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Multiple Choice

Which of the following is/are a primary source?

A primary source is original, firsthand evidence created at the time of an event or by someone who experienced it. Data from the census bureau are the raw counts and records collected directly by the government through its census process, representing original data researchers can analyze. Textbooks, biographies, and encyclopedia entries are normally secondary or tertiary sources. Textbooks synthesize and interpret information from many sources to teach a topic. A biography recounts a person’s life using various sources and is not the original record. An encyclopedia entry summarizes established knowledge, drawing on other sources rather than presenting new data. So the census data is the primary source here.

A primary source is original, firsthand evidence created at the time of an event or by someone who experienced it. Data from the census bureau are the raw counts and records collected directly by the government through its census process, representing original data researchers can analyze.

Textbooks, biographies, and encyclopedia entries are normally secondary or tertiary sources. Textbooks synthesize and interpret information from many sources to teach a topic. A biography recounts a person’s life using various sources and is not the original record. An encyclopedia entry summarizes established knowledge, drawing on other sources rather than presenting new data. So the census data is the primary source here.