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HIST 300: Search Strategy

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Title: HIST 300: Search Strategy


1
HIST 300 Search Strategy
  • Tamara Smith, Reference Librarian
  • Langsdale Library
  • October 10 12, 2006

2
Plan for Today
  • Introductions
  • Thesis Statement
  • Search Strategy
  • Activity Learn a Database
  • Getting Articles
  • Wrap-up

3
Thesis Statement
  • What is your topic?
  • What do you need to know?
  • Reference works encyclopedias, dictionaries,
    handbooks, etc.
  • What do you want to know?
  • Turn the question into a statement

4
Thesis Statement Example
  • Theme Social issues of the early 20th century
  • You choose working children and education
  • Need to know notable people, historical
    background, etc.
  • Want to know How did the U.S. Government ensure
    the education of working children in the early
    20th century?
  • Thesis statement The Child Labor Act of 1938 led
    to an increase in educational opportunities for
    working children.

5
Thesis Statement Tutorials
  • UNC at Chapel Hill - Constructing Thesis
    Statements http//www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handout
    s/thesis.html
  • University of Washington - Guide to Writing
    Thesis Statementshttp//depts.washington.edu/pswr
    ite/thesisstmt.html
  • University of Toronto. Using Thesis
    Statementshttp//www.utoronto.ca/writing/thesis.h
    tml

6
Search Strategy
  • Use the most important words from the thesis
    statement
  • The Child Labor Act of 1938 led to an increase in
    educational opportunities for working children.
  • Education
  • Working children
  • Child Labor Act
  • Opportunities

7
Search Strategy
  • Think of synonyms or related terms for those
    keywords
  • Education learning, schooling
  • Working children (can break this down)work job,
    labor, employmentchildren child, minor, youth
  • Child Labor Act legislation, laws

8
Boolean Operators
  • Named for George Boole, a 19th century English
    mathematician
  • AND joins concepts together (both/all)
  • OR combines synonyms or related terms
    (either/any)
  • NOT excludes terms or concepts (leave out)

9
Boolean Operators Example
  • Use some of the keywords from our list to create
    a search statement
  • Working children AND education
  • Even better
  • Working AND children AND education

10
Advanced Searching
  • Use these techniques to refine your search
  • Nesting combine like terms in parentheses used
    to group synonyms together
  • Truncation () special symbol used to represent
    missing letters used in place of retyping an
    entire word

11
Advanced Searching Example
  • Basic Search working AND children AND education
  • Advanced Search
  • (work OR labor) AND (children OR child OR
    minor) AND education

12
Search Tutorials
  • CSU Libraries - Boolean Tutorial
    http//lib.colostate.edu/tutorials/boolean_info.h
    tml
  • Electronic Searching (Duke University)http//www.
    lib.duke.edu/libguide/adv_searching.htmBoolean
  • NYU Libraries - Interactive Boolean Search
    Tutorial http//library.nyu.edu/research/tutorial
    s/boolean/boolean.html
  • Information Navigator Using Boolean
    Logichttp//www-navigator.utah.edu/module3/boolea
    n.htm

13
Questions?
14
In-Class Exercise Finding Articles in a Database
15
Getting Articles
  • In a database use the Button
  • No full text online? Check the library catalog
  • Cant find it at UB? Use ILL Express!
  • Its free!
  • 7-10 business days (or less)
  • Use your Langsdale barcode
  • Articles sent electronically no need to pick
    them up
  • Questions? Renewals? Call 410-837-4283

16
Thank You!
  • Tamara SmithReference Librariantsmith_at_ubalt.edu
    410-837-5072
  • HIST 300 Course Page http//langsdale.ubalt.edu/h
    owto/course_websites/hist300_nix_fa06.htm
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