Lesson 418 of 1455
How to Find Real Sources When AI Hands You Fake Ones
AI loves to invent citations that sound real. Here's how to verify before you turn anything in.
Builders · Research & Analysis · ~13 min read
How to Find Real Sources When AI Hands You Fake Ones
AI loves to invent citations that sound real. Here's how to verify before you turn anything in.
What to actually do
- Search the exact title in Google Scholar — no quotes first, then with quotes
- Check that the DOI actually resolves (paste it after doi.org/)
- Look up the author — real researchers have a publication history
Key terms in this lesson
The big idea: AI guesses what a citation should look like. You have to confirm it actually exists.
End-of-lesson quiz
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