Policy on Plagiarism

Plagiarizism is defined as "To take something (ideas, writings, etc.) from anyone and pass them off as one's own" (Webster's New World Dictionary, 2nd Ed., 1976). Often students are not clear on what constitutes plagiarism.

Here are some common examples:

• Copying another student's work (whole or part) is plagiarism.

• Failure to give full and proper citation to other individual's published work is plagiarism.

“Full and proper citation” requires the following: (1) quotation marks around any quoted passage , (2) a correct citation to the publication from where the ideas originated in the text, and (3) a complete reference to that publication in the "Literature Cited" section of a formal paper or assignment. If an author’s work is paraphrased, then quotes are not needed, but the idea must still be followed by a correct citation in the text and a complete reference to that publication in the “Literature Cited.” This applies to all forms of communication including websites, textbooks, lab manuals, or even a personal communication from someone. Plagiarism is a serious violation, as stipulated in the Academic Misconduct section of “The Student Code” at the University of Connecticut, and it will not be tolerated in this course. You are to familiarize yourself with University’s policy on Academic Misconduct at the following web address:

http://www.dosa.uconn.edu/student_code.html

The instructors of this course will adhere to the guidelines outlined in “The Student Code,” therefore students should read and understand these policies and the consequences of such violations.

There are many resources available to students to help illustrate plagiarism including the websites listed below. It is your responsibility to become fully informed about this issue. You should spend as much time as is necessary to visit each of these websites and become familiar with the material on plagiarism presented on the sites before September 5, 2008. You should then sign the page below and turn the sign paper into your writing instructor before September 5, 2008. Your signature on this paper signifies that you understand what constitutes plagiarism, that you have read the required information, and that you agree to abide by the University of Connecticut Code of Student Conduct.

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/print/research/r_plagiar.html

http://www.indiana.edu/~wts/pamphlets/plagiarism.shtml

http://www.northwestern.edu/uacc/plagiar.html

I have read and understand this document ______________________________ ________________ Signature Date

EEB 2245W-Plagiarism Example
The following paragraph comes from this review article:

Van Dover C. L., C. R. German, K. G. Speer, L. M. Parson. and R. C. Vrijenhoek. 2002. Evolution and biogeography of deep-sea vent and seep invertebrates. Science 295:1253-7.

“Since 1977, taxonomists have described more than 400 morphological species from vents (7) and 200 more from seeps (6). This corresponds to a species description every 2 weeks throughout the past 25 years. Some vent and seep invertebrate species are immigrants from the surrounding deep sea, whereas others may be derived from shallow-water species. Many of the invertebrate taxa found at vents and seeps have undergone evolutionary radiations at the species level (7). Other species have a longer history of endemicity, having diversified within vent and seep habitats at generic, familial, and higher ranks. Where high taxonomic levels of endemism are observed, origins may be ancient, extending back to the Paleozoic [540 to 248 million years ago (Ma)] (8). Genera of stalked barnacles and a superfamily of primitive gastropods endemic to vents are thought to be Mesozoic (245 to 65 Ma) relics or living fossils (8, 9). Chemosynthetic environments have thus been posited as stable refugia from global extinction events that devastated biological diversity in euphotic zones (7, 10).”

Here’s a paragraph from a student’s term paper:

The evolutionary history of vent and seep faunas dates back millions of years, providing ample time for adaptation and speciation. Since the discovery of these chemoautrophic communities, more 400 species have been identified at vents, along with over 200 at seeps (Van Dover et al, 2002). Many of these organisms are the derivations of ancient deep sea organisms that migrated into the habitats, while others migrated in from shallower water. While these organisms entered vents and seeps from the surrounding waters and speciated into some of the modern vent and seep invertebrates, many other species are believed to have been endemic to vents or seeps for a much longer time. Fossil evidence suggests that many endemic species in vents and seeps may have existed in the Paleozoic Era (540 to 248 million years ago). Meanwhile, other endemic species such as stalked barnacles and primitive gastropods are thought to date back to the Mesozoic (245 to 65 million years ago). (Van Dover et al, 2002). Given the age of these fossils, it is safe to say that vents and seeps formed a safe-haven for organisms during events of mass global extinction, such as that which wiped out the dinosaurs 65 million years ago as well as many organisms that may have been living in shallower water.