PAF 101 – MISCELLANEOUS TIPS FROM LIBRARIAN
Module 2 – Fall 2009
See
also: PowerPoint
slides from librarian lecture, available at PAF 101 class website.
Warning: These librarian
tips offer advice on Module 2 but are NOT a substitute for complete and careful
review of the Module 2 instructions themselves.
Exercise 2.1:
Exploring GoodSearch (powered by Yahoo!)
Tip: Web
search engines usually provide a mix of reliable and not so reliable
sources.
Librarian Food for Thought: For your societal problem/research topic, are
you comfortable taking information you learn about via GoodSearch and then
seeking out more information about the topic using non-Yahoo style research
tools (e.g., Lexis Nexis Statistical & Proquest Research Library databases,
SU Library’s online catalog, etc.)?
Exercise 2.2:
Locating Quantitative Data - Lexis Nexis Statistical
Tip #1: Use the "Find
a Table" feature
Tip #2: Leave all narrowing "breakdown" categories
on "any"
Tip #3: Experiment with changing the pull down menu from
"all fields" to
"table title" or "subject
terms"
Tip #4: Use "period of coverage" date
specifications if you get too many results
Exercise 2.3:
Finding Periodical Articles - Proquest Research Library
Reminder: Do not use an article from an academic journal!
Librarian Challenge: How talented are you at identifying which journal
articles are "academic"
(scholarly/peer
reviewed) and which are not?
Exercise 2.4:
Finding Books - SU Library Catalog ("DISCOVER")
Tip: Access the DISCOVER search box at the Library website (note: The Library’s older catalog interface is
called
SUMMIT and is sometimes referred to on
the Library website as “Classic Catalog”)
Librarian Challenge: Can you identify books published by the U.S.
Government?
(They
may not be used for this exercise!)
Exercise 2.5:
Using
Reminder: Do not use a document published by the U.S. Census
Bureau for this exercise!
Tip: If a relevant document on your topic is not available online,
try
searching its title in SU Library's DISCOVER Catalog (it may be available in
print at E.S. Bird Library)
Exercise 2.6:
Using Policy Publications - CQ Researcher
2.6A - Find a publication/CQ Researcher report on your topic
Tip: CQ Researcher is a great source
for encyclopedic overviews of most topics with public policy implications
2.6B - Use the "Contacts" section of the report you select
Tip #1: The contacts section appears at the left margin of
each CQ Researcher report
Tip #2: When on an organizational or policy institute website
and seeking a "policy paper," "working paper,"
"policy brief" or "online report,"
look for links labeled "publications," OR "research," OR
"working papers," OR "library," etc.
Exercise 2.7:
Using
Tip#1: Use the "American FactFinder" tool to retrieve most of the
data needed for this exercise.
Tip#2: To determine a comparable census area to your home county/city/town,
use the "Population Finder" tool (located at
the left margin, inside of American FactFinder) to locate a ranked list of populations for your home
state.
Module 2 exercises require great
attention to detail. Waiting until the
last minute to begin is a mistake!!!
Have other questions about Syracuse
University Library or your research process?
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