Website Evaluation/Validation

I decided to evaluate the website DHMO . I accessed it on Thursday, October 22,2009. It seemed fairly credible to me. The information was recently updated, it contained legitimate links to credible organizations and so forth.The only thing that caught my eye at first was the fact that they were asking people to send money or buy things to "support the cause." It looked to me like the organization was an official part of the Environmental Protection Ageny. As I proceeded to investigate the EPA, I found good credentials. However, after googling the organization (DHMO) and finding some information on Wikipedia, I discovered that the whole thing was a hoax. Although I did become skeptical when I found a link on this page that spoke of how the EPA denies DHMO's claims (which is what really led to further investigation),this page would have really fooled me if I hadn't looked further into it and discovered the truth.I found out that the hoax is designed to illustrate how the lack of scientific knowledge and an exaggerated analysis can lead to misplaced fears.However, this kind of thing is very dangerous for students who may have been doing research and did not bother to go below the surface and discover the truth.