Video from Northwestern University
Video from the John M. Pfau Library at Cal State Bernardino.
Reasons for Using Library Databases
Websites |
Library Databases |
There are ads |
There are no ads |
Materials can be written by anyone |
Materials are more likely to be written by experts |
Information may not be verified |
Information has been checked |
There is no guarantee info has been updated |
Sources are constantly updated |
Can feature any kind of writing |
Features only writing that has been published elsewhere |
Material has various intended purposes (to entertain to persuade, to sell) |
Purpose is to provide information |
Access is free |
Access is limited to library members, and those who pay significant subscription fees |
Articles may cost money |
Once accessed, full article text is free |
It may or may not be clear who the author is |
The author is clearly named |
(Palmer, E., 2015, p. 22) © 2015 by ASCD. Reproduced with permission
Palmer, E. (2015). Researching In A Digital World. Danvers, MA: ASCD.
Topic: Climate change
Question: Are humans responsible for climate change?
a. Determine key words
1) Look at your main question
2) Other clues (terms found in sources)
b. Narrowing your search
1) Boolean search terms
2) Search shortcuts
3) Quotation marks, truncation and wildcards
Boolean Search Terms
|
Explanation |
Example |
AND |
Results (in blue) contain both terms Climate Change AND Cause |
|
OR |
Results (all of both circles) contain either Climate Change OR Cause |
|
NOT |
Results (Turquoise) contain Climate Change NOT "Natural Cause" |
|
***Note: Some web browsers have their own search terms.
Search Shortcuts
|
Explanation |
Example |
PHRASE SEARCH (Using Quotation Marks) |
Looks for complete phrase exactly as it is typed |
“human cause* for climate change” |
SITE: |
Focuses on specific domain types .com (commercia); .net (network); .org (organization); .gov (government); .edu (education)
|
site:.edu. “human cause* for climate change” |
RELATED: |
Finds similar sites |
related: http://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2013/may/most-scientists-agree-humans-causing-global-climate-change.html |
LINK: |
Finds sites that are linked to this site or have used this site as a reference |
link: http://www.mtu.edu/news/stories/2013/may/most-scientists-agree-humans-causing-global-climate-change.html |
FILETYPE: |
Finds information in specific file format (e.g. .doc, .ppt, .pdf, .mp3, .etc) |
filetype: .pdf “human cause* for climate change” |
(Palmer, 2015, pp. 28-29)
Advanced Search Techniques
|
Symbol |
Explanation |
Example |
TRUNCATION |
* (Some databases might use: !, ?, or #) |
Helps to expand your search to include different word endings or other possible combinations |
Boy*= boys, boyfriend, boycott, etc. C*t= cat, caught, consent, etc. |
WILDCARD |
! or ? |
Substitutes for a letter in a word. |
M!n= man, men Colo!r= color, colour |
4. Start your search with Roosevelt databases (Video: What are the library databases and which one should I use?)
Type of Resources? (See the BMMC guide for an explanation and examples of primary and secondary resources)
1. Primary (Written by the person who did the research; usually in the form of a journal or abstract)
2. Secondary (Written by another person who reviews and cites the original research)
3. Tertiary (A summary or description of the research. The primary research may not be cited)