User:Keesiewonder/Why am I here?

Simply

I am a good researcher, often write well and enjoy writing, have a variety of interests, and love to collaborate with people. If you are having trouble with an article or looking for supporting research, please contact me to see if I'd be interested in helping you. I'm pretty friendly, and will help on any topic. (I may change this last statement if I get really, really odd requests that interfere with my sleep.) I am also more times than not objective and patient. I will also think for myself. If you ask me for input, please don't try to get me to answer only a certain way. If you ask me to find scholarly research on X, and I look high and low and cannot find anything, I will tell you that. I will also be interested in hearing about the scholarly research when you do find it. Research is a process. Communication and writing is an art.

This user was a member of the inactive League of Copyeditors.

Spiritually, Existentially, Religiously, Literally

I was born on Yom Kippur, at the hand of two Jewish doctors, during an emergency C-section procedure. I was 6 weeks early. My Mom was very ill. I was ambulanced off to another hospital over an hour away and didn't go home for over one month. Mom and I both made it, then. But, I am deeply touched every time I think of how these physicians, on the (one of the?) most holy days of their faith year helped bring me into the world.

FAQ about Keesiewonder (1 of 2)

Am I Jewish? No.

Am I Christian? Yes.

Am I Lutheran? Yes.

I am part of the ELCA, not the LCMS ...

Am I anti-Semitic? No.

Am I anti-Judaism? No.

Have I contemplated converting to Judaism? At times, yes, but I have never really looked at this in depth. The thought has, obviously, crossed my mind.

Do I do everything I can in my piece of the world to promote interfaith dialog? Yes. And I'm still learning.

Do I evangelize? No.

Do I bear witness? Yes, in my own way, perhaps, but I do.

Am I German? Yes, 50%.

Do I have Nazi ancestors? No, not to my knowledge.

Was Luther anti-Semitic? I'm still evaluating this, but, if I had to vote right now, I'd say Yes.

Was Luther anti-Judaism? Again, I'm still evaluating this ... currently leaning toward No ... but ... I have more research and thinking to do.

Have I made complete sense and peace with myself for being a Lutheran, given the Holocaust, Luther's writings about the Jews, etc.? No. But, that's ok. Life and understanding it is a process.

Scholarly, Online Adult Education at the Graduate School Level

I'm pursuing a master's degree in biotechnology with an emphasis in bioinformatics. I initiated a Wiki membership out of frustration with classmates' persistent usage of Wikipedia as a supposedly scholarly, academic resource. My purpose here, like that of many Wikipedians, is to continuously strive to improve the frequently excellent collaborative body of knowledge that already exists here.

I just completed a molecular biology course that I absolutely loved. I've been having trouble identifying who discovered dsRNA, how they did it, and when. I've seen references to dsRNA from as long ago as 1976 and am beginning to think that it was discovered about the same time as DNA. Care to help me solve this little research mystery?

AfDs

My first interest and contribution on WP appears to center on skimming the articles listed for deletion, and trying to turn the ones that deserve keeping, in my opinion, to a 'keep.' I've seen feedback regarding AfDs that requests that the creator and/or major contributors be notified; so, I try to do that if I notice it has not been done. I also try to locate scholarly resources for AfD topics that catch my personal fancy, and post those in the AfD discussion as well as in the article itself and its affiliated talk page. I find the best way to respond to an AfD is often to simply provide credible, scholarly resources. It appears that some times the nominator or those voting to delete an article are basing their vote on only what exists in the article being discussed, the topic's presence in Google, or their personal experience. While those are wonderful resources, they are not always an adequate basis for discerning appropriate content for an encyclopedia, in my opinion. Another important notification tactic regarding AfDs seems to be sure the major portals that may be affiliated with the AfD are aware of the discussion. This is not to say that frivolous votes should be solicited, but to say that people who may best be equipped to speak with true authority on the AfD have a chance to be involved. So, with discretion, I post specific announcements of AfDs on some project and message boards and individual user talk pages.

Doggie Things

Ok, let's get some dog related things clarified here.

I am a member of the following two "major" dog projects of which I am aware on Wikipedia:

This user is a member of
WikiProject Dogs.

This user is a contributor to the
dog breeds task force.

I am not certain why there are two projects. When I thought I asked about this in each group, I didn't get an answer. Users in the former group are probably more familiar with me than those in the latter. It really doesn't matter to me that there are two groups.

I am not in any way in charge of or even especially influential in either of these groups. Nor did I initiate the groups. Rather, I love dogs and I enjoy writing and researching. Please do not assume, however, that just because I love dogs, I will champion any article relating to dogs. That is not to say that I am filled with my own POV. I like to think I am or at can be quite objective on just about any topic. Readers of my contributions here may be the judge of that.

When I look at an article on WP, any article, not just one about a dog related topic, lots of things matter to me. I try very hard to follow the WP policies and guidelines as I understand them. Recently, I am finding even a proposed policy WP:Attribution to fit rather well with my way of thinking, writing and editing. So, for example, whether an article should be kept on WP is not only about the number of external links and/or references it has. If all the references happen to be by the same author, or even the same publisher, a pink flag goes up in my mind. That doesn't mean my opinion of the article is doomed, but you can be pretty sure I am going to check things out pretty carefully. Scholarly resources, i.e. peer reviewed materials, are also very important to me. The absence of such material is not necessarily a problem, but, if someone stresses and stresses and stresses how important something is because they know all these well known people who are doing it, I had better be able to find sources I respect mentioning these important people.

Finally, for now anyway, in this section, if I ask you a question about your article, and you don't answer it, I will probably eventually become very suspicious. For instance, if you tell me a well known veterinarian is engaged in ground breaking research, I may ask you for the vet's complete name and contact information if I have not been able to find it on my own. If your response is that the vet is very well known by hundreds of people in 14 countries and I should not be so presumptuous as to ask for their name (i.e. if I knew so much about dogs, then I'd know who you were talking about), then, I cannot cross-check with my own research skills what you are telling me. This scenario kind of sounds like the vet doesn't exist, or if they do they don't want anyone to know what they are doing, etc. Don't you think?

Doggie things for Keesiewonder to think about

Are there really 1,800 articles that could/should be deleted on WP regarding dogs?
Is it really appropriate that one of the relatively few dog categories that exists is the category "Bulldog breeds?"
Should/could there be a category for rare and extinct breeds?
What is the WP definition for a rare or extinct breed? Is it too exclusive?
Links to look at

ARBA

ARF

OWB

Winston Olde English Bulldogge STREET SIGN

What are all the bulldog related articles on WP now? Include deleted ones and mentions of others in existing articles.

Bulldogge existence is unquestionable. See [1]. How are my German-English translation skills?

List of Bulldog (Bull Dog, Bull Terrier, Pit Bull) Breeds on Wikipedia

Alapaha Blue Blood Bulldog (ABBB), Otto
American Bulldog, Old Country Bulldog. (There are generally two types of American Bulldog: the John D. Johnson type and the Allen Scott type, or, respectively the Classic (Bully) type and Standard (Performance) type.)
American Pit Bull Terrier
Australian Bulldog

Aylestone Bulldog
Bulldog, British Bulldog
Bull and Terrier
Bullenbeisser
British Bulldogge
Continental Bulldog
Dorset Old Tyme Bulldog
English Bulldog
French Bulldog
Old English Bulldog
Old Winston Bulldogge
Olde English Bulldogge
Olde English Bulldogge Kennel Club
Olde Englishe Bulldogge^*
Toy Bulldog
Renaissance Bulldog
Renascence Bulldogge
Victorian Bulldog
Wilkinson Bulldog
Winston Olde English Bulldogge
WInston Olde English Bulldogge^*

no formating like for British Bulldog is fine since it is only mentioned in its companion article
'*' = a redirect; I'd like it deleted; gives more integrity to the links that deserve to stay; I cannot believe it is a redirect that is needed/used all that often

Keesiewonder FAQ (2 of 2)

Q:What does your username mean?
A:My username is one of my dog's many nicknames. He's a Keeshond. Some call the breed Kees for short, or Keesie. I've had him since he was a 10 week old pup and he's now over 10 years old. I learned how to read on Dr. Seuss books, so seem to have this habit of making up little dittys. One of the things this breed will do (at least the happy specimens) is cock their head to one side when listening to you. My male does this dramatically and often ... thus ... since he looks so intent on whatever I'm saying (yes, I'm alpha dog over two of these head-strong dogs), he quickly ended up as 'Keesiewonder.' Of course, my cat quickly coined, through me, 'Keesie-Blunder' ... Silly, I know. But you asked!
Q:What kinds of dogs have you lived with?
A:Beagles, Standard Schnauzers, Afghan Hounds, Keeshonden, and a sweet mixed breed (Dachshund/Beagle?).
Q:Do you prefer pure-bred dogs or mixed breeds?
A:I prefer pure-bred dogs, but, am not loaded with POV. I care more about all the dogs in need of homes, dogs that are abused, dogs that are euthanized, dogs with health problems, dogs with behavior problems, etc. than I do pure vs. mixed. If I get to choose the dog that lives with me, it will probably be a pure-bred 9 times out of 10. If one needs me and I have a spot for it with me, it doesn't matter one bit. As I acquire dogs, I tend to alternate between 'get one as a puppy' and 'rescue one.'
Q: Do you like cats?
A: I like cats, but have a slight-to-moderate preference for dogs. I find cats are more interesting to me if there are not any dogs around, so the cats can be completely cat-like without having to worry about the dog(s) barging in. My cats have primarily been DSH tiger (alley) cats with one DSH white and one DLH white thrown in. If I were to try a pure-bred cat breed, I'd start by looking at Abysinnians or Russian Blues.