Gather Context: Getting Stated with Reference Sources
One of the best ways to get started is to gain a more accurate sense of information through reference sources. Try the two links below to start to learn more about your topic:
- Gale eBooksGale includes the full-text of a variety of online dictionaries and encyclopedias. Great initial summaries that will answer basic questions related to the 4 W's.
- CQ ResearcherCQ Researcher has in-depth reports on topics that are related to current events. Be sure to use the Table of Contents and Control F to find the most important relevant sections of the report for your work.
Add More Depth: Popular & Scholarly Sources
Once you've gathered basic info about your problem, begin to dig deeper by incorporating other sources of information, including popular and scholarly articles. Try looking in the following places for more information:
- U.S. NewsstreamSearch the full-text of newspapers around the country from about 1980 to the present to highlight specific issues or occurrences, as well as solutions that have been tried.
- Academic Search Ultimate This link opens in a new windowSearch Academic Search Complete for a combo of magazine articles and scholarly articles on your problem.
- Science DirectScience Direct contains the full-text of scientific research articles. Search here for an in-depth, detailed perspective on your problem, as well as possible solutions.
Having some trouble remembering the difference between popular sources and scholarly, as well as how to read scholarly articles? Check the links below for help:
Evaluate Websites
While you're doing Google searches to either narrow your topic or in order to dig up more information on certain subject, you want to be careful to decide if the information you find is trustworthy.
When it comes to science, nearly everyone has opinions: should we be labeling genetically modified food for consumer's awareness? What will fracking do for our economy or our groundwater supply? Your job is to evaluate the information you can find through Google and Bing to find the good websites--those written by authors you can trust, with good and up-to-date information.
Authorship: Who created this website? What is their background on the topic? Are they trustworthy?
Bias: Why was the website created? What point of view does the author have? Does that limit the facts they present or how the facts are presented?
Date: How old is the information that is presented? Is it still accurate?
Questions? Check out the COD Library's guide to evaluating information.
Looking for a specific type of resource, such as data, statistics, or government reports? Try some of the following strategies in your Google search:
- Adding site:.gov to your Google searches will get you government results for your topic
- Adding site:.edu to your Google searches will get you educational results for your topic (and many universities have good info about sustainability as well.)
Cite
Want some more concrete help with citations? Try the following:
- Google Scholar can create citations for articles. Click the quotation marks below the article information after doing a search.
- COD Library's guide to APA citations
- Purdue OWL's guide to APA citations and paper format
Want software to create citations for you? Check out the database below:
- NoodleTools
NoodleTools allows you to find, organize and store your research citations all in one place. Create complete Works Cited and Bibliographies with the click of a mouse, and keep notes and ideas related to your work all in one place. Available in browser and mobile app.
Create an account with your COD email to access this resource.
