Wikipedia:Peer review/Upper and Lower Table Rock/archive1

This peer review discussion has been closed.
I've listed this article for peer review because it just passed its GAN, and I would like to see it become a featured article. ZabMilenko and I have been working on it since late April, and Sasata, the GA reviewer, gave me a few good tips already. Any comments or suggestions are appreciated.

Thanks, LittleMountain5 22:01, 4 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]


Ruhrfisch comments: I really enjoyed this article, but think it needs some work before FAC. With that in mind, here are some suggestions for improvement.

Hope this helps. If my comments are useful, please consider peer reviewing an article, especially one at Wikipedia:Peer review/backlog (which is how I found this article). I do not watch peer reviews, so if you have questions or comments, please contact me on my talk page. Yours, Ruhrfisch ><>°° 04:12, 12 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Your comments were very useful, thanks! LittleMountain5 17:29, 12 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
MAde replies above - could you please remove the graphics {{fixed}} and replace them with something like fixed (as it slows the loading of the PR page to use graphics)? Thanks, Ruhrfisch ><>°° 11:37, 13 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
Sure. LittleMountain5 22:30, 13 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
I think I've fixed just about everything you suggested. What do you think about it now? Thanks, LittleMountain5 14:38, 16 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Second look here is what I noticed one a second look.

  • Sentence makes no sense as written (should "in spring" be "and spring" instead?): Vernal pools fill on the top of the plateaus in the winter in spring due to the impermeable andesite located there.
    Whoops, fixed. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
  • The subject of this sentence is "One species" which is singular, but the verbs are plural One species of wildflower called the dwarf woolly meadowfoam grow[s] around these pools, and [is?] are endemic to the rocks.
    Fixed. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
  • The last sentence of the third paragraph of the lead doesn't really fit with the paragraph (it is on hiking, the rest of the paragraph is on ecology). The fourth paragraph is quite short - could the hiking sentence be moved there? Perhaps with something on the history of the trails?
    I don't think that would really fit, but I've split that last sentence off and made a new paragraph instead. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
  • I would suggest changes here Both plateaus are [Each plateau is] shaped roughly like a horseshoe, due to the ancient meanders of the canyon the[y] sit upon.[4][6][7]
    Fixed. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
  • similarly this could be tightened In fact, four overlapping ecological regions have been identified, with considerable differences in the variety of wildlife found in each one.
    Fixed. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
  • Suggest changes here too - original is The andesite cap itself is covered by the fourth region known as mounded prairie, created when the caps were slowly eroded by the freezing and thawing of water that seeped into the ground (ice erosion). This created a layer of mounded soil.[4][11] and it might read better as something like The andesite cap is covered by the fourth region, mounded prairie. This formed when the caps were slowly eroded by the freezing and thawing of water that seeped into the ground (ice erosion), which created a layer of mounded soil.[4][11]
    That sounds a lot better, fixed. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
  • Can these two sentences be combined Three are large enough to walk into, and average 8 feet (2.4 m) wide. One is a small pit, dropping 30 feet (9.1 m) vertically into a pond of water.[4]
    Combined. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
  • OK, there's a look at the first two sections (lead and geology). I notice that the Flora and fauna subsections still don't introduce what they are in a sentence or two. SO for example I would start the Oak savannah section with something like Oak savannah is a type of grassland with oak trees as the main tree species. It depends on periodic fires, which historically were the result of lightening or wildfire or were even set by Native Americans. White oak, ponderosa pine, and multiple species of grasses are the most common vegetation found in the oak savanna on the lower slopes of the Table Rocks.[4][29] ... I think this needs a bit more polish before FAC, though it is close. Ruhrfisch ><>°° 03:09, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
    Oh, I didn't realize you meant the subsections... that makes a lot more sense. I think I've fixed it. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

A few more points, looking at refs.

  • The book The Table Rocks of Jackson County : islands in the sky is 143 pages and is cited as ref 4. My guess is at FAC that someone will want the refs to that to be more specific (give page numbers). You probably could do it by chapters.
    I actually borrowed that book, and don't have it any more. Hopefully I'll be able to get it again, but I'm not sure. :/ LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
  • Refs 39 to 43 are from the 'Mail Tribune newspaper and as such the paper's name should be italicized - put it in the work field it in cite news (this is done correctly for ref 2)
    Fixed. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]
  • Also make sure refs keep the capitalization of the original - so ref 41 is listed as "Medford man dies in table rock fall", but the original headline is "Medford man dies in Table Rock fall".
    Fixed. LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

OK, I am done for now, Ruhrfisch ><>°° 15:11, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]

Thank you very much for taking the time to look over the article again. Great suggestions! LittleMountain5 16:03, 21 September 2009 (UTC)[reply]