Kara Kugelmeyer SRS Librarian for Science Olin Library kmkugelm@colby.edu CH115: Research Best Practices for Science of Crime Assignments Please complete one of these search assignments and bring your results to class on 9/28 #1 Explore Searching for Newspaper Articles Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jALv7nVEwQM Think about why newspapers are a good source of information for the search topic below What other information sources might you use as well (video, public records…)? Start at Colby Libraries Miller home page; http://www.colby.edu/miller/ Go to Quick Links section (lower left), click on Newspapers Click on tab “Maine, Waterville & Colby newspapers” Search using the keyword “Ayla Reynolds” a Try adding various other keywords to the search term above to help refine and improve results b Explore the filters to help c Export articles d Export citations Analyze results – did you get what you wanted/expected? Repeat the search again using national newspapers a Start at Colby Libraries Miller home page; http://www.colby.edu/miller/ b Go to Quick Links section (lower left), click on Newspapers c Pick national newspapers to search Search using the keyword “Ayla Reynolds” a Try adding various other keywords to the search term above to help refine and improve results b Explore the filters to help c Export articles d Export citations Compare results from local newspaper search #2 Explore Using a Scholarly Database Watch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jALv7nVEwQM Think about why a scholarly database would be a good source of information for the search topic below What other information sources might you use as well (books, public records…)? Start at the Colby Miller home page: http://www.colby.edu/miller/ On the list on the left, click on Databases Click Popular Databases; in the dropdown, choose Academic Search Complete Search using the keyword “Ted Bundy” a Try adding various other keywords to the search term above to help refine and improve results b Explore the filters to help i Try narrowing the list by limiting “Scholarly (Peer-reviewed)journals” c Export articles d Export citations Now Use Google/Google Scholar Search for “Ted Bundy” – note the number of results and types of results a Websites, blogs, images, etc Compare the results you got from Academic Search Complete especially in terms of what information will be the most authoritative and helpful for your course Strategies for Successfully Using Research Databases and Library Services • Tools and tips for creating effective search terms to help you find resources o Concept Mapping o Keyword searching o Consider the information cycle • Best Practices Using Library Databases o Create a user ID Export services Customization • Saved Searches o Enter synonyms in boxes, linked with OR o Change drop-down boxes as needed o Use * truncation; o Use filters peer review journal title full text o Print, E-mail, Save (to flashdrive) o Export to citation manager • Review: What’s Peer Reviewed o Popular vs Peer Reviewed o The information cycle o Best Examples of Peer Reviewed resources Academic or Scholarly Journal Collections on topics published by academic presses Helpful Links • Citation Help LibGuide http://libguides.colby.edu/citationhelp • Library Homepage http://www.colby.edu/libraries/ How Do I Know Popular vs Peer Reviewed POPULAR PEER-REVIEWED Authors’ names are given, and occasionally some biographical information, but rarely credentials(degrees, professional status, expertise) You may be left wondering if the author is really an expert on the topic he or she is writing about Authors’ names, credentials and even addresses are almost always included (so that interested researchers can correspond) Authors will be experts in their fields Articles are written for a broad audience, using everyday language (making sure to define any technical terms) people of all ages and/or levels of knowledge could read these) Usually written in a more casual tone Papers are written for experts (or college students!) in the field (lots of technical or discipline-specific terminology, which is seldom defined) Always written in a formal tone Articles may have short summaries of researchor news…or may even reflect the authors’ opinion(without support from data or literature) Papers typically report, in great detail, the authors’ research findings (and include support from other research)…these papers will be more than just or pages Authors don’t typically (or never) cite their sources, and don’t include a list of references at the end of the article Authors always cite their sources throughout the paper, and include list of references (a bibliography or works cited page) at the end Articles typically include many photographs or illustrations (often pretty to look at) Papers seldom include photographs, but may include tables or graphs of data (may seem bland at a glance) The journal has an editor, but no strict guidelines for submission of articles, or peer review process The journal has very specific guidelines for papers to be published (often this information can be found on the journal’s website), and a rigorous peer-review process (each paper will list when it was submitted to the reviewers, and when it was accepted for publication…often several months apart!) **http://apus.libanswers.com/faq/2154