Popular: Sources published in newspapers and magazines intended for general audience.
Scholarly: Well researched sources that have been written for scholars, students, and experts in the discipline area.
Peer Reviewed / Refereed: Articles that have been evaluated by other professionals in the field to check for accuracy and adherence to disciplinary standards.
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When researching, we are like detectives trying to combine the right terms in the right place to find the information we need. The Gathering Information page will help you to decide where to search, but how should you combine search terms to find what you are looking for?
Broad Search
Search for information using the single most important term related to your topic. Use this type of search when looking for basic background information.
Specific Search
Search for information by combining key concepts using the words you have brainstormed. Each concept/word should be separated by the word "AND". Use this kind of search when looking for specific evidence related to your claim/thesis.
Getting Too Many Irrelevant Results?
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Article: Articles are the individual "stories" published in a newspaper, magazine, or journal. For example, the story about the Rangers published in Sports Illustrated is an article.
Journal: Journals contain several articles published about a specific subject area and are typically scholarly. For example, the article about stem cells was published in the Journal of Medical Ethics.
Database: Databases index millions of articles published in thousands of newspapers, magazines, and journals. There are databases that index sources from many different discipline areas, while others are subject specific. For example, the New York Times can be accessed by searching the database Lexis Nexis Academic.
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