Mark Szarko
Instruction Coordinator, Humanities

(617) 258-8022

szarko@mit.edu

Yahoo! IM: mszarko
AIM: szarkomit

MIT

Course Pages

21W.730 - 05: Expository Writing - Imagining the Future

Resources for Researching Your Topic

I've designed the following list of tools to get you started with your research.

Background || Books || Articles || Refworks

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Why?

Background information gives some context about viewpoints, terms, debates, and major issues.
Look for theories, people, keywords, and organizations that may be important to the topic.
Can help you narrow your topic to a specific aspect.

CQ Researcher http://libraries.mit.edu/get/cqresearcher	Weekly publication Covers current events & controversial topics Written by and for congressional staff Great background material! Allows for 5 users at a time--try again later if you get a "busy" message.
Public Agenda Issue Guides http://www.publicagenda.org/	These "provide facts and figures, different perspectives and analysis of public attitudes from surveys conducted by Public Agenda and by other respected polling and news organizations."
Oxford Reference Online http://libraries.mit.edu/get/oxfordref	Excellent source for definitions and quick background information Covers a variety of disciplines Better for quick information; most entries tend to be short Access limited to 5 users; try again later if you can't get in
Britannica Online http://libraries.mit.edu/get/britannica	Online encyclopedia Coverage varies, depending on subject
McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology http://libraries.mit.edu/get/accesssci	Great source of background information on science and technology topics Some entries also contain useful visual material (images, diagrams, etc)
Librarian's Index to the Internet http://www.lii.org	Pre-evaluated web sites arranged by subject; chosen and organized by librarians. A great alternative to Google
Find other reference sources (e.g. encyclopedias and handbooks) on your topic in Barton, the MIT Libraries catalog (see below in Books). You can also try our Virtual Reference Collection for other electronic resources.

BOOKS

Why?

Summarized knowledge on established areas of research. Can give thorough overviews of a topic.
A good starting point for selecting and refining a topic.
Contain bibliographies and reference lists that will help identify other important works on a subject.
A chapter may target the aspect of the topic you are writing about.

Search the following library catalogs to identify books on your topic:

BOOK CATALOGS
Barton, the MIT Libraries catalog http://libraries.mit.edu/barton	Search here first! Includes books and journal titles owned by all of the MIT Libraries. You can also get more help on using Barton from our online tutorials available at: http://libraries.mit.edu/tutorials/video/index.html
Boston Library Consortium libraries catalogs http://www.blc.org	If MIT Libraries do not own the book you need, get a borrower's card from the reference desk to borrow books from BLC libraries. Search each of the BLC libraries' catalogs separately, then go to that library and check the book out.

ARTICLES

Why?

Very current perspectives on an issue.
A great place to find highly specific information on a topic. Often the first place where new research is discussed.
Cover many publication types: journals, magazines, newspapers, chapters in books, conference papers, trade journals, etc.

NOTES:

- MIT Libraries subscribe to many journal article databases; some contain full text, others contain citations; abstracts only.
- You may want to search more than one to be comprehensive.
- See Locate the Full Text for guidance in tracking down the documents you need.
- From off-campus, you need certificates to access these databases.

MULTIDISCIPLINARY AND SUBJECT SPECIFIC ARTICLE DATABASES
ProQuest Research Library http://libraries.mit.edu/get/proquest	Covers a wide range of subject areas. Includes a mix of popular magazines & academic journals. Many full-text articles.
LexisNexis Academic Universe http://libraries.mit.edu/get/lexis-nexis	Full-text (text only - no images) of local, national and international newspapers.
Web of Science http://libraries.mit.edu/get/webofsci	Despite its name, this database allows you to search in the Humanities and Social Sciences as well. In order to use the SFX buttons to retrieve the full-text of articles, please be sure to set your browser to allow popups.
Alternative Press Index http://libraries.mit.edu/get/altpress	1991 - present Articles from 250 alternative, radical, and left publications that report and analyze the practices and theories of cultural, economic, political, and social change. Citations & abstracts only, with possible links to full text (use SFX button).
Social Sciences Abstracts http://libraries.mit.edu/get/ssa	1983 - present Articles from 400 journals. Covers sociology, anthropology, geography, economics, political science, and law. Citations & abstracts only, with possible links to full text (use SFX button).
MIT LIBRARIES DATABASES FOR OTHER SUBJECTS
Vera http://libraries.mit.edu/vera	MIT Libraries' gateway to databases in various subject areas
HOW TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT A MAGAZINE, JOURNAL OR NEWSPAPER
Ulrich's Internationl Periodicals http://libraries.mit.edu/get/ulrichs	Provides information on magazines, journals, and newspapers, including whether the title is scholarly and/or peer-reviewed. Peer-reviewed (or refereed) titles have a symbol shaped like a referee's shirt next to them. Some entries have reviews, which can sometimes tell you a publication's political slant. Note: Only 5 users can be in at one time, so if access is denied, try again later.

For more help with searching databases, you can also consult our online tutorials at: http://libraries.mit.edu/tutorials/video/index.html.

Refworks

Refworks is a web-based resource designed to help you to organize references and create a bibliography. It allows you to search, retrieve relevant citations, and build your bibliography. It allows users to create individual or group accounts, and makes it easy write papers, or post your results to web pages.

To access Refworks from off campus, use Vera or the Vera shortcut: http://libraries.mit.edu/get/refworks.
For more information about Refworks, please see: http://libraries.mit.edu/help/refworks/index.html.

This page was last updated on 10/30/07