Power Up Your Academic Research Skills with ENCS 282 Library Session

POWER UP YOUR SEARCH LIBRARY SESSION FOR ENCS 282 Chloe Lei Teaching & Research Librarian, Engineering and Computer Science chloe.lei@concordia.ca

LEARNING OUTCOME 1. Understand the difference between searching in Google and searching in library databases 2. Search in engineering databases to find relevant and scholarly resources on a given topic 3. Cite your sources properly in IEEE style using the reference manager Zotero

WHAT SEARCH TOOL DO YOU USE TO FIND ACADEMIC INFORMATION? SHARE YOUR ANSWER IN THE CHAT BOX

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE? GOOGLE SCHOLAR LIBRARY DATABASES Volume | Quantity | Quick Depth | Quality | Thorough Left image: Yinan Chen, Dining Court, public domain, https://pixabay.com/photos/dining-court-shopping-mall-corridor-347314/ Right image: Jason Briscoe, Cooking, public domain, https://unsplash.com/photos/VBsG1VOgLIU

WHERE SHOULD YOU SEARCH? Library Discovery Tool IEEE Xplore (Library Database) Open Access Repositories Engineering Village (Library Database) Google Scholar

LIBRARY DISCOVERY TOOL THE MAIN LIBRARY SEARCH TOOL

LIBRARY DISCOVERY TOOL Front and centre on the library homepage A good starting point for a general search across library resources Answer questions such as: Does the library have this book? o Does the library have this journal article? o Does the library have some background/overview information on a topic? o

LIBRARY DISCOVERY TOOL A search for a broad keyword such as electronic waste Top results are usually scholarly books that provide introductory overview of a topic This is useful if you are not too familiar with a topic

LIBRARY DATABASES OVER 400 OF THEM ORGANIZED BY DISCIPLINE

LIBRARY DATABASES Content is usually more in-depth and specialized More options to search, expand, or refine Answer questions such as: Where can I find journal articles on a specific aspect of a topic o How can I combine different elements/keywords in a search? o

ENGINEERING SUBJECT GUIDE AN IMPORTANT GUIDE TO EXPLORE LIBRARY RESOURCES RELATED TO ENCS https://www.concordia.ca/library/guides/encs.html

ENGINEERING VILLAGE A CLOSER LOOK AT AN ENGINEERING DATABASE

WHAT CONTENT IS INCLUDED? Publications must consist of peer-reviewed engineering content and have a publicly available description of the peer review process. Exceptions would be trade journals and some conference proceedings. -Engineering Village Compendex Content Policy and Selection (A checklist of 13 criteria)

Key Concepts WHAT ARE THE SEARCH OPTIONS? Electronic waste Recycling Guiyu Search can be built up from a simple one to a complex one, allowing the combination of many keywords or concepts Sample Topic: How does electronic waste recycling affect citizens living in Guiyu, China?

Key Concepts Synonyms WHAT ARE THE SEARCH OPTIONS? Electronic waste Recycling Guiyu E-waste Reuse, management Guiyu, Guangdong, China Search can be built up from a simple one to a complex one, allowing the combination of many keywords or concepts Sample Topic: How does electronic waste recycling affect citizens living in Guiyu, China?

HOW IS THE CONTENT ORGANIZED? Controlled terms help identify synonyms and related terms. Makes searching more precise Helps understand hierarchy of topics Discover other broader, narrower, or related terms

GOOGLE SCHOLAR THERE IS A WAY TO COMBINE LIBRARY SEARCH AND GOOGLE SCHOLAR SEARCH

GOOGLE SCHOLAR LIBRARY LINKS IN GOOGLE SCHOLAR Set up Concordia University Library links in Google Scholar to make finding full text easier The link/button Find it @ Concrodia The same link/button can be found in library databases too ENGINEERING VILLAGE

INTERLIBRARY LOAN If Concordia Library doesn t have it, use Interlibrary Loan Takes a few days or longer to process depending on the item

OPEN ACCESS REPOSITORIES

OPEN ACCESS REPOSITORIES Open Access - make research more accessible and visible Open repositories allow to people deposit different versions of their papers (e.g. preprints) arXiv is used a lot in engineering and computer science

STANDARDS & COSTING INFORMATION WHAT ARE THEY? WHERE TO FIND THEM?

STANDARDS Guidelines, Specifications, Codes, Recommended Practices, Handbooks Performance, design requirements, operation conditions and procedures, quality of goods and services Usually published by a recognized standards organization (e.g. Canadian Standards Association, IEEE, ISO)

COSTING INFORMATION The cost of materials, labour, equipment for construction projects For engineers, architects, contractors, facility owners, managers

WHERE TO FIND THEM? Many are in print only at the library (inaccessible due to current Covid situation) Some are available through library databases A few free alternatives or complimentary access

DOCUMENTING SOURCES HOW TO MANAGE CITATIONS AND REFERENCES?

SOME ADVICE Keep track from the beginning Doing it right conveys professionalism and quality Make use of a tool such as Zotero to help organize and save time Always double check citations and references that were automatically generated Consult a librarian if unsure

ZOTERO Manage and organize sources in one place Save references/sources from the web browser Generate in-text citations and prepare the reference list automatically via a Word plugin

ZOTERO Manage and organize sources in one place Save references/sources from the web browser Generate in-text citations and prepare the reference list automatically via a Word plugin

USEFUL LINKS Engineering and Computer Science Subject Guide Concordia Library Standards Collection ENCS 282 Course Guide (Writing the Literature Review for a Project Proposal) Searching for Cost Information IEEE Citation Style How to set up Google Scholar to find resources available at Concordia Library s Zotero Guide Compendex (via Engineering Village) IEEE Xplore Zotero Documentation Zotero Forums arXiv (an open access repository)

QUESTIONS? DON T HESITATE TO CONTACT THE LIBRARY!