Biology 180: Ecosystem Services
Summer field in Belgium (Hamois). The blue flowers are Centaurea cyanus and the red are Papaver rhoeas.
Created by: Luc Viatour / www.Lucnix.be, 2006
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodiversity#mediaviewer/File:Field_Hamois_Belgium_Luc_Viatour.jpg
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Library Instruction Evaluation
Cited Reference Searching
- Cited references are found in the bibliographies or works cited sections of a journal article, book or report.
- Cited references can be journal articles, books, reports, white papers, newspaper articles, etc.
- This type of search strategy is useful for locating current articles or research on a topic or identifying top researchers in a field.
- Some of the databases we subscribe to that feature this search startegy are: Web of Science, Scopus, Science Direct, CSA, Chemical Abstracts, JSTOR, Environment Complete and Google Scholar.
- To learn more about cited reference searching go to http://www.thomsonisi.com/tutorials/citedreference/crs1.htm
What is a "primary source"?
Primary source is a term used to describe source material that is closest to the person, information, period, or idea being studied; original research, data or material derived from research is also considered primary source material.
In history, a primary source (also called original source or evidence) can be an artifact, a document, a recording, newspaper article or other source of information that was created at the time under study. It serves as an original source of information about the topic, peoples, society, event, etc. In the sciences, a primary source can be materials such as research articles, original data, field observations, laboratory notebooks.
Primary sources are distinguished from secondary sources, which cite, comment on, or build upon primary sources, although sometimes the distinction isn't clear. A secondary source may also be a primary source, depending on how it is used. "Primary" and "secondary" are relative terms, with sources judged primary or secondary according to specific historical or discipline-specific contexts and what is being studied. For example, if a book (text) uses old documents to discover a new conclusion it is considered to be the primary source material for that conclusion.
Systematic browsing is especially useful in dealing with primary records. Primary records are those generated by a particular event, by those who participated in the event, or by those who directly witnessed it; and they are often unpublished. Thus, for example, a researcher interested in World War II propaganda would be interested in such primary sources as copies of leaflets dropped from airplanes, typescript accounts of the flights written by those who planned or flew them, and firsthand accounts of civilians on the ground who found such leaflets. (from: Thomas Mann, The Oxford Guide to Library Research, New York: Oxford University Press, 1998).
Whether a source is primary also depends on its age. For example, encyclopedias are generally considered tertiary sources, but Pliny's Naturalis Historia, first published in the 1st century, is a primary source for information about the Roman era. Another example of books being considered primary source materials are those titles found in Early English Books Online (EEBO). Also, secondary and tertiary sources can lead you to the discovery of primary source materials.
Primary source materials are not always organized or indexed in the same way that books or journal articles are, with the exception of newspaper articles. Often you need to go to historical societies, libraries or in some cases the local newsroom to get access to the materials you need.
However, there are electronic resources that you can use to lead you to excellent primary sources. With the exception of a few web sites, all of these sources can be found through Tisch Library's Articles/Databases tab or Tufts Catalog.
Use the tabs on this research guide to lead you to specific resources to locate primary source materials.
Using Google and Google Scholar
Use more words
When you search the web, a one or two word search often will find hundreds of thousands of websites. To narrow your search and find more relevant web sites, think about your topic and how people might be writing about it. Then use at least three or four keywords or concepts in your search.
Search for phrases
If you can describe your topic with words that could also be used as a phrase, narrow your search by enclosing your phrase in quotations:
"genetically modified food"
"plant vaccines"
Limit your search
Most search engines have advanced or expert features that allow you to limit your search. Search limits can vary depending on the features of the search engine you are using. A few common ways of limiting include:
- Type of web site or domain name (.edu, .com, .org., .gov): If you are finding too many web pages from commercial sources, you can limit to pages that come from an educational institution by typing .edu as a search limit.
- Date: You can search for pages updated within a certain range of time.
- Location: Many search engines allow you to find web pages published in a particular country.
- File type: Reduce search results by limiting to .doc, .pdf, .ppt, etc.
Google Scholar
Use the Advanced Scholar Search when searching in Google Scholar. Journal article searches can be more focused by limiting by by author, publication title, date or subject areas.
From the Google Scholar homepage, choose Settings to link to Tufts University libraries resources and establish links to Bibliography Managers such as RefWorks or EndNote.
