Synopses & Reviews
With advice for finding, evaluating, and documenting sources, this handy booklet covers the essential information students need for college research assignments in any discipline. Lightweight and spiral-bound, its the perfect companion for research whether at the library or at home. An abridged, online version contains links to a wide selection of useful Web sources.
Synopsis
This handy, spiral-bound booklet covers the essential information students need -- at the library and on the Internet -- for college research assignments in every discipline. It is also available online with links to a wide selection of useful Internet sites.
Table of Contents
PART I. RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND SEARCH STRATEGIES Posing a research question
Choosing a narrow question
Choosing a challenging question
Choosing a grounded question
Mapping out a search strategy
Getting started
Including the library in your plan
Choosing an appropriate search strategy
PART II. FINDING AND EVALUATING SOURCES
Finding articles using a database or print index
What databases offer
How to search a database
When to use a print index
Finding books in the library's catalog
Finding quality resources on the Web
Search engines
Directories
Digital archives
Government and news sites
Discussion forums
Considering other research tools
Reference works
Bibliographies and scholarly citations
Evaluating sources
Select sources worth your time and attention
Scanning search results
Previewing sources
Distinguishing between primary and secondary sources
*Select appropriate types of electronic sources
*Distinguishing between an abstract or excerpt and a full-length document
*Distinguishing among electronic versions of source material
Read with an open mind and a critical eye
Being alert for signs of bias
Assessing the author's argument
Assess Web sources with special care
PART III. SPECIALIZED LIBRARY AND WEB RESOURCES
Researching in the humanities
General Resources in the humanities
Art and Architecture
Classics
Literature and Linguistics
Music
Philosophy
Religion
Theater, Dance, and Film
*World languages
Researching history
General resources in history
World history
American history
Primary sources
Researching in the social sciences
General resources in the social sciences
Anthropology
Business and Economics
Communication studies
*Criminal Justice
Education
Ethnic and area studies
Geography
Law
Political science
Psychology
Sociology
Women's studies
Researching in the sciences
General resources in the sciences
Biology
Chemistry
*Computer science
Engineering
Environmental sciences
Geology
Mathematics
Nursing and health sciences
Physics and Astronomy
PART IV. DOCUMENTATION STYLES
MLA style: English and other humanities
MLA in-text citations
MLA list of works cited
MLA information notes
MLA manuscript format
Sample research paper: MLA style
APA style: The social sciences
APA in-text citations
APA list of references
APA manuscript format
Sample research paper: APA style
Chicago style: History
Chicago-style documentation (footnotes or endnotes)
Chicago-style bibliography
Chicago-style manuscript format
Sample pages from a research paper: Chicago-style
CSE style: Biology and other sciences
CSE number system
CSE reference list
CSE manuscript format
Sample pages: CSE style
List of style manuals
PART V. GLOSSARY OF LIBRARY AND WEB TERMS
*new to this edition