Research project resources & tips from librarian
Elizabeth Knight
October 7, 2004
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Olympic National Forest |
Use Google to:
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identify relevant government agencies and departments |
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find key dates and legislation codes
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identify some stakeholders and advocacy groups*
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example: Elwha River Ecosystems and Fisheries
Restoration Act
*TIP: Poke around the
the Google Directory -- click the 'more >>' link on the home page, then
click on 'Directory'. I found this page:
Washington Science and Environment. See path at the top of the
page to see how I got there.
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Use library catalogs to:
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locate government documents & related information |
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identify subject terms relevant to your topic |
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find background and historical information on your topic |
TIP: Once in Simon, click
the  button to
automatically rerun your search in Summit the consortium catalog for academic
libraries in Washington and Oregon.
TIP: Try subject searching as well as
keyword searching. How? Select 'subject' from the keyword dropdown
menu.
TIP: Click relevant subject
hyperlinks in Simon and Summit to locate more sources on your topic.
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sample searches
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keyword search: dams and northwest > 10 results > #3:
see subject terms
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subject search: dams and northwest > dams washington > 5
items, 3 subjects >
> 150 items, 68 subject terms
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TIP: When in Simon, use
 to tidy up the results
screen.
TIP: When in Simon, use
 , then select
'reverse chronological' from the system sorted drop down menu to have the
most recently published items listed first.
TIP: Request items through Summit
freely. It's better to have to much material than not enough.
Also, often you cannot tell how useful an item is until you see it.
TIP: Start your research early!
Interlibrary loan requests take a few days to arrive.
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Search the following databases for newspaper and magazine
articles on your topic:
Books will likely be your best bet for this type of information.
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Some reference books
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for brief overviews of federal laws, see: West's Encyclopedia
of American Law [KF154 W47 1998 v. 1-12 Reference] and the associated
American Law Yearbooks 1998-2003 [KF154 W472 Reference] |
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Historical Atlas of Washington [G1486 S1 S3 1988
Reference Atlas] |
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Atlas of the Pacific Northwest [G1466 G3 O7 2003
Reference Atlas] |
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Atlas of U.S. and Canadian Environmental History [GF503
A84 2003 Reference Atlas] |
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Encyclopedia of World Environmental History [GF10 E63
2004 v. 1-3 Reference] |
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Beacham's Guide to Environmental Issues and Sources
[GE115 B43 1993 v.1-5 Reference] |
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Environmental Policy [GE170 E57668 1999 v. 1-2 Reference] |
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State of Washington 2003 Data Book [HA693 A285 2003
Reference] |
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Encyclopedia of American Forest and Conservation History
[SD143 E53 v. 1-2 Reference]
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Also search Simon and Summit - use keyword and subject searching
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sample searches
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subject search on Mt. Rainier > Mt. Rainier
National Park (Wash) > Mt. Rainier National Park History (2)
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subject search on rivers United States > #6
Dam Politics: Restoring America's Rivers
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3. And try some article databases
4. Explore the library's titles on the
following subjects:
TIP: Look for additional
subject terms in item records.
TIP: Rerun subject searches as needed in
to find more.
TIP: For large lists, use
then 'reverse chronological' from the system sorted drop down menu to have the
most recently published items listed first.
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NOTE:
Respect
the intellectual property rights of others by always properly quoting and
citing people and sources you draw from.
Refer to the
Academic Honesty section of the UPS Academic Handbook for some simple
rules to follow to avoid plagiarism. [top]
Librarians are experts at finding information. Feel free to
drop in and ask for some assistance. I'm in library office #119.
You can also e-mail me, eknight@ups.edu,
with a question or to schedule an appointment. I'm
happy to help.
--Elizabeth Knight
Science Librarian
Collins Library, UPS
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ŠElizabeth Knight, Science Librarian, Collins
Memorial Library, University of Puget Sound, Tacoma, Washington.
Last updated: October 12, 2004 |
, type in
'CQ Weekly' or 'Congressional Quarterly Weekly Report' in the 'publication'
text box.