1 / 19

Using Academic Databases to Focus your topic

Laney College Library Ann Buchalter, MLIS. Using Academic Databases to Focus your topic. Wong WR5, FA10. What is a database?. A database is an organized collection of information, usually pertaining to a particular subject.

giona
Download Presentation

Using Academic Databases to Focus your topic

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. Laney College Library Ann Buchalter, MLIS Using Academic Databasesto Focus your topic Wong WR5, FA10

  2. What is adatabase? A database is an organized collection of information, usually pertaining to a particular subject. They are highly organized & searchable to help people easily find the information they need. Think of databases as huge electronic filing systems.

  3. AcademicDatabases • The most common types of databases found in college libraries are the online catalog (used to find books) and journal article databases. • Academic databases contain articles published in journals, magazines, newspapers and other information sources. • The are considered Academic because they help you locate quality, COLLEGE APPROPRIATE information that is relevant to your topic.

  4. Tips for Database Searching • Few Words--no sentences—2 to 3 words will be most effective. Examples: Instead of raising animals for food, try: *** Omit “stop” words such as a, an, to, the, of, for, etc.

  5. Let’s explore Academic OneFile Need some keywords? Start with BROWSE SUBJECTS OR You can right to the Search box and enter your keywords

  6. Type your topic keywords in the box and click Food To find YOUR subtopic, click on RELATED SUBJECTS

  7. To narrow further, find a similar term & click on RELATED SUBJECTS again OR Click on the + sign to see what types of topics are in included in the subject term. OR Click on the Term to see the articles associated with that term

  8. Title of Article Title of Magazine Author # of Pages Click on the TITLE of ARTICLE to see article and options for saving, printing, and emailing The words in red are the keywords you clicked on

  9. Now it’s your turn: You can access academic databases from the Library Website www.laney.edu/library

  10. We will start with

  11. Other Helpful Databases: Need more for background information? • Start with –World Book Online Reference Center • Then Try: • CQ Researcher (controversial issues) • Opposing Viewpoints (arguments on different sides of a topic) • Salem Health (medical info)

  12. Databases with more journal, magazine or news articles: Depending on your topic you may also want to look in: • Green File • Lexis-Nexis

More Related