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Library Guides: English 1 Sondra Bergen, Instructor CIRCULATING BOOKS - Located on the second floor of the library. Our newest books are, for the most part, in the areas of science and social issues, and current topics, because we try to build the collection to the type of assignments given to students. Some subject headings you might use in the COS book catalog are as follows:
In the COS Library there is a series of books called "Opposing Viewpoints" which give pro and con arguments on a variety of issues. To find these in the catalog use a "simple search" and type in "opposing viewpoints".
PERIODICALS INDEXES AND DATABASES - Located on the first floor of the library. Periodicals refer to information printed over a period of time such as magazines, journals and newspapers. These are excellent sources for current and authoritative information. To find an article on a specific topic, it is necessary to use an index. Indexes are available in paper and electronic formats. The library subscribes to approximately 23 indexes, 300 periodicals and 13 newspapers. For a list of which periodicals and indexes are available at COS click on the link: http://www.cos.edu/library/periodicalsalpha.htm . For periodicals that the COS Library does not have available, there is also the possibility of an Inter-Library Loan from Fresno State University.
ALSO, through the Electronic
Resources link,
http://cos.edu/library/electronic.htm, on the COS Library’s Web Site,
there are links to the electronic index subscription databases that the library makes
available to COS students. These databases are part of the "Invisible Web" also
known as "proprietary databases. "Many of these indexes offer full-text articles, which
means the entire article will be available even if the library doesn't
subscribe to the periodical itself. If a student is off campus, passwords are
necessary to access these databases. Passwords are available for COS students at
the COS Library Information Desk or by calling the Library at (559) 737-6179. InfoTrac is a periodical index database that works well when using a subject search. When entering a subject search, you can use broad terms, because the index will automatically help to narrow the search. This index is not completely full-text. Academic Abstracts is a periodical index database that works well when using a key-word search. When entering a key-word search, you need to use precise words and the more words you add, the narrower the search becomes. This index is not completely full-text. Fresno Bee and Los Angeles Times are databases that provide access to the full-text articles of these two newspapers from 1985 forward. These databases are particularly good for finding information concerning the San Joaquin Valley and the rest of California. Lexis/Nexis is a database that provided access to full-text articles from newspapers across the nation and some international newspapers. It is also an excellent source for finding specific court cases. CQ Researcher is a company that creates a database of original reports concerning current and controversial topics. The reports are generally unbiased and almost always have statistics and other brief facts. The reports average 25 pages in length. SIRS (Social Issues Research Series) is a database of full-text articles from magazines and newspapers with emphasis on current and controversial topics. It can be searched by key word or subject. SEARCHING IN DATABASES - Boolean Operators and key-word Searching Keyword Searching Every electronic database is made up of words and although the computer does not think the way we do, it is terrific at recognizing words. When you type words into the search box the computer will look in the databases for those words and bring back all the records/entries that contain the words you requested. In keyword searching you want the most important words that describe your topic. Example 1: Has space exploration brought many benefits to the public? Key words would be “space exploration” and benefits Example 2: Should animals be used in medical experiments? Key words would be animals and medical and experiments
Truncation Truncation lets you find all forms of the root word. The symbol used is an *. Example: educat* will find educate; education; educating; educated Boolean Operators Keyword searching uses Boolean Operators to link the search terms together. The Boolean operator you will use most often is AND. The Boolean Operator AND means that the terms connected by it must be in the search results. In Example 1 my keywords were space exploration and benefits so my search query would be “space exploration” and benefits This would ensure that those terms would have to be in the record or the computer would not return it to me. OR is another Boolean Operator. It is used when you have two words that mean the same thing and you want to find all the articles regardless of which term it uses. Examples: babies or infants Elderly or aged “Native Americans” or “American Indians” When an OR search is combined with an AND search the OR search must be placed in parentheses ( ). This separates the searches for the computer. Examples: (babies or infants) and poverty and health Abuse and (elderly or aged) EVALUATION OF MAGAZINES/JOURNALS - The reference book Magazines for Libraries ( Call #R 016.05 Ka19) is a helpful tool for description, evaluation and discernment of possible biases in periodical publications. INTERNET - The Internet provides vast amounts of information, but much of it has not been submitted to an editorial process. Web Directories are helpful, because usually the linked web pages have had human scrutiny. Examples of web directories are as follows:
Web Sites by Topic:
http://www.cos.edu/library/subject/internet.htm Since October 12, 2005 you are visitor number:
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