Tachyony: Imported page

2021-12-19T17:51:04Z

Imported page

New page

{{Guidance essay|shortcut=WP:HALF-LIFE|shortcut2=WP:HALFLIFE}}
{{nutshell|Keep maintaining articles to avoid degradation}}
[[File:Article half-life.png|thumb|right|450px|An article that begins as a [[WP:FA|featured article]] will be subjected to [[Wikipedia:Vandalism|vandalism]], [[Template:Uw-test1|unhelpful edits]], and [[WP:Link rot|link rot]], which will eventually reduce its quality in a manner similar to [[radioactive decay]].]]

Congratulations! You just wrote a sweet article on...[[Special:Random|something]]. You used [[Wikipedia:Identifying reliable sources|reliable sources]] that satisfy the [[WP:GNG|general notability guideline]]. All of the facts are [[Wikipedia:Verifiability|verifiable]] and avoid [[WP:NPOV|pushing a point-of-view]]. The [[Wikipedia:Copyrights|freely licensed]] or [[Wikipedia:Non-free content|legitimate fair use]] [[Wikipedia:Manual of Style/Images|images]] illustrate the article. The writing is well-crafted, so well-crafted in fact that the article is probably a [[WP:GA|good article]]. If you're really good, the article might even be a [[WP:FA|featured article]] some day.

That's not enough. You see, every article has a [[half-life]].

The phrase "[[wiktionary:Half-life|Half-life]]" describes the time it takes for a substance to degrade to half its former quantity. The term is most often used within the context of [[radioactive decay]].

Over time, [[Wikipedia:Vandalism|vandalism]], [[Wikipedia:Disruptive editing|disruptive editing]], [[Template:Uw-test1|unhelpful edits]], hoaxes, original research and [[WP:Link rot|link rot]] and a lack of updating the article regarding new scholarship and new findings on the topic will all degrade an article's quality. Like [[radioactive decay]], your [[WP:FA|featured article]] will degrade into a [[WP:GA|good article]], and then into a poor quality article which then will require serious [[Wikipedia:Cleanup|cleanup]] and improvement work.

The [[half-life]] for every article is different, but every article, no matter what the quality, will eventually degrade.

Often, the big edits like [[Wikipedia:Page blanking|page blanking]] or [[template:Uw-joke4|joke edits]] will likely draw attention from even casual editors. It can be the [[Help:Minor edit|minor edits]] that cause the most damage. Maybe a new user unintentionally breaks a [[WP:references|source url]] or [[wikilink]], or a careless user adds incorrect information interspersed with correct additions. These edits add up surprisingly quickly.

Remember that the long-term quality of an article depends on your continued effort to update and cleanup over time, not just the initial effort. Keep an eye on articles through your [[Help:Watching pages|watch list]] and periodically review them, and while you are there, prune out OR and vandalism and remove unsourced quotations and biased POV additions.

{{Wikipedia essays}}
[[Category:Wikipedia essays about building the encyclopedia]]
[[Category:Wikipedia essays about editing]]

Wikipedia:Article half-life - Revision history

Tachyony: Imported page