Question

why are tertiary sources, such as websites and magazines, usually considered less dependable than primary or secondary sources of scientific information?
○ tertiary sources are not usually authored by scientists and therefore do not provide reliable information.
○ tertiary sources have not been fact-checked by reviewers, so the information in tertiary sources is never reliable.
○ tertiary sources usually do not cite information from primary sources, and may perpetuate errors made by secondary sources.
○ tertiary sources provide information based solely on opinion, rather than scientific fact.

Explanation:

• Analyze Option 1: Tertiary sources can be authored by scientists, so this is incorrect.
• Analyze Option 2: Saying "never reliable" is too extreme; some tertiary sources are reliable. Eliminate this.
• Analyze Option 3: Tertiary sources often summarize secondary sources and may not check primary sources, so errors from secondary sources can be perpetuated. This matches the reason for less dependability.
• Analyze Option 4: Tertiary sources don't solely base on opinion; they can have factual info. Eliminate this.

Answer:

C. Tertiary sources usually do not cite information from primary sources, and may perpetuate errors made by secondary sources.