Looking for something more specialized? The library has dozens of biology and health sciences databases.
How do you decide which articles from the results list are worth clicking?
The title (Box 1) gives you an idea of what the article is about. The icon shown in Box 2 indicates the type of source - academic journal, newspaper, etc. Publication information (Box 3) tells you when, where and by whom the article was published. The abstract (or summary) comes immediately after and gives more detail on what the article is about. Finally, subject terms (Box 4) tell you what major topics are discussed in the article.
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Check the FULL TEXT box if you see it. |
◊ Keep your search simple. Use only 2 or 3 keywords.
◊ Look at your number of results.
Too Many: Add keywords or be more specific.
Too Few: Change keywords or make them more broad.
◊ Ask for help! Librarians are happy to help!
1. If you get very few articles, your keywords might be too specific.
Instead of: elementary school children who eat Doritos
Try: children AND junk food
2. If you get too many articles covering different aspects of the topic, your keywords might be too general.
Instead of: plants
Try: invasive plants
3. Article authors may have used slightly different words.
For example, instead of electric cars, they may have used electric vehicles.