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Bio 1B Finding Information in the Life Sciences Kelly Gordon

Bio 1B Finding Information in the Life Sciences Kelly Gordon. Learning Objectives. Where to go for help Process of scientific communication Catalogs vs. Article Databases Searching BIOSIS Article Databases vs. Web Search Engines. Where to go for help…. Reference Desk, Bioscience Library

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Bio 1B Finding Information in the Life Sciences Kelly Gordon

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  1. Bio 1BFinding Information in the Life SciencesKelly Gordon

  2. Learning Objectives • Where to go for help • Process of scientific communication • Catalogs vs. Article Databases • Searching BIOSIS • Article Databases vs. Web Search Engines

  3. Where to go for help… • Reference Desk, Bioscience Library • E-mail us: bios@library.berkeley.edu • Library Guide on the Bio 1B website: http://ib.berkeley.edu/courses/bio1b, under “Announcements”

  4. Scientific Communication “Primary literature” “Secondary literature” “Tertiary literature”

  5. Types of journal articles • Primary research articles • First report of new research • Specialized, work of one or a few researchers • Review articles – aka literature reviews • Summaries of existing research • Synthesizes many articles in the primary literature • A good place to start!

  6. Peer Review Journal articles are peer reviewed to ensure that they are: • Valid • Significant • Original • Clear • Building on previous scientific literature (and citing it!)

  7. Peer Review Process Influence of the form of the brain on the character of fowls

  8. Is it peer reviewed? • YES: Most scholarly journals, print or online (check website “about this journal” or inside front cover for “review board” or “editorial board” to be sure) • NO: Magazine articles, newspaper articles, books, government reports, newsletters, most websites

  9. How do I find what I need?

  10. Library catalogs • Books, whole journals, magazines, maps, CDs, etc. owned by the library • Tell you what we have and where to find it (campus location and call number) • Examples: • Melvyl (UC-wide) • Pathfinder/GLADIS (UCB only)

  11. What can’t library catalogs do? They do NOT index the individual articles within journals and magazines! To locate articles that have been published in a journal, magazine, or newspaper, you will need to use…

  12. Article Databases • Index contents of journals • Searchable by author & subject of articles • Access full-text (if available) with • Examples • Biosis • PubMed • Web of Science

  13. BIOSIS • Includes over 5000 peer-reviewed journals • Indexes journal articles, book chapters & conferences • 1926-present • Many biologists rely on it!

  14. Citing Articles • Author name(s) • Title of the article • Title of the journal • Year • Volume number (and issue number ?) • Page numbers • URL or DOI sometimes included, if online Hundreds of different styles – but any citation should provide enough information so that someone else can locate the same document!

  15. Providing a Complete Citation How BIOSIS formats search results: Same result, in APA style: Rosenblum, E. B., Hickerson, M. J., & Moritz, C. (2007). A multilocus perspective on colonization accompanied by selection and gene flow. Evolution 61(12), 2971- 2985.

  16. Broadening Your Search • Add synonyms to your search – global warming OR climate change • Use truncation parasit* = parasite, parasites, parasitism • Use fewer keywords

  17. Narrowing Your Search • Limit to review articles • Limit by language or date • Use quotes to search for exact phrases (“primary production”, “double helix”) • Use more keywords

  18. Which is the broadest search? • global warming AND California • (global warming OR climate change) AND California • (“global warming” OR “climate change”) AND California • (“global warming” OR “climate change”) AND California AND ocean*

  19. Search Results

  20. Search Results 116 Global warming and California 468 (Global warming OR climate change) AND California 354 (“Global Warming” OR “climate change”) AND California 78 (“Global Warming” OR “climate change”) AND California AND ocean*

  21. Searching the Web For scientific information, can be a good place to start, BUT: • Mix of peer-reviewed and non peer-reviewed material • Search engine relevance ≠ Your relevance • Less features to help focus your search • Lots of random stuff to sift through! Global warming and California = 762,000 results!

  22. Boolean searching?  “Exact phrase”?  Wildcard/truncation (*) ?  Parentheses?  Adv. search Date range/doc type limit?  Google vs. BIOSIS Taxonomic/indexing terms?  Re-sort/analyze results?  Contents known? 

  23. Evaluation of Web Pages • Author • Date • URL: .gov, .edu • Cited references?

  24. Where to go for help… • Reference Desk, Bioscience Library • E-mail us: bios@library.berkeley.edu • Library Guide on the Bio 1B website: http://ib.berkeley.edu/courses/bio1b, under “Announcements”

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