Is Wikipedia Reliable?

First, I'd like to say I've only used Wikipedia when I didn't know where to start research for a paper or other assignment. The reason: every one of my instructors forbade his or her students from using the free online encyclopedia due to its reliability issues. Since anyone can add, delete, or edit an article, the accuracy of the information you receive is not guaranteed. However, that may be changing due to the Wikipedia Scanner created by Virgil Griffith.


This program connects the Wikipedia user who altered an article to an IP address which gives the location of the computer used to make the changes on Wikipedia. This should crack down on the number of people who change information to make themselves or the company they work for look better. On another note, those who edit articles on Wikipedia for their own benefit could easily use their computer outside their home or work place . By doing this, these individuals would be nearly impossible to trace. Therefore, I am still skeptic about using Wikipedia as a main source for research information.