The Internet

Let's begin this post with a disclaimer: I love the internet! It's an essential cog in the gears that make our world run. As a librarian, I can't imagine trying to help people find a book without our online catalog. I do not feel nostalgiac when I think back about the physical card catalogs with the drawers longer than my 13-year old arms. I don't miss having to find a pencil or post-it note to lodge between the cards while looking for multiple titles. That said, I love electronic resources.
However, proceed with caution whilst looking through electronic sources! I'll give you a perfect example. Go to your favorite search engine and type in "Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus". Look the site over...looks legitimate, yes? Site has an author, contact information, outside links etc.
Um..in reality, there's no such animal! (No pun intended). Octopi live in the water not in trees! So the main bullet point is, don't believe everything you surf! Take advantage of the databases your library has and research scholarly materials. And last of all, (dare I say it?) go read about it in a book. If you can carry your new Wii or XBox 360 out of Best Buy and into your car, I think you can manage lifting a book off the shelf and carrying it to a study station!