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Library Guides: English 1
Jane Thomas, Instructor See also Web Pages entitled:
Citing Your Sources
"MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers", 6th ed., - Call # R
808.027 G437 - Located in Reference Collection - 1st floor. Copies are also
available for one hour check-out at the Library Circulation/Reserves Counter. REFERENCE BOOKS: Located on the first floor of the library behind the Reference Desk. These books must remain in the library. Reference books include dictionaries, almanacs and encyclopedias. Specialized or subject encyclopedias (concentrating on a particular subject instead of covering all knowledge) are excellent starting points for research. They are focused on a particular topic, cover the major concepts of the topic, are written by experts in the field, and often have bibliographies or other references. Examples of Reference books in the COS library are as follows:
Statistical Abstract of the United States Call# R317.3 Un58 CIRCULATING BOOKS: Located on the second floor of the library. Our newest books are, for the most part, in the areas of science and social issues, and current topics, because we try to build the collection to the type of assignments given to students. Some subject headings you might use in the COS book catalog are as follows:
PERIODICALS INDEXES AND DATABASES: Located on the first floor of the library. Periodicals refer to information printed over a period of time such as magazines, journals and newspapers. These are excellent sources for current and authoritative information. To find an article on a specific topic, it is necessary to use an index. Indexes are available in paper and electronic formats. The library subscribes to approximately 23 indexes, 300 periodicals and 13 newspapers. For a list of which periodicals and indexes are available at COS click on the link: http://www.cos.edu/library/periodicalsalpha.htm . For periodicals that the COS Library does not have available, there is also the possibility of an Inter-Library Loan from Fresno State University.ALSO, through the Electronic Resources link, http://cos.edu/library/electronic.htm, on the COS Library’s Web Site, there are links to the electronic index subscription databases that the library makes available to COS students. Many of these indexes offer full-text articles, which means the entire article will be available even if the library doesn't subscribe to the periodical itself. If a student is off campus, passwords are necessary to access these databases. Passwords are available for COS students at the COS Library Information Desk or by calling the Library at (559) 737-6179. InfoTrac is a periodical index database that works well when using a subject search. When entering a subject search, you can use broad terms, because the index will automatically help to narrow the search. This index is not completely full-text. Academic Abstracts is a periodical index database that works well when using a key-word search. When entering a key-word search, you need to use precise words and the more words you add, the narrower the search becomes. This index is not completely full-text. Fresno Bee and Los Angeles Times are databases that provide access to the full-text articles of these two newspapers from 1985 forward. These databases are particularly good for finding information concerning the San Joaquin Valley and the rest of California. Lexis/Nexis is a database that provided access to full-text articles from newspapers across the nation and some international newspapers. It is also an excellent source for finding specific court cases. CQ Researcher is a company that creates a database of original reports concerning current and controversial topics. The reports are generally unbiased and almost always have statistics and other brief facts. The reports average 25 pages in length. SIRS (Social Issues Research Series) is a database of full-text articles from magazines and newspapers with emphasis on current and controversial topics. It can be searched by key word or subject. SEARCHING IN DATABASES - Boolean Operators and key-word Searching Keyword Searching Every electronic database is made up of words and although the computer does not think the way we do, it is terrific at recognizing words. When you type words into the search box the computer will look in the databases for those words and bring back all the records/entries that contain the words you requested. In keyword searching you want the most important words that describe your topic. Example 1: Has space exploration brought many benefits to the public? Key words would be “space exploration” and benefits Example 2: Should animals be used in medical experiments? Key words would be animals and medical and experiments Searching for
a phrase
Sometimes
keywords include a phrase instead of single words. Some examples include:
gun control, human cloning, endangered species, National Rifle
Association. Put quote marks around phrases so the computer will search
for it as a phrase and not as individual words.
Example: “baseball fans” Truncation Truncation lets you find all forms of the root word. The symbol used is an *. Example: educat* will find educate; education; educating; educated Boolean Operators Keyword searching uses Boolean Operators to
link the search terms together. The Boolean operator you will use most often is
AND. OR is another Boolean Operator. It is used when you have two words that mean the same thing and you want to find all the articles regardless of which term it uses. Examples: babies or infants Elderly or aged “Native Americans” or “American Indians” When an OR search is combined with an AND search the OR search must be placed in parentheses ( ). This separates the searches for the computer. Examples: (babies or infants) and poverty and health Abuse and (elderly or aged) EVALUATION OF MAGAZINES/JOURNALS - The reference book Magazines for Libraries ( Call #R 016.05 Ka19) is a helpful tool for description, evaluation and discernment of possible biases in periodical publications. INTERNET: The Internet provides vast amounts of information, but much of it has not been submitted to an editorial process. Web Directories are helpful, because usually the linked web pages have had human scrutiny. Examples of web directories are as follows:
Web Sites by Topic:
http://www.cos.edu/library/subject/internet.htm California Government Home Page: http://www.ca.gov You are visitor number:
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