Writing and speaking like a historian (or a nurse, statistician...you name it)
You may already be familiar with the fact that different fields of study ask you to cite sources in different ways. English and the humanities use standards published by the Modern Language Association (MLA), psychology and the social sciences typically use American Psychological Association (APA) format, the sciences use Coucil fo Science Editors (CSE) style, and history and some of the humanities use Chicago Manual of Style (CMS). These are the most popular, but they aren't the only ones (there are literally hundreds of different styles in use today).
The reason for these differences isn't just to keep citation handbook authors employed and off the street. Each field works with sources in very different ways. For example, since English focuses on nuances of meaning in texts, MLA includes information about the version of a text—its publisher, editor, volume, etc. Since Nursing wants students to work with the latest research, APA stresses publication dates.
The difference between subjects goes far deeper than how they cite sources. Even if one field uses the same citation handbook as another, they don't necessarily write the same way. That's because each field has its own way of writing, speaking (and thus thinking) about the world.
