Michael Snow is my real name, if you're wondering.

About me (or, why I contribute to Wikipedia)

Although no specific expertise is necessary to contribute to Wikipedia, I'll share a little about myself for anyone interested in my qualifications, or lack thereof. Sorry if it resembles a résumé.

I have an American public school education, supplemented by an undergraduate degree in history and political science (as a double major). Part of my interest in history is that I consider it a field with the potential to incorporate all human knowledge (though other fields might also make that claim). So naturally I find the objective of Wikipedia worthwhile.

I work as a writer and designer of online courses, primarily dealing with real estate. Since I write mostly for a lay audience, hopefully my experience helps me use an appropriate writing style for Wikipedia. I am a lawyer by training, which gives me a perspective on the problem of balancing opposing positions (and having to present arguments for a position one does not agree with). I fully support the NPOV policy.

In a project of this nature, however, I expect that people will pursue personal interests in their contributions. That is much of what I do with my own contributions, although I will not trot out here a list of everything I'm interested in. As I indicated before, I'm interested in everything, it's just that some of my interests have been developed to a greater extent. I recognize that contributing based on enthusiasm for the subject is itself arguably a form of bias, whether in myself or others, but I don't consider that a problem here. If Wikipedia is to be a true encyclopedia, and it would be the first, then it simply needs to attract more enthusiasts until all subjects are covered.

The Signpost

I started The Wikipedia Signpost, a weekly community newspaper for the English Wikipedia. As you might gather from the information above, one field in which I do not have any particular experience is journalism (but for a little work on a single issue of a high school student newspaper). So I welcome contributions and input there from anyone who wants to help The Signpost provide better, more complete coverage of important news in the Wikipedia community.