1. Finding research materials in LOIS and library databases ENGWR 300 (Gary), Spring 2008 Jeff Karlsen, LRC Librarian [email_address]
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6. Reference Materials early in the process; whenever you need to know more about the “big picture” When to consult discover context; get ideas; learn “common wisdom”; check facts; collect references for further reading Purpose LOIS; browse 2 nd floor; databases (e.g. Oxford Reference Online); web directories How to find encyclopedias (including subject-specific); dictionaries; atlases; books of statistics (e.g. Statistical Abstract of the United States) Examples
7. Scholarly Secondary Sources when you have a topic but are still working on the argument When to consult tie disparate ideas together; model analysis; give you something to set your argument against Purpose Databases (esp. Research Library); LOIS How to find article from academic journal; book (often on university press) Examples
8. Primary Sources when you already have an argument that you are hoping to “flesh out”; when you want to find very specific information about a particular event; when you need to complicate arguments from secondary sources When to consult shows you how an event or phenomenon was viewed at the time; allows you to speculate from “raw material”; provide you with individual perspectives Purpose library databases; LOIS; web directories How to find newspaper or magazine articles; letters; speeches; memoirs; images Examples
14. Important search tips: Boolean logic AND finds only those materials that contain BOTH terms OR finds materials that use EITHER term (more results) NOT (sometimes AND NOT ) finds articles that contain one term, but not the other. white supremacists AND aryan white supremacists OR militia groups white supremacists NOT photography
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16. ProQuest Research Library scholarly journals, general interest magazines, a few newspapers select “document text” for more results keywords here important! OR, AND NOT, other options also available
20. CQ Researcher: In-depth reports reasonably current information Start with simple keyword search
21. JSTOR : Advanced Search Screen JSTOR contains lots of book reviews; exclude unless you want them Journals go back to the late 1800s! Limit your search to specific disciplines (useful if your keywords have several possible meanings) No subject searching; “near” connectors can help
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24. Top-level Domains .com, .org, .net, .info, .us, .biz, .tv, etc etc etc etc .gov, .edu, .mil Unregulated (may or may not be reliable) Regulated (often reliable)