Even Wikipedia creator Jimmy Wales recognizes the shortcomings in his project. According to the Wall Street Journal: “[Wales] says he was glad Nature chose to compare science-related themes ‘because on history and the social sciences, we’re much weaker.’ In other areas — including computer science and the history of ‘Star Trek,’ he says — Wikipedia is ‘way better.’”

The only means of creating a sufficiently reliable information source is to create incentive for accuracy; this is why, in an academic setting, we tend to rely on peer-reviewed journals. And this is why an Encyclopedia Britannica comes out more trustworthy in the end — Britannica’s sales depend on the level of consumer trust in its accuracy. It may not be perfect, but at least it’s stable.