LS 102

open access

"Open Access" is a term used to describe when either the copyright expires from an older work and the work becomes part of the public domain, or when the copyright holder provides consent for others to use their works freely

How do you truncate?

1. Take your keyword and cut the word down to its root 2. Add the truncation symbol at the end of the root

research questions should:

1. require investigation and critical thinking 2. have a clear, specific focus 3. be answerable

Citations: chemistry

ACS

Boolean operator AND

AND retrieves records that contain all the search terms entered. All the results you see will contain all of the keywords you specified. -narrows search

Citations: education, nursing, social science

APA

Citations: sociology

ASA

how to find subject terms

An excellent way to discover subject terms is to conduct a broad keyword search using the terms or phrases pertinent to your topic. Find a couple of results that closely match what you're researching and explore the subject terms listed for those records. Choose the subject terms that come closest to what you're searching for and jot them down.

What is the ACCORD model?

Authority Credibility Citations Objectivity Relevance Date

What is the purpose of researching background information on a topic?

Background information summarizes the major ideas and concepts related to your topic (e.g. important issues, technical vocabulary, major people and events).

boolean operators

Boolean Operators (AND, OR, NOT)

What is "boolean logic?"

Boolean logic is used in databases during their searches to decide what to include or exclude from the search. It is based off of the ideas behind deductive reasoning.

Citations: biology

CSE

how to find source using Quick Search

Call numbers are NOT assigned to online books and journals in our catalog because they have no physical location in the library. Online items are accessed by clicking on the link for full text.

Citations: history

Chicago, Turbian

Why is truncation important?

Computer databases are literal. Usually the database searches only for the exact keywords you enter. The problem is that the English language often has various forms of the same word, such as singular and plural, or a different suffix or ending.

What does it mean to "consider your scope?"

Considering scope means thinking what you're being asked to do and what types, amounts, and depths of information you'll need to do it.

Info about database source

Each result in a database has a record: a collection of related information treated as one unit. Each record has multiple fields (or single pieces of information).

"scholarly, peer-reviewed journals"

Expert authors, in-depth information, and formal citation are all markers of high-quality information. Journals that are peer-reviewed, the process through which multiple experts examine the work, have an additional layer of documentation and credibility

Some good sources for background information are:

General Reference (Encyclopedias, Handbooks, Manuals) Subject Specific Reference (Encyclopedias, Bibliographies, Literature Reviews) Introductory Chapters in Books

how do you phrase search?

In most databases, this is accomplished by enclosing the search terms in double quotation marks (e.g. "affirmative action").

how to find source using library catalog (call number)

It is important to obtain the complete call number as that will lead you to the exact location of the item. The record will also tell you on what floor the item is located.

What are "keywords?"

Keywords are the important words and concepts that you want sources to contain

Citations: english, foreign language

MLA

Boolean operator NOT

NOT excludes a term from your search. If that term is found, the item will not show up in your list of results. -narrows search

What is "nesting?"

Nesting is an advanced search technique that allows you to group your search terms and to dictate the order in which the Boolean operators will be carried out. Specifically, everything within the parentheses is searched first. -eg. smoking AND teenagers OR adolescents .vs. smoking AND (teenagers OR adolescents)

Boolean operator OR

OR retrieves all records that contain at least one of the search terms entered. If any of the terms are found, that item will show up in your list of results. -broadens search

what is "phrase searching?"

Phrase searching is a technique that allows you to search for two or more words as an exact phrase.

primary source

Primary sources are works that offer ORIGINAL intellectual content. Primary sources generally serve as foundation material for a particular subject; they are the original sources on which others base their analyses.

examples of primary sources

Primary sources include historical and legal documents, eyewitness accounts (e.g. diaries, newspaper articles), art (e.g. creative writing, photographs), audio and video recordings, and speeches. Raw data such as interviews, surveys, fieldwork, statistics, and experiments are also primary sources.

Sims Library: research guides tab

Research Guides tab provides access to a variety of research guides, also referred to as LibGuides These guides will point you to many sources of information on a subject or for a particular Southeastern course

secondary sources

Secondary sources BUILD off of primary sources in some way. They may describe, discuss, interpret, comment upon, analyze, evaluate, summarize, and/or process primary sources.

Superintendent of Documents (SuDoc), Gov Docs

SuDoc is the system used to organize federal government documents -government info -organized by publishing agency -includes colons or slashes

What is a "subject term?'

Subject terms use controlled vocabulary to group all resources that are about something under the same subject term, regardless of the words used by the authors.

Why is phrase searching important?

The default in most databases is to assume the Boolean operator AND, which means they search for the entered words anywhere in the record and not necessarily together.

information format

The organization, intended audience, length, and publication standards define the format type of information. books, academic journals, trade publications, magazines, newspapers, government documents, websites, art

How does digital information differ from what we access in printed form?

Using the knowledge of formats from the other tabs can help identify what you have found. Some formats, such as web pages, blogs, and social media, are only found online, though, which is what that section covers.

Ask yourself some of the following questions to help identify your scope:

What types of information will you need for your final product? Where might you find that type of information? Who might produce that type of information? How much information, and how in depth, do you need for your research? Are there any topics that don't work with this scope?

Some examples of aspects you can use to focus your topic include:

Who is affected or involved (e.g. population, group) What discipline or subject perspective interests you (e.g. historical, psychological) What other issues or topics are related to or involved with yours Where is affected or involved (e.g. geographic location, environments, settings) When is affected or involved (e.g. time period, era, coverage)

What is "field searching?"

With field searching you can search specific fields, like author or subject, to help locate source

What is "truncation?"

With this technique, you cut off your search term to its root and add a symbol, usually the asterisk *, that instructs the computer to search for all words that begin with those letters, no matter which letters may follow. -eg. child* gives results for "child" and "children"

Sims Library: Books & more tab

access to our library's online catalog, a database which lists books and other materials, such as journals and videos, that Sims Library owns

Sims Library: articles & databases tab

acts as your main access point to Sims Library's subscription (paid for) databases "Databases by Subject:" This heading lets you choose databases based on your field of study "Databases by Name:" This heading lets you choose databases based on their names. It features various alphabetic ranges "Favorite Databases:" This heading provides a convenient short list of our most popular interdisciplinary databases

What are the characteristics of common information formats?

appearances, audience, author, citations, content, frequency

ACCORD: Authority

author's qualifications, credentials, affiliations, background

What is a good way to pick a topic for research?

brainstorming and testing potential topics

netiquette

communication rules of etiquette and manners in the networked environment

Sims Library: quick search tab

database of databases, searches many of our databases and may provide huge numbers of results, similar to web search engines.

databases vs search engines

database: when you're doing academic research, you'll need the library databases to effectively find scholarly information search engine: for everyday needs, like looking up a recipe or getting directions

ACCORD: Credibility

does the source contain verifiable information supported with specific detail, anything to make you doubt its accuracy

ACCORD: relevance

does the source fit within the context and purpose of your information need?

ACCORD: objectivity

does the source or author show biases that influence how the info is presented? eg. conflict of interest, unsupported opinion, personal agenda

ACCORD: date

does your topic demand more recent info? eg. copyright date, publication date, when it was last updated

Sims Library: eJournals tab

eJournals tab provides a way to browse journals by discipline

What are some resources you can use to pick a topic?

educational videos social media popular articles current event overviews

result in database full

full record -abstract -source

digital citizenship

includes wider concerns about networked communication: access, commerce, communication, literacy, etiquette, law, rights and responsibilities, health and security

ACCORD: citations

is the source peer reviewed, fact-checked, based on verifiable information or experiences, is it accountable by providing references, sources, hyperlinks, bibliography

Library of Congress classification system

is the system most often used in college and university libraries because it allows for growth in new subject areas -most of Sims Library -organized by subject -call number begins with letters -21 categories

dewey decimal system

most widely used in public and school libraries. DDC is easy to recognize because its call numbers begin with a 3 digit number -used in public libraries -organized by subject

examples of secondary sources

newspaper or magazine articles, book or movie reviews, and scholarly journal articles or books that interpret or evaluate research. Some secondary sources, such as encyclopedias or dictionaries, provide overviews of a topic or event.

copyright

protects the legal rights of creators, who control the use and distribution of their work

What are "research questions?"

research questions are specific questions, arguments, or hypotheses (that require sources to help answer) that drive research. -more complex than factual questions -require you to investigate your ideas and to create a potential viewpoint after synthesizing information from various sources

result in database preview

shortened record -citation info -format available

What is another term for truncation?

stemming

call number

unique addresses that identify where an item is located in the library found on the spine of a book

clssification system

used to organize materials (books, dvds, maps, etc)