keep the reader interested, such as the cheetah article when they describe how the cheetah's fur is covered with nearly 2,000 solid black spots.

Things that I changed from my previous revision was the format of my instructions, and adding on details to most sections that are specific to my topic. Adding more detail allows my instructions to be more clear and easier for readers to follow.

--SFD

-lead section- describe size of animal, special behaviors that this animal does, where they're found, population, and what they're known for

-include pictures relevant to the topic- pictures in its natural habitat, pictures of the animal doing something- include captions on what the animal is doing

-information box- photo of animal, its scientific classification, binomial name, map of where it can be found around the world, conservation status

-Length: 5,000-10,000 words

-Sources: use around 150 sources; books, scholarly journals, scientific magazines, websites ending in .org

-inline citations and APA format

-also have a source section that puts the sources into categories based on the type of source it is

-Table of contents should include taxonomy, anatomy, characteristics, behaviors, status, feeding, ecology, references

-videos of animal

-based mostly off of research published on other websites

-use other sources of media such as recordings, graphs, diagrams, etc.

--Lead Section

Cinnamon

Cinnamon (/ˈsɪnəmən/ SIN-ə-mən) is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus Cinnamomum. The term "cinnamon" also refers to its mid-brown colour. Cinnamon is the name for several species of trees and the commercial spice products that some of them produce. All are members of the genus Cinnamomum in the family Lauraceae. Only a few Cinnamomum species are grown commercially for spice. Indonesia and Chinacontribute 76% of the world's production of cinnamon.

Cinnamomum verum is sometimes considered to be "true cinnamon", but most cinnamon in international commerce is derived from related species, also referred to as "cassia". The aroma and flavor of cinnamon derive from its essential oil and principal component, cinnamaldehyde, as well as numerous other constituents, including eugenol.

Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfast cereals, snackfoods, and traditional foods.

Cinnamon (/ˈsɪnəmən/ SIN-ə-mən) is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several evergreen tree species from the genus Cinnamomum. All Cinnamomum species are members of the genus Cinnamomum in the family Lauraceae, but only a few are grown commercially for spice. The several species that are sold as cinnamon come from many different countries, but Indonesia and China contribute to 76% of the world's production of cinnamon. These products vary in color, texture, and taste, but add flavor and aroma into a variety of cuisines and dishes of many countries. The aroma and flavor of cinnamon derive from its essential oil and principal component, cinnamaldehyde, including eugenol, which all makes up 0.5 to 1% of its composition.

Cinnamomum verum is sometimes considered to be "true cinnamon", but most cinnamon in international commerce is derived from related species, also referred to as "cassia". Cinnamon and cassia have historically been used in Egyptian burning rituals, as well as a flavouring agent for wine. It was also used in traditional medicine, but there is no scientific evidence that the consumption of cinnamon has any health benefits.

Coumarin, a significant component of cinnamon, is known to cause liver and kidney damage when consumed in high concentrations. Since it is considered toxic, a maximum recommended tolerable daily intake (TDI) of 0.1 mg of coumarin per kg of body weight should be consumed. Ground cinnamon is a rich source of vitamin K, calcium and iron, while providing moderate amounts of vitamin B6, vitamin E, magnesium, and zinc.