Wikipedia:WikiProject Introductions

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This project was set up on November 8, 2005 to create good introductions to all Wikipedia articles. Since it is new, Wikipedians both old and new are greatly encouraged to contribute their ideas at Wikipedia talk:WikiProject Introductions.

1 Scope
2 Participants
3 The Goal
4 Coordination with Other Projects
5 To Do
6 Example Articles
7 Introductions in Need of Work
8 Useful Pages

[edit] Scope

All Wikipedia articles.

[edit] Participants

If you would like to take part, then add your signature here using ~~~~ and a description of any areas you may be interested in.

Tox 13:45, 8 November 2005 (UTC) Project founder
Wechselstrom 01:07, 22 November 2005 (UTC)

[edit] The Goal

Every article should have an introduction that is both concise and useful.

Most articles of any length have introductions already. However, in the vast majority of cases they are introductions in position only. They are often too long and contain information far beyond the scope of an introduction, including detailed passages repeated verbatum in the main body of the article.

Furthermore, even introductions with the appropriate content are often in need of a tune up. Beyond the general tune-up any wikipedian prose needs, there is the question of standardization.

Why is this important? When searching for information in Wikipedia, it is extremely useful to read a short passage describing the very basic nature of the topic and the scope of the article, so you can decide if you need to read the full article or not. You can also use the introduction as a quick refresher on a topic.

A good introduction must contain:

The fundamental information that defines the topic or makes it important enough to merit an article.

Standardized key factoids chosen as part of the standardized introduction for articles in that category. For example all biographical articles might contain the birth and death dates of the subject in parentheses after their name. Or, all articles on individual countries in the EU might mention EU membership in their introductions.

When necessary a good article will also contain:

A discussion of the scope of the article. Some articles are on topics either closely related to others or a specific aspect of a complex topic. Disambiguation notices at the top are preferred, but sometimes they do not contain enough information to help the researcher know which article they need, or are otherwise not appropriate.

A very brief NPOV discussion on controversial views. Most of the time, there should be no such mention. But, sometimes the very nature of the topic is controversial or some important aspect of it is changing due to controversy. If the controversy is either fundamental to the topic such that a person will have an erroneous understanding of it if they just read the introduction, or very relevant today, such that people often come to the article because of the controversy, then it should be mentioned.

A good introduction will not contain:

Lengthy expositions of one or more sides of a controversy.
Lengthy verbatum passages found in the main body of the article.
Excessive factoids. An introduction is not an infobox. Certain standardized key factoids may be in both the introduction and the infobox, but an introduction is designed to summarize the essence of the article, not the concrete factoids.

[edit] Coordination with Other Projects

We need to coordinate with projects focussing on particular subject areas or types of articles for two reasons:

Because of the sheer number of articles in Wikipedia, organizing communities will be more effective than organizing individuals. It divides the problem up and assigns it to the people already frequenting and working on that group of articles.

Although there are some general features all introductions need to have, there may be specific standardized features and key factoids that articles of the same type need in their introductions. If a project already exists for a type of article, they may already have introduction standards. Or, if they don't, we need to coordinate with them to create them. Their expertise will be vital.

[edit] To Do

Find example articles with good introductions.

[edit] Example Articles

The following articles contain examples of good introductions:

CTMU — very concise. Three sentences sum up the essence of a lengthy article on an obscure esoteric topic. The first sentence tells you what the CTMU is and how to pronounce it. The second sentence gives a brief background of the theory's origins and justifies the existence of the article. The third sentence showcases salient features of the theory, giving you some idea of what it does and whether you would be interested in reading further.

D. B. Cooper — clear and well organized. The five-sentence introduction states who this man was, what he is famous for, and why his story continues to intrigue the public. It includes a captioned drawing of the subject and, without delving into irrelevant detail, reveals both what is known and what remains unknown about his famous escapade.

[edit] Introductions in Need of Work

Louis Kahn — needs to sum up the essence of this man. The intro is too short. It should include some more essential facts about this man's life and why he is famous to this day. This intro is simple and should be easy to rework.