The writing of a term paper requires a thorough knowledge of a topic through a study of the existing literature and then a summary written in the studentÕs own words. While most source materials for a term paper should be from published Òhard-copy,Ó the use of Internet - either email or the World Wide Web - provides abundant information for selecting a topic and gathering information sources. Students should be careful about using Internet sources for a term paper, as the Internet doe snot have the same high standards typical of the professional journals. Students should also be wary of copying Internet text directly into their term paper drafts, as this constitutes plagiarism. This paper is intended as a short guide to be presented to students as part of a term paper assignment.

A style guide for the citation of Internet sources is presented in this paper. This style has also been presented to the Geological Society of America as a potential format to be used by GSA journals and those journals that use the GSA format, including the Journal of Geological Education.