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Library Resources for General Biology
Bio 187/188

 

Learn to Use the Library Workshops

Library Information

The following links provide general information about ASU Libraries and its services.

 

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Off Campus Access

 

When using the ASU Libraries resources from off-campus locations, you will need to login using your ASURITE ID and password.

 

How to connect from off-campus

 

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Starting Your Research

Selecting a Topic and Finding Background Information

Selecting a topic and finding background information about your topic are important steps in starting your research.

 

The library has several tools that may be useful. Encyclopedias and handbooks are good resources for starting your research for several reasons:

 

  • They are a good way to get ideas about topics for research
  • They are a good resource for background information about your topic
  • They can help build your knowledge and vocabulary for a particular topic
  • They can make refining your topic easier and more efficient
  • They are often easier to understand than the more scholarly resources.

 

Encyclopedia of the Life Sciences and Encyclopaedia Britannica are two good online resources for selecting a topic and finding background information.


A Web search engine, such as Google, can be a good place to start as you begin to select your topic and find background information.

 

Warning! Web search engines are not necessarily the best place to find information about your topic. Once you have decided what topic you want to research, it is best to use the library’s print and electronic resources to find information.

 

Keywords

Keywords are words that you will use as search terms in the library catalog and article indexes and databases to find books, articles and other resources about your topic.

 

As you begin to search for books and articles on your topic, it is a good idea to create a list of keywords. Remember, using synonyms can be useful for locating additional information about your topic.

 

Example:

If your topic is bird conservation in North America, the following keywords would be useful for finding information in the online catalog and article databases.

  • bird
  • avian (a synonym of bird)
  • convervation
  • endangered species
  • habitat
  • extinction
  • restoration
  • North America

 

If you are researching a particular organism, be sure to find and use both the common and scientific names for it (i.e use both Arctic tern and Sterna paradisaea) when searching.

 

Remember: Searching the online catalog and article databases is not a single step process. It often takes several attempts, using many different keywords, to get the information you need.

 

Constructing a Search Statement

When you search for articles in indexes you may need to combine your keywords into one search statement. The following are common connectors:

Connector What it does Example
And Requires all terms to appear. Use to narrow or limit your search. gibberellins AND corn
Or Either term may appear. Use to broaden your search or combine synonyms. corn OR Zea mays

You can use more than one operator to design a complex search statement. If you choose to use both an And and an Or in your search statement you'll need to enclose the terms you want to connect with "or" in parentheses. See example below:

(corn or Zea mays) and gibberellins

 

This search will find articles about corn and gibberellins or about Zea mays (a specific type of corn) and gibberellins.

Truncation allows you to search for alternate forms of words. Different indexes and databases use different symbols to accomplish this task. The online catalog and all of the indexes listed above use the asterisk (*) to truncate. See example below:

(corn or Zea mays) and gene*

 

By including the asterisk at the end, your search will retrieve items with alternate forms of the word including genes and genetics.

 

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Evaluating Information

Once you start to find information it is important to evaluate what you find to decide whether or not it will be useful for your research. When doing research, you will find information from many different sources. Not all resources are treated equally, so you will have to evaluate them to decide if the source is appropriate. The following criteria are important for evaluating any resource:

 

  • Who produced or wrote it?
  • When was it written?
  • Why was it written?
  • What is its purpose?
  • Where is it located?
  • Who is the intended audience?
  • Is the information accurate?
  • Is it biased?

 

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Finding books and other materials in the online catalog

The online catalog can be used to locate books that are owned by the library. The online catalog can also be used to find the following materials:

 

  • audio recordings
  • videos
  • government documents
  • Entire journals, magazines, and newspapers

 

Articles from journals, magazines, and newspapers are NOT listed in the catalog. You will need to use one of the article databases or indexes to find these.

 

The easiest way to start searching for materials in in the online catalog is to do a keyword search. Remember to combine your keywords with appropriate connectors (and, or, not), and to search for alternate endings by truncating with an asterisk (*).

 

ethic* and cloning

 

When you find a books or other materials that you want in the online catalog, be sure to write down the entire call number and note where the item is located (such as SCIENCE 3rd Floor or HAYDEN Stacks). You will need this information to find the item in the library.

 

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Finding Articles

 

Articles cannot be found using the online library catalog. In order to find articles, you will need to use an index or database.

 

ASU Libraries has over 200 different databases and indexes that can be used to find articles. Choosing the proper database or index is important to finding articles on your topic. Consult the list of the Best Databases for Biology Research to help you choose the most appropriate database for your topic.

 

The easiest way to start searching for articles in a database is to do a keyword search. Remember to combine your keywords with appropriate connectors (and, or, not), and to search for alternate endings by truncating with an asterisk (*).

 

bird* AND migration

 

Most databases and indexes will generate a list of results that you can print, email, or save so you have the information you need to locate the articles (in print or electronic format) in the library.

 

 

Does ASU Libraries have the journal I need? : How to locate specific articles.

If you already have information about a specific article (author, title, journal title, volume, etc.), you need to find out where the journal is available. There are two ways to find out if ASU Libraries has a particular journal.

 

Electronic Journals
Use this option to find out if a journal is available electronically. You can then browse the journal to find the volume and page number of the article you need.

Tip: Be sure to search for the journal title, not the article title.

 

Journal Title Search in the online catalog
Use to find if the ASU Libraries has a print copy of the journal you are looking for. Be sure to write down the entire call number and its location (e.g SCIENCE 2nd FLOOR or HAYDEN JOURNALS). Sometimes, a link to the electronic version is also available.

Tip: Be sure to search for the journal title, not the article title.

 

 

Getting articles not available at ASU

If you need an article that ASU Libraries does not have in print or electronic format, you can still get it through the Interlibrary Loan service. This service is free, and takes between three and five days for your article to arrive.

 

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Finding information on the Web

The Web can provide a wealth of information, from up-to-date news stories to individual opinions on every topic imaginable. It is important to be aware that not all information on the Web is accurate and to not rely on the Web for all of your research - good research requires the use of different types of resources.

 

Web Subject Directories
Web subject directories, also known as gateways or portals, are web site listings organized by subject. It can be helpful to use them when searching by keywords is proving time consuming.

 

Google Directory - Biology
Contains thousands of web resources for numerous topics in biology, including botany, zoology, evolution, and ecology. Also has a search engine that will search within the directory.

 

MedlinePlus
MEDLINEplus serves as a gateway to information from the National Institutes of Health and other trusted sources on over 650 diseases and conditions. Also include a medical encyclopedia dictionary, prescription and non-prescription drug information, health information from the media, and links to thousands of clinical trials. MEDLINEplus is updated daily and includes no advertising.

 

Searching the Web

Google - the best all around search engine to find information on the Web.
Tip: put phrases in "quotation marks"

 

Scirus - is a search engine for scientific information. You can search for both Web pages and journal articles (Free full-text access is not available through this resource).

 

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Best Databases for Biology Research

The following is a list of selected databases that can be used to find articles on topics related to biology. For a complete list of databases available at ASU Libraries for biology and the life sciences, click here.

 

Academic Search Premier (1975+)

Covers a wide range of academic subjects, including life sciences. Features full text for selected journals, abstracts and indexing for over 3,600 scholarly journals.


Biological and Agricultural Index (7/1983+)

Includes book reviews, chapters in annual reviews of research, journal supplements, & articles. Subjects include biochemistry, biotechnology, botany, ecology, marine biology, microbiology, nutrition, physiology, & zoology. Indexes around 250 journals.


BioOne (2000+)

Provides full-text to over 100 high-impact bioscience research journals published by small societies and non-commercial publishers. Journals focus on the biological, ecological and environmental sciences.


BIOSIS Previews (1969+)

The largest index in Biomedicine and the Life Sciences. Indexes journal articles, books, chapters in books, papers and conference proceedings. Subjects include agriculture, biochemistry, biotechnology, ecology, immunology, microbiology, neuroscience, toxicology, etc. Indexes around 5,000 biology journals in 100 different languages.


General Science FullText (5/1984+)

Indexes periodicals from the U.S. & Great Britain. Also covers the New York Times science section. Subject coverage includes atmospheric science, earth science, conservation, food & nutrition, genetics, nursing & health, physiology, & zoology.


PubMed (1950+)

PubMed indexes citations for articles from MEDLINE and OLDMEDLINE as well as out-of-scope citations from additional general science and chemistry journals whose life sciences articles are indexed in MEDLINE. PubMed also indexes additional life science journal articles that submit full text to PubMedCentral.


Web of Science (1955+) (Part of the Web of Knowledge).

Indexes 5,300 of the world's leading scientific and technical journals in many disciplines. Updated weekly. Very current.


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Citing your sources


It is important to cite the resources you use properly and consistently. A citation serves the following two purposes:

 

  1. It acknowledges the author whose work you are using
  2. It allows others to locate the specific resourse you have cited. In the sciences, there are many different types of citation styles.

 

For this class, you will use the APA citation style. This online guide (from Cornell University) will be helpful, but you may also consult the APA Publication Manual that is available at ASU Libraries. In Noble Library, it is located on the Ready Reference Shelf (behind the Reference Desk) under the call number BF 76.7 .P83 2001.

 

NEW! Refworks can also help you with your citations and manage your research.


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Page last modified: July 11, 2008