The Multiplication of Incorrect Information

As the Internet has grown there is much more information on it. While this is a great resource, there is also a lot more incorrect information, much of which takes on a life of its own. If you look up a fact or a person on the Internet, make sure you check any fact which seems inconsistent. Also, just because a fact recurs in several places, it may not mean it is accurate. It may simply mean that one source has used the other as its prime source. Thus statements about the number of engineers in a country or the number of elm trees in another could be based on someone's guess some time back.