Question by lost: Is it true that there’s some HUGE database somewhere that has every piece of homework you ever wrote?
I’ve heard professors, amidst their dire warnings against plagiarizing and cheating, claim that there exists some massive database containing every paper we’ve ever written for their class…or any other class…or even any other college…even high school…going back to 1st grade.

And that they can tell if you plagiarized someone’s work by typing little more than a sentence into some kind of search engine.

I’d never even think about cheating (yes, seriously…I take a dim view of such people), BUT…are these prof’s just blowing smoke?

Is there really such a database, somewhere (scary!!!) that has every word I’ve every written, every essay, every story and every poem?

Or are they just full of sh*t and using those kind of threats as a deterrent?

And aren’t those papers MINE to do with what I wish?
If I write poem, or a story (or whatever) does it forever become property of some national homework data center? Author’s rights, anyone?

Answers, of any kind, sorely needed!

Best answer:

Answer by Maria Rose
There is no database BUT there are programs that teachers use that are databases to public documents, articles magazines, newspapers, and, as one program rants, every book you can find at any library. Teachers are now making their students include a file version of their paper to make scanning easier but if parts of a paper sound like they are not from the student, parts of the paper can be used also. They simply enter the paper or section into the program (or send it to the service which can be accessed online) and the paper will return back in three colors. Green for the parts that are believed to be written by the student, yellow which are shady areas, and red meaning direct quotes from some other source. It is not just done by direct sources though, but some programs take log of your writing capabilities and will highlight areas, determined by the students past entries submitted that seem unlike the students style or education. I now my mom uses Google! you would be surprised how many times she goes ‘I don’t think they wrote this line’ searches it, and finds it! Maybe 90% of the ones she picks out are searchably discredited BY GOOGLE.

The plagiarism sites i know of DO in fact save every paper turned in to be checked. So this database wouldn’t include every paper you have written. Only the papers within the last few years that could have been submitted to an online plagiarism filter (which wouldn’t be the majority). Chances are if you turned it in through e-mail or on a floppy disk or any other data form, it would be more likely that it was checked but still not certain!

So plagiarizing, I would be afraid of, some place having every word you have written for school, not so much =)

What do you think? Answer below!