Home: BIO 181 Lab 2 Homework Resources

Secondary Literature
Reference Tools
Books
Magazines & Newspapers
Science Search Engines

Primary Literature
Journal Article Databases

Specific Web Sites for Research Proposal Topics

Resources for Protists Experiment Research

BIO 181: INTRODUCTORY BIOLOGY I.
Lab 2 Homework Resources

Note: resources are listed under the category (primary or secondary literature) that describes most of their content. For example, you may find some primary material on a Web site that contains mostly secondary literature.

Secondary Literature--for background information

Reference Tools (dictionaries, encyclopedias, etc.)

• Reference works for biology are available through the Reference Tools page. Resources include the Encyclopedia of Genetics, Genomics, Proteomics, and Bioinformatics, the Encyclopedia of Molecular Biology, and Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia. Additional resources for related subject areas, including Agriculture, Crop Science, Nutrition, and Sustainable Agriculture, are also available.
  
  
• You can locate additional online resources on specific biological topics through the Reference Universe database. This database allows you to search for your specific topic across a number of different resources.
  
  
• In addition, there are many other good reference books available in print, including A Dictionary of Biology, or the Concise Encyclopedia of Plant Pathology.For a reminder on how to search for them, look at the biology tutorial section on Using the Catalog to Locate Specialized (Reference) Books.

Books on Your Topic

Search the NCSU Libraries catalog to locate books that discuss your topic. You may find

• entire books written about your topic
• a single chapter in a book
• several pages in a book (Look at the index in the back of the book to find the relevant page numbers.)

For help, see the section in the biology tutorial on Searching for Books in the Libraries' Catalog.

Articles in the Popular Press (magazines and newspapers)

Tip: the Find Articles page is a good way to get to the following databases.

Under General Databases:

Academic Search Premier (NCSU only)
Because this database contains results from academic or scholarly journals, as well as magazines and newspapers, you'll need to click on the type of materials that you're interested in, to view just those results. For example, to view just the newspaper articles that your search retrieved, click on the Newspapers link, as shown below.

Under Newspaper Databases:

Newspaper Source Plus (EbscoHost, via NCLive)
Most coverage goes back to 1990s, full text coverage for selected national, international, and regional newspapers, as well as transcripts from other news sources. Includes News and Observer, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, USA Today, Washington Post, News and Observer, San Francisco Chronicle, Baltimore Sun, and others.

Click on the More options button for access to additional searchable newspaper databases, incluing LexisNexis Academic, Wall Street Journal, Ethnic Newswatch, and Regional Business News.

Web Search Engines

• Science.gov
  "A gateway to over 50 million pages of authoritative selected science information provided by U.S. government agencies, including research and development results." Can search for keywords or phrases.
  
• Scirus
  A science search engine. Search for your broad topic, and look at the results list. Narrow your search by clicking on one of the terms listed in the box under the heading "Refine your search using these keywords found in the results."

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Primary Literature

Databases for Journal Articles on Your Topic

If you'd like a reminder, see the sections of the biology tutorial on Understanding Databases and Getting Journal Articles.

General (Multidisciplinary) Databases

• Academic Search Premier

Biology and Related Science Databases

• BIOSIS Previews
  Covers all the different biological sciences including animals, plants, ecology, genetics, and more.
• Biological Sciences
  Covers biomedicine, biotechnology, zoology and ecology, and some aspects of agriculture and veterinary science.
• AGRICOLA
  Covers agriculture, including plant and animal sciences.
• CAB Abstracts
  Covers agriculture, animal and crop husbandry, plant protection, forestry and allied disciplines including animal and human nutrition.
• Ecology Abstracts
  Covers ecology research in biology, behavioral biology, entomology, natural resources, zoology, and other areas.
• MEDLINE
  The primary database for biomedical literature, including human nutrition.
• Web of Science
  Covers many scientific disciplines, including biology.
• Wildlife and Ecology Studies Worldwide
  Covers studies of individual species to specific habitat types, hunting, economics, wildlife behavior, management techniques, etc.
• See Databases for a more complete list of databases.

Conference Proceedings and Technical Reports

"Journal article" databases usually also include some technical reports and papers from conference proceedings. Searches for books in the NCSU Libraries catalog often retrieve some of these materials, also. If you have questions about them, don't hesitate to Ask a Librarian for assistance.

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Specific Web Resources for Research Proposal Options

Search Tips:

1. Most major Web sites and portals have a Search feature. Locate the Search link or search box on the site's home page and do a keyword search for your topic.
2. If you don't get good search results with your first keyword search, revise your search by

• using synonyms
• putting AND between your keywords. (Remember: not all databases and Web sites will do an "all of the words" search.)

Examples:
1. If you're not finding much on mountain lions release, try something like cougars and reintroduction.
2. Instead of golf course runoff, try runoff or fertilizer runoff or urban runoff or watershed.

For a reminder, see the biology tutorial sections on Keyword Searching and Improving Your Search.

Here are some specific Web sites that can help get you started on your topic. There are many others, but these will serve as good starting points.

1. Sudden Oak Death syndrome

• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service
• National Invasive Species Information Center
  • National Invasive Species Council
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
• USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES)
• N.C. Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
• N.C. Division of Forest Resources. NC Department of Environment and Natural Resources
• North Carolina Cooperative Extension

2. Releasing mountain lions into Great Smoky Mountains National Park

• National Park Service
• US Fish and Wildlife Service
• NatureServe
• North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
• North Carolina Cooperative Extension

3. Golf course runoff

• U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• United States Golf Association (USGA). Turf maintenance articles and resources.
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
• National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
• North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources
• North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission
• North Carolina Cooperative Extension

4. NC farmers growing hemp

• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service
• U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
• North Carolina Cooperative Extension

5. Poultry and avian flu

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
• USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES)
• American Farm Bureau
• North Carolina Cooperative Extension

6. Ban on soft drink machines in NC public schools

• American Academy of Pediatrics
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Nutrition.gov
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service
• USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES). Food Nutrition, & Health
• North Carolina Cooperative Extension

7. Invasive aquatic plant species

• National Invasive Species Information Center
• Invasive Plants
• Southeast Exotic Pest Plant Council (SE-EPPC)
• Protect Your Waters
• Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) Task Force
• US Fish and Wildlife Service
• U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
• Nonindigenous Aquatic Species (NAS). United States Geological Survey (USGS)
• North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources
• North Carolina Cooperative Extension

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Resources for Protists Experiment Research

The following databases will provide the best options for locating scientific articles related to the protists you've studied in your experiments.

Biological Sciences

• Best for Paramecium bursaria and Bursaria truncatella
• Does not cover Spirostomum sp. well.

BIOSIS Previews

• Includes coverage of all 3
• Best option for Spirostomum sp.

Agricola

• Only use for Paramecium bursaria

Algology, Mycology & Protozoology Abstracts

• Great for Paramecium bursaria
• Some resources for Bursaria truncatella
• Only resources for Spirostomum but none for Spirostomum sp. specifically

CAB Abstracts

• Covers Paramecium bursaria and Bursaria truncatella

Web of Science

• Covers all three fairly well. A good place to start

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