Carly Brake, Information Services Librarian

1
Carly Brake, Information Services Librarian

• EAC 150
• Researching Authors

2
Overview

• Starting your research
• References Sources
• Searching Databases
• Journal, Magazine and Newspaper Articles
• Where else can you look? Other libraries to try!
• Internet Sourceswhats good out there?
• Plagiarism and Citing

3
Basic Rules

• Know where to look.
• Not everything is online
• If you cannot find it in 20 minutes, ask for
  help at the Reference Desk
• Repeat, if necessary

4
Starting Your Research...

• 1. What kind of information am I looking for?
• 2. Where and how do I search for this
  information?
• 3. Once I have found some information, how can I
  tell if it is useful? How do I find more similar
  information? Evaluate!

5
Creating an Effective Search Vocabulary

• STEP ONE Define your topic.
• STEP TWO Write your research question.
• STEP THREE Choose keywords.
• STEP FOUR Consider alternate keywords.
  (synonyms, broader/narrower terms)
• STEP FIVE Build your research statement.

6
Boolean

• AND - narrows a search
• Margaret Laurence AND Biography
• OR - broadens a search
• Margaret Laurence OR Canadian Writers
• NOT excludes specific terms
• Canadian writers and NOT Atwood
• or ? (wildcard) simplifies a search
• biograph biography, biographies,
  biographical
• phrase narrows a search
• Margaret Laurence

7
Beginning Your Research

• What kind of information am I looking for?
• Facts?
• Research?
• News?
• Current? Historical?

8
Sources of Information

• Sources of information are books, e-books,
  encyclopedia, directories, almanacs, articles
  from periodicals Internet sites.
• Current news, events, research periodicals such
  as newspapers, magazines, journals.
• Facts, definitions, summaries almanacs, atlases,
  dictionaries, directories, encyclopedias,
  handbooks, thesauruses, yearbooks.
• In-depth analysis of a subject bibliographies,
  biographies, guides, reports books.

9
Sources of Information 2

• Journals
• - scholarly work
• - articles are written by experts in the field
  for a limited audience
• - abstract, keywords
• - references / bibliography
• - peer reviewed

• Magazines
• - popular work
• - written for layperson
• - glossy, coloured
• - many pictures and photographs
• - ads
• - available from supermarkets and convenient
  stores

VS.
10
Sources of Information (3)

• Primary Sources
• Original document, contemporary account
• Autobiography
• Newspaper article reporting on an event
• Interview, speech
• Diary, letter, advertisements

• Secondary Sources
• Interpretation, summary of a primary source
• Biography
• Journal article
• Documentary
• Conference proceeding

VS.

• Tertiary Sources
• Interpretation, summary of secondary sources
• Encyclopedia, Dictionary

11
What if you had to

• find information about the author
• Margaret Laurence

12
http//library.senecacollege.ca
13
Note how I am searching for Margaret Laurence as
a Subject. For works by her I can search by
Author. I can also search by Title or Quick
Search. I can also restrict my search by
location. Remember to invert authors name!
14
Subject Search is very specific and you retrieve
items ABOUT the Author and their work.
15
(No Transcript)
16
Request title to be brought to your campus
Citation information
Location
17
What if you had to

• find information about the title
• That House in Manawaka Margaret Laurences A
  Bird in the House
• by Jon Kertzer

18
(No Transcript)
19
Quick Practice

• Instructions
• Choose a topic you are interested in finding a
  book about
• Brainstorm one or two keywords you can use to
  search
• Find one book and one e-book by searching Seneca
  Libraries Catalogue.

20
http//library.senecacollege.ca
21
(No Transcript)
22
(No Transcript)
23
(No Transcript)
24
(No Transcript)
25
(No Transcript)
26
(No Transcript)
27
(No Transcript)
28
(No Transcript)
29
Start with a broad search. Refine if necessary.
30
Try combining your authors name with other terms
using Boolean.
31
Citation Information
32
Reference Sources Online

• Biographygt Lives, The Biography Resource
• Encyclopediasgt The Canadian Encyclopedia Online
• Dictionariesgt The Concise Oxford Dictionary
• Reference Metasitesgt Oxford Reference Online

33
http//library.senecacollege.ca
34
(No Transcript)
35
(No Transcript)
36
Enter search terms in box
37
(No Transcript)
38
(No Transcript)
39
Print Reference Sources

• Canadian Encyclopedia
• REF FC 23.C36 1999
• Oxford Companion to Canadian Literature REF PS
  8015.093 2001
• Canadian Whos Who REF FC25 .C35
• Encyclopedia of Literature in Canada REF
  PS8015.E53 2002

40
http//www.tpl.toronto.on.ca
Anyone who lives, works or goes to school in
Toronto can have a TPL Library Card!
41
Internet
Doing research on the Web is like using a library
assembled piecemeal by pack rats and vandalized
nightly. - Roger Ebert
42
Bottom of the Research by Subject Literature page
43
Evaluate!

• Authority/Credibility-Is there an author?, Who is
  the source of this information?
• Date-Is this info up-to-date?
• Bias- Is only one opinion presented?
• Relevant-Is this relevant to my research
  question?
• Reliable-Is the information supported with
  sufficient evidence? Is there a Bibliography or
  Works Cited page with references cited?

44
www.whitehouse.org
45
www.whitehouse.gov
46
Plagiarism and Citing Sources
According to the Seneca College Academic Policy,
plagiarism is
Plagiarism is using someone elses work (words,
images, ideas, phrases, signatures, or
computations) and presenting it as ones own,
instead of properly documenting every source.
(Office of the Registrar, 2005)
Office of the Registrar. (2005, September 29)
2005-2006 Academic Policy. Toronto Seneca
College of Applied Arts and Technology.
Retrieved November 7, 2005 from
http//www.senecac.on.ca/home/academic_policy/0506
_09_cheat.html
47
http//library.senecacollege.ca
48
And of Course...

• Ask for help at the Reference Desk
• 4164915050 Ext. 3038
• http//people.senecac.on.ca/carly.brake