The 1,000 or so authors and editors working on the website, which went live last month, want to make a smarter, kinder Wikipedia by having experts approve all articles posted on the site. They're requiring that contributors use their real names, which they say will eradicate some of the vandalism and inaccuracy that have marred Wikipedia.

"The move from Wikipedia to a more professional atmosphere is quite a big one," said Larry Tribe, a University of Melbourne biotechnology professor involved in Citizendium. "I've noticed that people who are used to the Wikipedia atmosphere are rude and inconsiderate."

Tribe compared Wikipedia to a Neanderthal and Citizendium to Homo sapiens -- a big step up on the evolutionary scale. In February, Vermont's Middlebury College banned students from citing Wikipedia in their schoolwork, but Tribe said he hoped colleges would allow academic citations to Citizendium because of its peer-review process.