EVLU 3010

Research Strategies & Resources

Today we will be covering:

  • An overview of UM Libraries resources
  • Search strategies
  • Citing

Library Resources

1. UM Library Search

  • All physical resources within the Libraries
  • Some (not all) of the databases we subscribe to
    • Includes many reference texts available online (encyclopedias, dictionaries, etc)
  • Very broad search engine - might get a lot of unrelated results.

Preliminary Searching

  • Start brainstorming keywords
    • What do you know about the subject so far?

 

  • Expand your background information
    • Reference sources: Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, etc...

 

How would you start a general search on the topic of new urbanism?

Search Tip #1

Put a phrase "in quotation marks" to find results with that phrase.

 

E.g.: "gothic revival" - finds documents with this phrase

Searching for gothic revival without quotation marks finds all documents with gothic and all documents with revival.

 

Gothic architecture = medieval, mid-12th to 15th centuries

Gothic revival architecture = 18th & 19th centuries, renewed interest in Gothic style

UM Libraries Homepage

umanitoba.ca/libraries

Which is the better search?

A: "climate change" AND Canada

B: "climate" "change" AND "Canada"

Searching beyond the UM Library Collection

  • Request whatever you need via Document Delivery
  • Library Search > Include Results beyond UofM
  • Databases include results beyond our subscriptions
    • Avery Index - architecture
    • Canadian Business & Current Affairs - Canadian topics
  • Google Scholar (with links to UM resources)
  • WorldCat.org

Landscape Architecture guide

bit.ly/UMlandscape

Search Tip #2

  • Use AND between keywords to narrow your search

E.g.: (Canada AND "new urbanism") - results will contain both of these keywords

 

  • Use OR between keywords to make your search more broad

E.g.: ("climate change" OR "global warming") - results will contain at least one of these phrases

 

 

Search Tip #3

Try to find all the different ways of expressing the concept you're searching for. This can be done by:

  • putting OR between synonyms (Canada OR Canadian)
  • adding an asterisk (*) to the root of a word:

 

E.g.: Canad* - finds Canada, Canadian, Canadians...

"new urbanis*" - finds "new urbanism", "new urbanist"...

 

(note: don't use this for short root words - art* = art, arts, artist, artificial, arthritis, Arthur... 292 million results in Library Search)

Search Tip #4

Use NOT (all caps) before words or phrases you want to exclude from the search

 

E.g.: gothic NOT revival - no results for "gothic revival" will come up.

 

        Miami dolphins NOT football

 

 

True or False:

Adding an asterisk to the root of a word (eg architect*) will give you fewer results.

Requesting Items

  • Sign in to the Library Search with your umnetID
    • UM email account without "@myumanitoba.ca", same password
    • Problems signing in? Staff at any library desk can help, or chat with staff online

 

When requesting a book that's checked out, the other person has 7 days to return it.

Other potentially useful guides...

Citation Guides

Academic Learning Centre Resources

  • Workshops
    • In-person workshops and online tutorials
    • Reading textbooks, reading journal articles
    • integrating sources: quoting & paraphrasing
  • Handouts
    • Advice on writing (connection words, paraphrasing, summarizing, etc)
    • Advice on reading (finding main ideas, SQ3R reading strategy, etc)

And more!

Questions?

  • Landscape Architecture Research Guide: bit.ly/UMlandscape
  • All library staff can help with basic questions
  • Research support: librarians on desk 1:30-4:30 Monday-Friday
Made with Slides.com