Chemistry Research Paper:
Library Resources
Why Not Wikipedia?
Wikipedia is good for two things:
1) Quick informal information search on something that doesn't matter that much. For example:
2) Deep immersive participation in a collaborative research project. Contributing to, or at least following closely, the construction of knowledge on a topic. This might apply, for example, to a topic on which you can decribe your feelings this way:
"I am passionately interested in and already quite knowledgeable about [topic X], and I want to read everything written on that topic, share my own knowledge about it if I believe something is missing or inaccurate, and possibly engage in debates about my ideas with other interested persons. I already know so much about this topic that I will be able to distinguish falsehoods, inaccuracies, valdalism, silliness, and manifestations of mental illness from otherwise accurate information. I'm really interested in this topic and am willing to devote lots and lots of time to thinking about it."
Academic research, as in, "I have to write a five page paper on a topic and find 5 reliable sources supporting my ideas and conclusions" does not fall into either of the above categories.
Please don't use Wikipedia for academic research.
Getting an Overview of & Refining Your Topic:
Gale Virtual Reference Library
- What is it?
- These e-Reference Books are good sources for general overviews of topics from a variety of perspectives.
- Use Gale to get some background on your topic, or to better understand fundamental concepts important to your topic.
- Search Tip:
- Keyword search across the entire collection to find how your topic is covered in various disciplines.
HANS
- What is it?
- The Library's online catalog
- Use it to find books (including eBooks) on your topic.
- Search Tips:
- Limit your search (or filter your search results) by date, location, or type of material.
- eBooks will be included in your search results; you can limit or filter to only see eBooks, or search these collections separately for expanded results.
eBook Collection (EBSCOhost)
- What is it?
- Large collection of electronic books
- Search Tips:
- Go to the eBook Collection site to search through the full-text of all the books -- use this if you don't find enough in HANS.
Research to Cite in your Paper: Academic & Scientific Articles
What is meant by a scholarly journal artilce?
Academic Search Complete
- What is it?
- Database containing both full-text and citation/abstract only articles
- Scholarly, peer-reviewed, academic journal articles AND popular magazine article
- Search Tips:
- Limit search results to "peer-reviewed" to retrieve only scholarly, academic journals.
- Can narrow down results by suggested subject headings (left-margin)
- Use citation generator -- with caution
JSTOR
- What is it?
- Database containing only full-text articles in the Arts and Sciences.
- Entire database consists of scholarly, peer-reviewed, academic journal articles -- NO popular magazine articles.
Citing What You Find
Library Guide to Citing in MLA -- Sample Works Cited Entries
Library video introducing MLA citation
Any Questions?
Ask a Librarian!