Even though the previous examples all were about cars in some way, you no doubt realized they were very different in tone, style, and quality.

Let’s take a closer look at each.

Example 1

“Electric and Plug-in Hybrids,” by George Crabtree, came from OpenStax CNX, a textbook publisher.

The full source demonstrates some features common to textbooks:

Figure 1. A textbook source like OpenStax CNX will use very direct, factual language to educate readers.

• clearly stated learning outcomes for each section
• formal tone
• direct language
• definitions of key terms
• no in-text citations, though references may be included at the end of a chapter
• images to help illustrate the topic

Example 2

“Will the Tesla Model 3 recharge the U.S. electric vehicle market?” by David Keith, came from The Conversation, an online news source.

The full article demonstrates some features common to journalism:

Figure 2. News sources do their best to inform readers with facts and images.

• most important information appears near the opening of the article
• reports facts
• quotes and interviews from experts on the topic
• no in-text citations, no citations at the end
• embedded links to related sources
• images to help illustrate the topic

Example 3

“Cannibalism in the Cars,” by Mark Twain, came from a collection of his short stories, Sketches New and Old.

Figure 3. Mark Twain wrote this short story with the intent to entertain.

The full story demonstrates some features common to literature:

• introduces characters
• follows a narrative sequence of events, revealing a plot
• includes description to set scene
• may use first-person, second-person, or third-person voice
• uses dialogue to convey what characters say to one another
• no in-text citations, no citations at the end

Example 4

“Hybrid vehicle” came from Wikipedia, the well-known online encyclopedia.

The full story demonstrates some features common to reference material:

Figure 4. Wikipedia is a popular reference-based website.

• highly structured and organized text, using headings and sub-headings
• factual content
• includes in-text citation (or footnotes) and a list of references at the end
• embedded links to related sources
• historical information
• images to help illustrate the topic
• formal tone
• clear and easy to read

Example 5

“The Influence of Intersections on Fuel Consumption in Urban Arterial Road Traffic: A Single Vehicle Test in Harbin, China,” by Lina Wu, Yusheng Ci, Jiangwei Chu, and Hongsheng Zhang, came from PLoS One, an online academic journal.

The full article demonstrates some features common to academic journal content:

Figure 5. An academic uses a highly structured format to present new information to readers.

• highly structured and organized text, using headings and sub-headings
• describes an experiment or an analysis, including the authors’ findings and interpretations
• includes in-text citation (or footnotes) and a list of References at the end
• advanced vocabulary, specific to the field of study
• images to help illustrate the topic