BSCI 10110
Biological Diversity
Mary Lee Jensen
Liaison Librarian for Biological Sciences
330-672-1661 or mjensen@kent.edu
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Session Goals
Describe the peer-review process
Review the characteristics of primary
literature in the sciences
Introduce searching strategies
Introduce you to KentLINK and OhioLINK
for finding books and Research Databases
to find articles
Highlight additional library services
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Primary Literature – Peer Review
Process
Original research
Written by scholars
Journals have an editorial board
Manuscripts undergo peer-review process
Evaluation by other experts in the same field
Soundness of methodology, results, conclusion
Suggestions for subsequent revision(s)
Final acceptance for publication
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Primary Literature - Article Format
Introduction or Literature survey
Methodology or Materials and Methods
Data or Results
Discussion or Interpretation
Conclusion
Bibliography
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Primary Literature - Characteristics
Audience Students
Scholars
Authors Scholars (university-based)
Credentials listed and relate to
subject of article
Overall Appearance Charts and graphs
Many pages
Few ads; very professional
Documentation Footnotes
Bibliography
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Primary Literature - Characteristics
Purpose Report original research
Discipline-related content
Focus, narrow
Authority Editorial Review Board
Peer-review process
Frequency Often quarterly
May also be weekly
Examples American Journal of Botany
Science
Nature
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KentLINK
The online catalog for Kent State University
Allows you to find books, reports, videos
and other media
Allows you to locate materials in 6 campus
libraries (including Chemistry/Physics) and
7 regional libraries
Allows you to renew books you have
checked out
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OhioLINK
Group of 84 college and university libraries
OhioLINK Central Catalog allows you to
borrow books from any of the libraries
Takes 4-5 days for book to arrive
Keep the book for 3 weeks; renew once
GREAT resource!
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OhioLINK
More than Books!!
Research Databases allow you to find
articles that have been published in
scholarly journals and in magazines.
Many are full-text – but not all.
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Crafting Effective Research
Statements
Features Available in Most
Research Databases
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Common Searching
Features
Keyword/Controlled vocabulary
Boolean Operators/Connectors
Phrase searching
Truncation
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Keyword Searching
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Controlled Vocabulary
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Boolean Operators -- OR
Use OR to broaden a search
The words connected by OR should be synonyms or be
alternative ways of saying something
For example:
salmon OR fish
fisheries OR hatcheries
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Boolean Operators -- AND
Use AND to combine two different
concepts or ideas
This helps narrow your search
salmon AND fisheries
salmon AND disease
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“Phrase Searching”
This feature allows you to search for words
as phrases.
Some databases automatically search words
as a phrase; other databases require you to
use quotation marks around the phrase
“invasive species”
“biological diversity”
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Cautions about Phrase Searching
Phrase searching in databases is not the
same as the Web
If you type the following in Google:
impact of invasive species on ecosystems
you will get 100,000 hits because Google
looks for each word separately
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Cautions about Phrase Searching
If you type:
impact of invasive species on ecosystems
in KentLINK or OhioLINK or in a database, you
might get zero results, because you are asking the
system to look for that EXACT phrase
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Instead use Boolean Logic:
“invasive species” AND ecosystems
loosestrife AND (ponds or lakes)
“zebra mussels” AND “lake erie”
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Truncation:
To Get Word Variations
Truncation makes it easier for you to get all
variations of a word.
Some systems use the asterisk * to truncate
example: Academic Search Premier
Some use the dollar sign $
example: Biological Abstracts
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Truncation:
To Get Word Variations
biolog$
fish*
retrieves
retrieves
biology
fish
biological
fishes
fishery labo$r
fisheries retrieves
labor, labour, laborer
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Revising Your Search:
Use Booleans to Your Advantage
Too many hits on your topic?
Add another search term with AND.
Too few hits on your topic?
Add another search term OR.
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Sample search
What impact does salmon farming have
on the wild fish population?
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Sample Search - Concepts
Concept 1 Boolean Concept 2 Boolean Concept 3
Connector Connector
salmon farm* wild
AND OR AND OR
ecosystem
fisher*
OR
OR disease*
hatcher*
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Sample Search - Strategy
salmon and (farm* or fisher*) and wild
salmon and (farm$ or fisher$) and ecosystem
(fishery or fisheries or hatcher*) and “side
effects”
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Article Indexes/Research Databases
Research Databases
(Alphabetical or Subject)
http://www.library.kent.edu/page/10562
Access Science
Biological Abstracts
Academic Search Premier
Biological and Agricultural Abstracts
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Electronic Journals (Full-text)
Electronic Journal Center
(http://journals.ohiolink.edu/)
Current coverage
Early 1990’s - present
JSTOR (http://www.jstor.org/)
Historical coverage
Back to 19th century (depends on title)
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Additional Database Features
Limiting
Date
Language
Document type (article, book, review, etc.)
More options, depending on the database
Mark relevant records
Printing
E-mail
Downloading
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Library Services
Interlibrary Loan/Document Delivery
(http://www.library.kent.edu/page/10056)
PERCs (http://www.library.kent.edu/page/10750)
Ask A Librarian
(http://www.library.kent.edu/page/10750)
60-Minute Seminars
(http://seminars.lms.kent.edu/index.asp?d=lms)
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Conclusion
Many resources
Many opportunities for assistance…just
ask!
Please take this brief survey!
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