7. Books
What are they:
A written or printed work of fiction or fact.
May be electronic.
Good for:
Background information and inspiration
Not so good for:
Up to date information
8. Web page
What are they:
An information resource which can be easily created by
anyone on any topic.
Electronic.
Good for:
Very up to date information
Not so good for:
Accurate and reliable information
9. Newspaper
What are they:
A regular publication containing current events,
informative and diverse articles and advertising.
May be electronic.
Good for:
Daily information
Not so good for:
Balanced and well researched information
10. Academic Journal
What are they:
A regular publication containing articles on a particular
academic subject. Presents new research.
Maybe electronic.
Good for:
Latest research, critically reviewed
by experts
Not so good for:
Broad overview of a subject
11. Trade Journal or Magazine
What are they:
A regular publication containing news, jobs, products,
events and advertising.
Aimed at a profession, business sector or interest.
Good for:
Focussed up-to-date information
Not so good for:
Detailed and objective reports
12. Objects
What are they:
A material thing that can be seen and handled.
Good for:
Inspiration, ideas and sensory experience.
Not so good for:
Detailed information, context
and facts.
16. The real thing: Robotics
•Keywords
•Alternative keywords
•More specific keywords
•Related subjects
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bbaltimore/6778028/meta/
19. Google vs Summon
Google
Summon
• Familiar and easy to use
• Easy to use
• Finds too much information
• Finds lots of academic info
• Fast results
• Fast results
• Access from any computer
• Access from any computer
• Access to some books and journals
• Access to lots of books and journals
• Designed to sell you things
• Designed to find you information
• Search results sponsored
• Search results by relevance
• Searches for info from any source
• Searches quality resources
• Pay for academic information
• Free access to full text
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ennuiislife/3450743002/
20. Get online help using resources
MyUniHub > MyStudy > MyLibrary > Library Subject Guides
http://libguides.mdx.ac.uk/PDE
21. But it’s not in the Library!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/darkstream/502964144/
22. Don’t panic!
• Sconul Access http://www.access.sconul.ac.uk/sconul-access
• Other libraries http://bit.ly/visitingotherlibraries
• Request the book
23. Evaluating information
Imagine you are writing an essay on Robots
Have a look at the 4 items that you have been given and
consider the following:
• Which item is the most relevant to your essay?
• Which item would be no use?
• Which item has the most academic authority?
• Are any of the items biased?
• Which item is the most current?
25. Keeping in touch
• Blog http://satlibrarian.blogspot.com
• Twitter http://twitter.com/SATlibrarian
• Library Facebook Middlesex University Library
• Library Twitter http://twitter.com/MDXLibrary
26. Need further help?
Your Librarian is:
Vanessa Hill v.hill@mdx.ac.uk
http://unihub.mdx.ac.uk/support/unihelp/
Hinweis der Redaktion
The range of resources we provide The value of resources in an academic contextHow to select the appropriate resourcesDevelop an effective search strategy eg. Identify keywords, refining your searchHow to find and access books, journals and information for your projects using the Library Catalogue, and other resources, as well as finding books in the library and from other sources.Evaluating the information for quality and relevance
Your finished product (or essay, project etc) is just the tip of the iceberg.Below it is should be loads of research ie. looking at theory and facts, being inspired, getting ideas, stimulating your imagination etc.
Limited research = less creativity.Finished design might not be as good as it could be.
Find out as much as you can.Question, discuss, be inspired, think etc
Hand out exercise Thinking about resources (PDE version). Groups10 mins
Many books in the collection at Hendon……reading list books, plus lots of inspirational books with images etc.Good for: Background information and inspiration .......huge range of books in basement to inspire you, as well as reading list materialBroad/general overview of subjectEdited for quality and accuracyMany books now available as e-booksNot so good for:May not be specific enoughCan be out of date
Could be the only source of information on very latest practitioners, trends, materials etcGood for:Easy to use/searchAll subjects coveredCan be very up-to-dateMobileNot so good for:No editorial controlUnreliable sourcesCan be created by anyoneMaterial can lack provenanceCan be out-of-dateNot everyone has access
Useful for exhibition reviews.Good for:Up-to-dateEditedReadily available (latest copies especially)Not so good for:Can be biasCan be unbalancedCan be sensationalistHard to get hold of/access (back issues)
Also useful for exhibition reviews, latest news, materials, projects, practitioners etcGood for:Up-to-dateSpecialist/focussedPresent latest researchEdited for accuracy/quality (peer reviewed)Lots of referencesNot so good for:Can be hard to locate/accessExpensiveMay be too specificMay be at wrong level
Excellent source for latest products, materials etcGood for:Latest informationCurrent eventsConcise infoProduct newsOften available online with RSS/Twitter etcNot so good for:DetailObjective information ie. can be bias, adverts, preferential products etcOften hard to find old issuesBack issues/archive
Good for:Inspiration and ideasCan handle/touchNot so good for:May lack context......don’t know where it comes fromMay not have any information eg. what it is, who made it, date etc
Worth Global Style Network Homebuildlife: is an online trend forecasting and product design tool for the industrial design, home and interiors markets across 16 product categories including furniture, lighting, textiles, interiors and garden design…….trends, forecasting, business strategy, trade news and shows. Trend Hunter is the world's largest, most popular collection of cutting edge ideas, fueled by 132,000 insatiably curious people. Our trends, trend reports and innovation keynotes help creative people Find Better Ideas, FasterStandards: An agreed, often legally binding level of quality or way of doing something, created by experts, published in print or electronically.Regional: International, European, national, profession, industry etc eg. food industry has ‘Red tractor standard’Guidance: can provide framework or acceptable levelConfidence: ensure that product/service meets acceptable requirements/standards
More information about the range of resources available on the PDDE Library Subject Guide.
Whole group:What can you see in the picture?ie. fruitIf you type ‘fruit’ into database will get millions of hits, how can you break it down ie. search for something more specific to get more manageable resultsCan you be more specific ie. Type of fruit: apples, oranges, bananas etcLocation: Stall, market, outdoor market, fruit market, BritainDetail: boxes, signs, astroturf, prices, colour of fruit, lights, pound £ signs, special offer etcPeople in background: old, young, male, female > stall holder, customers, browsers etcThink of related subjects eg. retail, commercial, financial, point-of-saleShopping, shops, fish/meat/clothes market, shopping centres, high streetTown, city, centre, British townNutrition: vits and minsAlso which fruits have a double meaning (technical/computer sense)?: Orange, Apple, Blackberry, Raspberry.Use refining tools on databases or search tips to exclude what you don’t want.Thinking beyond the obvious, looking for the detail that might make a difference.
Hand out worksheet. 5 mins. Feedback.The students are supposed to write a survey essay of about 8-10 pages double column. The review needs to be related to robotics (Land Mobility/Unmanned vehicles, Underwater robots, Flying robots (UAVs/Unmanned aerial vehicles), Medical/Surgical robots, Biomimetic systems [inspired by biological physiology to overcome challenging problems], Social robotics, Domestic robots (vacuum cleaners…),, Military/autonomous or remote controlled/artificial soldier/drone, Planetary exploration etc.). But the focus would be an overall survey and then a detailed research on any one of the above specialized topic (most of the students have chosen their topic of specialization, but this can change).
Need to carry out a literature review:Finding the information available on a subjectFinding information to inform, underpin and shape your researchFinding what has already been written on a subjectAnalyzing, evaluating and making judgements about the info foundIdentifying the main trendsFinding appropriate information: the information needs to be suitable for your needie. right level, current if important, sufficient breadth or detail etcExplain to students what Summon is.Go to UniHub > Login in to MyUniHub > My Study > My Library > SummonAsk students to search for information for their project.Remember to use some of the keywords that we have discussed.
Show the students how to refine their search using:FTContent typeSubject termsPublication dateLanguage etcHave another go.
Google Familiar and easy to useFinds too much informationFast resultsAccess from any computerAccess to some books and journalsDesigned to sell you things eg. shoesSearch results sponsored…no accident that Wikipedia, Amazon etc at top of search resultsSearches for info from any sourcePay for academic informationSummonEasy to useFinds lots of academic infoFast resultsAccess from any computerAccess to lots of books and journalsDesigned to find you information: up-to-date, focussed/specificSearch results by relevanceSearches quality resources eg. Peer reviewed journal articles, conference proceedings , research etcFree accessto full text ie. Information not freely available elsewhere
Lots of useful online guides eg.How to find booksHow to find information for your projectAccessing journal databases etc
Don’t panic!Next slide.
Inter Library Loan service: request copies of books and journals not held by MDX. £3 charge. Register as DL first. More info on our website.SCONUL Access http://www.access.sconul.ac.uk/ The SCONUL Access Scheme provides reciprocal access and borrowing rights for staff and students to approximately 170 member institutions in the UK. Apply online.Other libraries (specialist, catalogues etc):British Library http://www.bl.uk/COPAChttp://copac.ac.uk/ COPAC is a union catalogue that gives access to the merged online catalogues of members of the Consortium of University Research Libraries (CURL). Twenty major university libraries currently contribute to COPAC.Search25 http://www.search25.ac.uk/: helps you discover library resources across London and the South East. You can also see where the libraries are and find out how to visit them.SUNCAThttp://www.suncat.ac.uk/ SUNCAT, a union catalogue of serials (periodicals) for the UK, is a tool for locating serials held in UK libraries.
We’ve looked at the fun resources, now we’re going to look at more traditional resources……Divide class into group and hand out worksheet and 4x items.Discuss. No right or wrong answers. All items found by doing a search on Robots.Which item is most relevant:Journal Article: specialist journal of robots and roboticsBook: broad overview of robots and robotologyWhich item would be no use:Newspaper Article from the SunWebsite (fake)Which item has the most academic authority:Journal Article: peer-reviewed, citations and ref list, biography of authors, etcBook: author has some academic authority (back cover blurb)Are any of the items bias:Newspaper article could be depending on the subjectWebsites can also show bias if created for specific purposeAlso be aware of trade journals that have advertsWhich item is the most current:Journal article: Dec 2009Book: 1984Newspaper article: Nov 2004Website: Oct 2011Would need to continue search.
Authority : Who is the author? What is their knowledge base/qualifications? How have they carried out their research? Relevance : Is this what I need? Will it answer my question? Is it at the right level?Intent : What is the purpose of information e.g. financial gain, propaganda, academic etc?Objectivity : Balanced view? Opposing views represented? Links to supporting information?Currency: How old is this information? When was it last updated and by whom?
