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University Library
MST8011:
Finding and Managing academic information
Project & dissertation resources and advice
Moira BentFaculty Liaison Librarian
But first….we’ve changed…
Biology 570s
Summarise, synthesise, critically evaluate
Identify gaps
Track key issues/debates/people
Inform your research Contextualise your work
Literature reviews – essential for projects
Pic credit: Flickr Commons: US National Archives; Microsoft clipart
(CC BY-NC-SA 2.0) flickr.com/photos/sunlightfoundation/2385174105
It needs to be
thorough….
…but selective
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Information overload?
Information resources
Books
E-Books
Journal articles
Conf Papers
Theses
Internet
Experimental data
Statistical data
Commercial material Digital images
Chemical and physical data
Government reports
Maps
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Don’t sink under the weight of all the information!
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Having a search strategy keeps you afloat
• Primary data• Secondary
sources• Maps/images
• How much?• What date?• How quickly?• Which language
• Main terms
• Related terms
• Synonyms
• Logical approach
• Use proper strategies Search
Techniques Keywords
Info typeLimits
1 2
34
Found too
much?
Search a more
specialised resource
Apply limits
(date, type etc)
Combine terms with
‘AND’
More specific search terms
Flickr Commons: LSE Library
Eg biodiversity AND fish
Eg LIMIT to Journal articles after 2004
Applying your search strategy
Can’t find
enough?
Search a less
specialised resource
Truncate your
search terms
Combine terms with
‘OR’
Use different search terms
Eg sea OR ocean OR marine
Eg Conserv* finds conserve, conservation, conserving
Applying your search strategy
Recipe for success!
Keep refining
Narrow down
Start broad
Maybe you’re looking in the wrong place altogether?
Or perhaps it doesn’t exist at
all?
Flickr Commons/LSE Library and (CC BY 2.0) flickr.com/photos/pinksherbet/4812269151
LibrarySearch is a good place to start
Includes the library catalogue and a range of electronic resources
Full & mobile views
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Use Library Search
To find printed books in the Library To find electronic books To get a general overview of a topic To find a few journal references for an essay
DON’T rely on Library Search as the only source for your literature review – not all our resources are included.
Use your Library Guide to identify key databases:
libguides.ncl.ac.uk/biology
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LibrarySearch is fab!Why use specific databases?
To download results to EndNote Proquest
Unique content for biology Search in images, figures and tables Use taxonomic terms Set search alerts
Scopus Unique content for biology Set search alerts Search within results
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Finding websites
http://www.intute.ac.uk• Portal to quality information on the internet• Resources selected by subject experts• Provided for UK academic community
http://scholar.google.co.uk/• Google’s search engine for academic literature
http://www.scirus.com• Scientific search engine – filters out non-scientific sites
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Now you have all the info you need – relax!
Keeping ahead
Alerts
Citation searching
Social media
Flickr Commons: US National Archives; San Diego Air and Space Museum
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Citation alerts
Save your search strategy as an email alert Get alerts for your favourite journals too Receive an email every time a new article is
added to the resource which matches your search
Receive an email every time a new issue of the journal is published
You can usually determine the frequency (daily, weekly, monthly, etc...)
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Keeping up to date: Email alerts
Individual databases – for topics• Scopus, Proquest, Science Direct
Zetoc – for journal TOCs• http://zetoc.mimas.ac.uk/• British Library's TOC for journal articles & conference
proceedings. • search 1993 =• 28,000 journals & 45m articles & conference proceedings• email alerts by subject / journal TOC• set up RSS feeds for journals
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Keeping up to date: RSS feeds
For web based content – web pages, EJs
Information sent to a “reader” – your personal web page
Relies on you checking your reader regularly – you may need to change your work practices
Easy links to original information
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Getting started
Reader
• Find an RSS reader/viewer e.g. Google Reader, Netvibes
Feed
• Find a site with an RSS feed
Link
• Click on and paste the link into your chosen RSS reader
Read
• Go back to your RSS viewer at regular intervals for your ‘news’ – it’ll be there waiting for you
Can't find the resources you need for your
research?
Use Inter Library Loans for journal articles & books
Use ‘Books on Time’ to recommend a book purchase
Flickr the Commons: Smithsonian Institution
[email protected]@ncl.ac.uk
@nulibsage
facebook.com/NULibraries
libguides.ncl.ac.uk/biology
Contact us....
Things to do
Literature search
proforma
Online guidance and resources:
Biology Library Guide
7 steps on the Project tab of
the Library Guide
