Plagiarism Defined
Plagiarism is a grave offense that periodically plagues the academic world and professional publishing. Technically speaking, it's a form of fraud, and most Western countries treat it as they would the theft of an object. With the rise of the Internet, plagiarism has become easier, and more sophisticated methods of plagiarism are appearing every day.
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Definition
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Plagiarism is defined as passing off someone else's words or ideas as your own. It can involve copying someone else's text without citing your source or presenting someone else's ideas as yours.
Vagaries
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In some cases, plagiarism is a deliberate act of malice. In others--especially research papers--the boundaries between plagiarism and simple presentation of facts become increasingly cloudy.
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Citation
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The best way to avoid plagiarism in your own work is to properly cite any sources, presenting other people's words in quotation marks and using footnotes to mark the text from which it stems.
Paraphrasing
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It's possible to present a given idea without plagiarizing it. You need to paraphrase it or rework its core concept using words that are entirely your own.
Detection
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While the Internet has become a breeding ground for plagiarism, it also provides many tools to help detect it. Websites such as PlagiarismDetect.com can help teachers and publishers quickly scan for plagiarism in a given piece of work.
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