Friday, March 7 Searching for and Acquiring Scientific Literature Writing Process Map

A Few Ground Rules for Searching for Scientific Literature 1. Some types of literature don't qualify as good, “primary” sources of knowledge for scientific writing projects. These types include newspapers, popular magazines, television reports, informational and advertising brochures, personal interviews with so-called experts, encyclopedias, and Web sites that aren't associated with reputable scientific organizations. 2. The publication of a scientific article, book, or Web site doesn't automatically ensure its quality and credibility. That is, all publications that look and "sound" scientific aren't necessarily accurate, representative of consensus views, and valid in the arguments that they contain. 3. Your search for scientific literature should cost relatively little time and no money.

Appropriate Sources of Scientific Knowledge 1. Peer-reviewed journal articles: research papers and review papers. 2. Scientific books: edited volumes of peer-reviewed research papers and review papers, monographs, textbooks 3. Reputable scientific Web sites (for example, National Library of Medicine, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)National Library of MedicineCenters for Disease Control and Prevention

About Peer-reviewed Journal Articles Well-written, peer-reviewed research and review papers in reputable journals are generally the most comprehensive and trustworthy sources of scientific knowledge. But you shouldn't assume that all journal articles are well written, peer reviewed, and published in reputable journals.

Tips for Searching for Journal Articles 1. Ask your (helpful) professors for suggestions and copies of articles that they might have. 2. Use the reference lists of journal articles on your research issue. 3. Go directly to the journals that you know specialize on your topic. 4. Use databases of scientific literature.

Sample Databases of Life Science Literature DatabaseDescription of ContentsRequires Paid Subscription for Access to Full-text Articles? Web Site Address YesNo Biomed Central (BMC) Links to full-text articles from more than 150 life science journals. Maintained by BMC, an independent publisher. * Biological Abstracts Selected full-text articles from journals in all subdisciplines of biology, including biochemistry, biomedicine, biotechnology, genetics, botany, ecology, microbiology, pharmacology, zoology, and more. * Google ScholarSelected full-text articles and citation information for theses and books from journals in all academic fields. * HighWire PressLinks to over 1 million full-text articles from 268 life science journals. The largest database of free full-text life science articles in the world. Developed by Stanford University Libraries. * PubMedApproximately 16 million citations and selected full-text articles from approximately 5,000 journals in all life science disciplines. Contains the MEDLINE database. Maintained by the U.S. National Library of Medicine. * *If you are using PubMed through an off-campus computer, use CU’s VPN software to gain full access to the CU Library resources. To get the VPN software, click on the “Off-Campus Access (VPN)” link at PsycINFOLinks to selected full-text articles from journals in the behavioral sciences (including psychology and social science) and mental health. * ScirusOver 250 million science-specific Web pages, with links to science Web sites and selected full-text journal articles. * Web of ScienceLinks to selected full-text articles from nearly 9,000 research journals that cover all scientific fields. *

Searching for Journal Articles

PubMed Tutorials If you don't have extensive experience using PubMed, refer to the NLM's tutorials at