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Library Guides: Recommended Periodical Databases and Searching Techniques
Definition of Periodical: A publication issued at regular intervals (over a period of time) and intended to continue indefinitely. Magazines, journals, and newspapers are periodicals. Definition of Database: According to Webster’s College Dictionary a database is “a collection of organized, related data, especially one in electronic form that can be accessed and manipulated by specialized computer software.” The COS Library Databases are not discipline specific but rather they cover a broad range of subject areas suitable for community college assignments. Recommended Databases: General Description:
Best Features:
Weaknesses: Searching tips: General Description:
Sample Search:
Best Features:
General Description:
Sample Search:
Best Features:
Weaknesses: 1. This databases does not have a user-friendly subject searching feature.
General Description:
Best Features:
Weaknesses: 1. Always use print preview to see how long the article is before printing
as full-reports can easily be 40+ pages. General Description:
Sample Search:
Best Features:
Weaknesses: 1. The searcher needs to click on the printer friendly link to reformat the article for printing.
General Description:
Sample Search:
Best Features:
General Description:
Sample Search:
Best Features:
Weaknesses: 1. Huge database with lots of choices. This can make it overwhelming to
the student. Each Search Engine will have some unique features for searching, however, key word searching and Boolean Operators are used by virtually every search engine. The following tips are for the basic searching techniques. Go to the help section of each search engine for more detailed information on the best ways to search that engine. Most search engines do not bring good results when the searcher types in a full question or sentence fragment. It responds much better to key word searching. 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 The more words the searcher uses in the search query the smaller number of search results. Sometimes the searcher will see a need to broaden their search, change the search terms he/she is using, or add more terms to narrow the results. 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: Key words may be truncated to the root
word in order to find all forms of that word. This can be very useful in
creating a more effective search query. Wildcards: A symbol that is used to replace one letter in a word. Example: Wom?n will return articles with the words women or woman Keyword searching uses Boolean Operators to link the search terms together. The Boolean operator you will use most often is AND. The Boolean Operator AND means that the terms connected by it must be in the search results. In Example 1 I decided that my keywords were space exploration and benefits so my search query would be “space exploration” and benefits This helps to ensure that those terms would have to be in the entry or the computer would not return it to me. 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 sites regardless of which term it uses. Examples: babies or infants 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 The Boolean Operator NOT eliminates terms. This is useful when a term can divergent meanings. Example: behavior and (dolphins not football) Possible Assignments: 1. Create an annotated bibliography on a topic. This gives students research practice without you having to grade a paper. 2. Using the research questions given below, turn them
into search queries. Research Questions: 3. Create your research question and search query.
Using a search engine locate a web site and then use the databases to locate
an article. Compare the results.
http://help.unc.edu/?id=1552
Great security practices dictate that passwords should
be changed regularly to protect you from identity theft and prevent
unauthorized use. ... 4. Part of creating efficient search queries is thinking of
terms for similar concepts. Come up with similar terms to the ones given. Babies 5. Using phrases correctly. Students often become
confused about what a phrase really is and begin using sentence fragments or
single words as phrases. Prevent
cancer 6. Truncate the following words and list all forms of the word that might appear.
Evaluate
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