ALS 103: Library Resources
Librarian: Carol Vreeland
General Library Information and Overview of Library Services
Hours for NCSU Libraries (including D. H. Hill Library)
Food and Drink Policy
D. H. Hill Library Map,
including Locations of Service Desks; wireless access
NCSU Libraries Virtual Tour
Ask a Librarian
Borrowing
Tripsaver
Photocopying and Printing
Finding Journal Articles on Your Topic:
From the NCSU Libraries home page (http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/),
under Search the Collection, select Databases.
Then select a subject-- Example: Biology. You'll see a long list of databases from which to choose.
As an example, try the Cambridge Scientific Abstracts database called Biological Sciences.
Click here for a description
of the Biological Sciences database and to view a sample record.
Other databases you may want to explore include the following:
AGRICOLA
Agriculture and related literature indexed by the National Agricultural
Library (NAL). Indexes journals, books, theses, patents, software,
audiovisual materials, technical reports, and agricultural experiment
station reports held by the NAL. Coverage: 1970-present.
BIOSIS Previews (Biological Abstracts)
Issued as a part of the ISI Web of Knowledge, the database covers original
research reports and reviews in biological and biomedical areas. Coverage
includes traditional areas of biology such as botany, zoology, and microbiology,
as well as related fields such as biomedical, agriculture, pharmacology, and
ecology. Also included are interdisciplinary fields such as medicine,
biochemistry, biophysics, bioengineering, and biotechnology. The database covers
content summaries, books, meeting abstracts, papers, and posters. BIOSIS also
combines the content from Biological Abstracts and Biological Abstracts/RRM. Coverage: 1969-present. Updated weekly.
CAB Abstracts
Worldwide index to agriculture, forestry, and allied disciplines,
including animal and human nutrition, veterinary medicine. From
the Centre for Agriculture & Biosciences International. Coverage:
1972-present.
Zoological Record
Provides the most comprehensive coverage of worldwide animal literature.
Over 6,500 international journals, review annuals, monographs, meeting
proceedings, books and reports are monitored for inclusion. All
major areas of zoology are represented, including: behavior, ecology,
evolution, habitat, nutrition, parasitology, reproduction, taxonomy,
and zoogeography. Coverage: 1978-present. Updated monthly.
 Top of Page
Search Tips
| To search by keyword |
Type the words or phrases you wish to begin your search and
press [Enter]
lung cancer [Enter] |
Retrieves records with the phrase lung cancer |
To truncate terms
(wildcard searching) |
Type the word you wish to search followed by an asterisk (*)
vaccin* [Enter]
Note: The truncation symbol varies depending on the search software. |
Retrieves records with terms beginning with vaccin
such as vaccine vaccines vaccination vaccinating vaccinated |
| AND narrows your search |
lung cancer and
prevention [Enter] |
Retrieves any record that contains both the
phrase lung cancer and the term prevention. |
| OR broadens your search |
aids or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome [Enter] |
Retrieves any record that contains either the term
aids or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. |
| Set searching |
#1 and #2 [Enter]
Note: May not work in all databases. Does not work in WWW search
engines. |
Retrieves records that contain both a term from set
#1 and a term from set #2. |
| Nesting |
(Aids or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) and prevention
[Enter]
Note: Used when set searching
isn't available. |
Retrieves records that contain
either the term
aids or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and
the term prevention. |
Top of Page
Does the NCSU Libraries Have the Book or Journal?
Journals.
A. While you are searching the database.
Many of our databases are enabled to provide links to the library's
journal holdings. If you see a red and white rectangular button
that says 
within a record for a journal article, click on the button. A
new window will pop up, containing information that will tell
you if the library has electronic access directly to the article
or if we have the journal in print.
B. If you have already left the database.
After using one of the indexes/databases above to find references
on your topic, search by title in the NCSU Libraries Catalog
to find out if the library has the journal or publication that you need; search for the journal
title (not the title of the article). Use the Journal List to
locate electronic versions of the journal that you need.
- From the catalog:
First, at the search box labeled "Search begins with...," select "Journal Title begins with..." from the pull-down
menu.
Then type in the complete title of the journal-- Example: nature
Click on the Search button.
Then, click on the hyperlink next to the journal's name to get
to the journal's catalog record. Example: Nature. 2 entries
The catalog record will have the call number for locating the
journal in the library. Example: Nature's call number
is Q1 .N2
Books.
You can also use the NCSU Libraries catalog to search for books
available in the library. You can search the catalog by author,
title, subject or keyword. Examples:
- Look for books on the subject of pollution
- Does D. H. Hill Library have a book titled
Animal Minds?
- What other books does D. H. Hill Library have
by Donald R. Griffin?
Satellite Shelving Facility.
Sometimes, the catalog record will state that the book or journal
you need is located at the NCSU Libraries' Satellite Shelving
Facility. You can request the item(s) by logging on to the Tripsaver request system and filling out a Satellite
Request Form. (Go to the Reference Desk for assistance.) Many
requested items can be delivered the same day as requested. See
Requesting Materials for details.
If the NCSU Libraries does not have the book or journal that
you need:
Fill out an Interlibrary Loan request through Tripsaver. (Go to the Reference Desk for assistance.)
Through the Tripsaver service, books and articles from Duke, UNC-Chapel
Hill and NCCU can be obtained within 2-3 days. Books and articles
from other institutions will take longer to obtain.
Top of Page
Creating Citations for Research Paper Bibliographies
There are several different style guides, including the MLA
Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, the Publication
Manual of the American Psychological Association, and others.
Each has its own rules for the proper way to cite a publication,
as you're writing your research paper.
To get help in creating citations:
LOBO's Citation
Builder (http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/lobo2/citationbuilder/citationbuilder.php)
can help you create MLA or APA style-compatible citations for
books, articles, and Web sites.
A guide for Citing
Electronic Information is available from the Internet
Public Library.
Copies of the MLA Handbook for Writers of
Research Papers, the Publication Manual of the American
Psychological Association, and other style guides are available
at the D. H. Hill Library Reference Desk.
Top of Page
Evaluating the Quality of Information on the World Wide Web
Accuracy. Is the
information provided accurate? If you're not sure, can you contact
the author? Is the information cited correctly?
Authority. Who published the document?
Who is the "Webmaster"? What are their credentials? Check the
domain of the document to find out what type of institution publishes
the document. For example: .edu .com .org .gov
Objectivity. Is the information presented
objectively? Is there bias? What type of information is presented?
What is the purpose or goal of the site?
Currency. How current is the information
presented? When was the site last updated? Do all the links on
the page still work?
Let's evaluate the AgNIC Agriculture
Network Information Center Web site using these criteria.
Web sites for your homework assignment (see syllabus):
The Tree of Life Web Project (http://tolweb.org)
National Food Safety Database (http://foodsafety.ifas.ufl.edu/indexNFSDB.htm)
For a list of additional Web resources, try the Agriculture
subject guide or one of the other following subject guides:
Entomology,
Food Science, Horticulture,
Zoology.
Top of Page
Career Information Resources: Books and Web Sites
Books
- Encyclopedia of Careers and Vocational Guidance D. H. Hill Reference HF5381 .E52
- Career Information Center D. H. Hill Reference HF5382.5 .U5 C32
- Occupational Outlook Handbook D. H. Hill
Reference HF5382.5 UF O28. Produced annually by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Is also available at Occupational
Outlook Handbook (http://www.bls.gov/oco/).
One can search for a particular occupation -- for example, Agricultural
and Food Scientists -- and find out about training and other qualifications,
the outlook (expected future trends) for that career, average
earnings, etc.
Web Sites
- America's
Career InfoNet (http://www.acinet.org/acinet/)
Part of the CareerOneStop portal, operating as a federal-state
partnership, this site allows one to find wages and employment
trends, occupational requirements, state by state labor market
conditions, and other information. One especially helpful feature
lets one create a customized report of the requirements for a
particular occupation, so they can decide if the job is right
for them. For an occupation, one can find out
- the most important knowledge, skills, and abilities
(KSAs) needed.
The source for this section is the Occupational Information
Network, available at O*NET™
OnLine (http://online.onetcenter.org/).
- education and training
- occupation-specific tasks and the most important
generalized work activities
Top of Page
Search Tool Help and Information
Librarian Contact Information
|
