ENG 024 Finding Information Martin J. Crabtree MCCC Library

Agenda The College’s Card Catalog Electronic Searching –Keywords & Boolean Searching Electronic Databases at Mercer –Databases available through Mercer Library –Accessing the databases Giving credit to your information sources A few things to consider when using the web

Finding books in the library The online card catalog The catalog is available online. Used to find books, videos and other material both in the MCCC collection and the Mercer County Public (MCL) libraries. You can have materials from MCL brought to the college. Deliveries arrive Tuesday and Friday afternoons. (DVD’s not available from MCL) You will need to have your student ID card to borrow books or use the computer lab

Finding things in the library Library of Congress system Unlike school and public libraries, the MCCC uses the Library of Congress (LC) system. The LC is an alphanumeric system –For example: PN W65 You can search for materials by: –Title –Author (last name first) –Subject –Keyword

Link to the catalog is on the library’s web pages.library’s web pages.

Searching Electronic Databases …and the web too

Starting An Electronic Search Keywords Keywords are used when searching electronic databases and web search engines First step - Generate a list of words (keywords) often nouns that describes or is commonly used when discussing your topic. For example: –Ozone –Layer –Depletion –Atmosphere –Hole

Starting An Electronic Search Boolean Searching/Logic Boolean searching - Connecting keywords with the terms –and –not –or For example –eagles NOT football –(car or automobile) and exhaust More Terms = Fewer “Hits”

Searching More Than Just Keywords Phrases & Truncations To search for a phrase, use quotation marks –“weapons of mass destruction” Truncations allow for searching related words all at once –The * is usually used. For example: “child*” would include: child, children, childhood, childproof, etc.

Let’s take a quick look at how Boolean searching can help

Electronic Databases at the Mercer Library

Electronic Databases at MCCC In General Over 60 databases available Many contain periodical articles Some are useful for searching specific subjects like business, art, or criminal justice. Others are also useful tools like the Encyclopedia Britannica and the Oxford Dictionary

Electronic Databases In General Accessible at any computer on the MCCC/JKC campus network Most are available off campus, need to request a password. Can print/ /download articles

Broad/General Coverage Databases Academic Search Premier - EBSCOhost –Broadest of the databases covering everything from science to history –Not every article full text Academic Universe (Lexis-Nexis) - News –Large collection of newspaper information from around the US, nearly all full text Issues & Controversies from Facts on File –Contains information on controversial subjects in the news

Let’s take a look a the databases…

Using the information you find... and giving credit where credit is due.

Using the Information You Find Always give credit to the author or creator of the information that you use. This includes not only the actual facts, conclusions, and ideas that an author presents but also the words that he/she has used.

Plagiarism can take many forms Plagiarism, the presenting of someone else’s intellectual work as your own. It may be done deliberately, but it may also be done without your realizing it. The copying, word for word, from a book or an article is the most blatant form of plagiarism. Changing a few words is still plagiarism!

Using the World Wide Web

Using the internet/world wide web Before using the web for most college research, try using databases first: –You will have fewer hits to go through –You’ll likely find some good information quickly –The information is always high quality The internet & web are not the same thing

Some things to consider when searching the web Everything is NOT on the web and may never be No search engine covers the entire web The “invisible web” is huge! Though there has yet to be consensus, estimates put the size of the invisible web between 2 and 500 times bigger than the “visible” (or surface) web.

Searching the World Wide Web Search Strategy Searching the Web is much like database searching: –Put together a list of keywords describing the information you desire –Use Boolean logic (and, not, or) to better define your search, use double quotes for phrases, etc. When searching the web, also: –Consider which search engines/sites may best suit your search needs. Different search engines yield different results. –Use the search engine’s “advanced search” to select limiting parameters (language, date, domain, etc.)

Let’s pause for a bit for some TV

Evaluating Web Sites Is this stuff any good?

Evaluating Web Sites Quality varies greatly from site to site YOU are the sole evaluator of the quality of information a site provides

Five Web Info Evaluation Criteria 1.Accuracy - is it reliable? 2.Authority - is author qualified on subject? 3.Objectivity - is the information biased? 4.Currency - is the information “new” enough? 5.Coverage - does the info completely cover the topic?

The Bottom Line… Buyer Beware The web contains a vast amount of information…but not everything Anyone can put information on the web, hence the quality of web information varies greatly YOU will often be the only person to decide if the quality of the info you find on the web is good

The Bottom Line… Buyer Beware The web contains a vast amount of information…but not everything Anyone can put information on the web, hence the quality of web information varies greatly YOU will often be the only person to decide if the quality of the info you find on the web is good

Now let’s visit a site go to: