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Quizzes > Quizzes for Business > Education

Test Your Internet Search Skills Quiz

Challenge Your Web Research and Retrieval Skills

Difficulty: Moderate
Questions: 20
Learning OutcomesStudy Material
Colorful paper art depicting elements related to Internet Search Skills Quiz

This Internet Search Skills Quiz helps you practice smarter web research with 15 quick questions - pick better keywords, use operators, and judge sources. Use it to spot gaps before a class or project, then try the literature search quiz or the internet geek quiz .

Which search character is used to search for an exact phrase?
Curly braces
Square brackets
Quotation marks
Parentheses
Quotation marks tell the search engine to look for the exact sequence of words. This ensures the phrase appears exactly as typed in the results.
Which Boolean operator will narrow a search to include all specified terms?
AND
NEAR
NOT
OR
The AND operator ensures that only results containing all the listed terms are returned. It narrows the result set by requiring both terms to appear.
What is a "stop word" in search engines?
A synonym suggestion
A specialized technical term
A common word like "the" that is often ignored by the engine
An advanced search operator
Stop words are very common words that search engines usually exclude to improve efficiency. Examples include "the", "and", or "of".
Which of the following is usually the most credible domain for academic information?
.com
.blog
.edu
.social
The .edu domain is restricted to accredited educational institutions, making it more likely to host scholarly and credible content.
What strategy can speed up finding relevant information in a search?
Browsing only the first page for links
Avoiding any filters or operators
Using more specific and focused keywords
Searching with very long general paragraphs
Specific and focused keywords reduce the number of irrelevant results. This helps you reach the most pertinent information faster.
How would you exclude results containing the word "apple" when searching for fruit?
fruit !apple
fruit except apple
fruit ^apple
fruit -apple
The minus sign before a word tells the search engine to exclude any results containing that term. This refines the query.
Which operator restricts search results to a specific website domain?
site:example.com
host:example.com
domain:example.com
url:example.com
The site: operator limits results to the specified domain. It's a quick way to search only within one website or domain.
How can you find PDF files on the topic of climate change?
climate change format:pdf
climate change type:pdf
climate change filetype:pdf
climate change ext:pdf
The filetype: operator followed by pdf restricts results to PDF documents. This is useful for finding reports and papers in that format.
Which query will find pages containing either "college" or "university"?
college TO university
college - university
college AND university
college OR university
The OR operator broadens the search to include results that have one term or the other. It's useful for finding synonyms or related concepts.
Which tool is best for finding peer-reviewed academic articles?
Bing
Google Scholar
Google
Yahoo
Google Scholar indexes scholarly literature, including peer-reviewed papers, books, and theses. It's tailored for academic research.
Which of the following is a red flag when evaluating online credibility?
Clear publication date
High citation count
Outdated or very old information
A named author with credentials
Outdated information may no longer be accurate or relevant, which undermines credibility. Always check the publication date for currency.
Which operator serves as a wildcard for missing words in a phrase search?
?
*
$
#
The asterisk (*) acts as a wildcard and can replace one or more words in a phrase search. This helps find variations of a phrase.
How would you search for the phrase "global warming" with a missing word between the terms?
"global ? warming"
"global warming *"
global * warming
"global * warming"
Putting the wildcard inside the quotes lets you find the exact phrase with any word in place of the asterisk. It maintains the phrase search context.
What is the quickest way to filter search results to the past year?
Sort results by alphabetical order
Add "2022" to every search term
Use the OR operator with dates
Use the search engine's time filter or tools menu
Most search engines include a time filter or tools menu to restrict results by date range, allowing you to view only recent content.
Which operator restricts results to pages with the keyword in the title?
title:climate
intitle:climate
inurl:climate
intext:climate
The intitle: operator limits results to pages whose titles contain the specified keyword, which can improve relevance for topic-specific searches.
Which query finds pages about training tips for dogs or cats?
(dogs OR cats) AND "training tips"
dogs AND cats "training tips"
dogs OR cats "training tips"
"training tips" AND dogs OR cats
Using parentheses with OR ensures results include either dogs or cats, and combining with AND and quotes ensures the exact phrase appears. It demonstrates precise Boolean logic.
How would you find pages on safety.gov with "policy" in the URL?
inurl:policy site:safety.gov
site:policy safety.gov
policy inurl:safety.gov
site:safety.gov policy
Combining inurl:policy with site:safety.gov restricts results to the safety.gov domain and ensures the URL contains "policy."
Which metric is used to estimate a website's overall credibility and authority?
Bounce rate
Domain Authority score
Keyword density
Page load time
Domain Authority is a metric developed by SEO tools like Moz to predict how well a site will rank in search results. It reflects overall credibility.
What strategy lets you see how many times an academic paper has been cited?
Search the title in a general search engine
Look at the PDF file size
Use the OR operator with the author's name
Check the citation count on Google Scholar
Google Scholar displays citation counts next to each result, allowing you to gauge the impact and relevance of scholarly works.
Which combined query finds government PDF reports on climate change?
site:gov climate change pdf
"climate change" site:.gov AND pdf
climate change AND site:.gov filetype:pdf
site:.gov filetype:pdf "climate change"
Chaining site:.gov with filetype:pdf and an exact phrase ensures results are official government PDF documents specifically on climate change.
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Learning Outcomes

  1. Analyse search query effectiveness and refine keywords
  2. Evaluate credibility of online information sources
  3. Apply advanced search operators to filter results
  4. Identify relevant content using Boolean logic
  5. Demonstrate strategies for efficient information retrieval

Cheat Sheet

  1. Master Boolean Operators - Think of AND, OR, and NOT as the superheroes of search - AND teams up ideas, OR juggles alternatives, and NOT banishes what you don't want. By casting a query like (cats OR dogs) AND (pets OR animals), you'll zero in on exactly the furry facts you need.
  2. Utilize Advanced Search Features - Advanced filters are your treasure map to pinpointed results: sort by date to stay current, choose file types to snag PDFs, or limit to domains for scholarly gems. A quick .edu filter, for example, unlocks corridors to academic wisdom.
  3. Apply Truncation and Wildcards - Wildcards like the asterisk (*) are your net for catching word families - searching educat* reels in education, educator, educational, and more. This trick turbocharges your coverage and ensures you won't miss relevant variations.
  4. Evaluate Source Credibility - Suit up as a fact detective: check the author's credentials, peek at publication dates, and favor .edu or .gov domains for trustworthy intel. Reliable sources keep your research rock-solid.
  5. Understand Domain Significance - Domains are like badges: .edu means educational institutions, .gov flags government sites, and .org often signals non-profits. Recognizing these helps you judge the reliability of your findings.
  6. Use Quotation Marks for Exact Phrases - Wrapping phrases in quotes, such as "climate change," locks them together so you get only pages where those words appear side by side. It's the secret for laser-focused results.
  7. Refine Searches with Site-Specific Queries - Become a search ninja with site: commands - type site:nytimes.com climate change to raid articles from The New York Times only. It's a quick way to focus on trusted outlets.
  8. Analyze URL Structures - URLs hold clues: those ending in .gov or .edu usually mean more reliable content, while long strings of random characters can be a red flag. Scanning the address bar before clicking saves you from sketchy sources.
  9. Practice Lateral Reading - Don't trust one tab - open several and cross-check facts across different sites. This side-by-side sleuthing helps you confirm accuracy and uncover hidden biases.
  10. Stay Updated on Search Engine Algorithms - Search engines constantly evolve, so new features and ranking tweaks pop up regularly. Keeping tabs on these updates lets you adapt your strategies and stay ahead in the research game.
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