Implications and Limitations of Using the Internet

The Internet has become the ultimate data source for science and technology. However, caution must be used when applying Internet data to scientific efforts or regulatory compliance. Often, information is published on the Internet without any description of the study or research that was used to develop the data. When such documentation is lacking, consider sending an e‐mail message to the organization or individual that maintains the site to request the reference information. Some online data are severely out‐of‐date or represent student research efforts that have not been reviewed for accuracy or quality. Finally, data provided on the Internet may have been developed for purposes other than environmental or chemical analysis, and as a result it may contain hidden biases or inaccuracies that make them inappropriate for your intended use. Realize that you may not be getting exactly what you think you have when downloading free data from the Internet.

Reliance on official government sites can help to avoid being misled by the content of some Internet sites. However, university and nonprofit organizations can offer more timely or detailed information on recent events and issues. Always review the organization behind any Internet location that is to be used as a resource. Focus on locating the types of funding sources, peer review and data quality evaluations, as well as the date of the last update, for additional insight into the true value represented by a particular site. Much of this information will be available online or can be obtained by sending an e‐mail to the site’s developer. Chemical and environmental engineering professionals require many types of information. Much of the required data, and even entire software packages, are now available to be downloaded from the Internet, free of charge. In fact, as the Internet matures, vast amounts of data and software are becoming available to everyone. However, converting data to information, and more importantly converting information into knowledge, has become the major challenge facing scientific professionals.