EM SC 100S: Earth & Mineral Sciences First-Year Seminar

Where are the Libraries?

 The University Libraries comprise 36 libraries at 24 locations throughout Pennsylvania (locations and hours) - and, we deliver! The online resources of the Libraries are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, from any location via the Libraries website.

How do I find out what Penn State owns?

The CAT (short for catalog) contains information on the over 5 million books, journals, documents, videos, music and more owned by the Libraries. It does NOT provide a listing of journal articles but will tell you if we own the journal or have access to the fulltext. The CAT is also your gateway to many items on reserve for courses (called course reserves; login is required). (For more information about using The CAT, consult the Quick Guide to the CAT.)

Tip #1: Use the I WANT IT button in the CAT to have things delivered for pickup or to request an item already in use.

Tip #2: My Library Account shows you what you have checked out and allows you to renew your books without coming to the library. You can borrow up to 200 items; most items can be charged out for 28 days before needing to be renewed.

How do I find items on the shelf?

Understanding call numbers and Using the Library of Congress call number system.

What if Penn State doesn't own an item or no copies are available?

If we do not own something or if all Penn State copies are in use, we'll attempt to get it for you - for free! Use ILLiad to request items not owned by Penn State. Most items arrive within 7-10 working days. Photocopies are scanned and emailed to you; books and other loans will be delivered to the library of your choice for pickup.

Tip #3: Use the E-Z Borrow service to borrow books which are always in use at PSU.  E-ZBorrow draws from other academic libraries in our region so materials arrive quickly (3-5 days).

How do I find articles on my research topic?

(Hint: You cannot search directly for articles in the CAT!**)  The Libraries subscribe to several hundred databases that can help you locate journal articles and other resources. Some of these databases include the fulltext of the article while others link you to the fulltext.  (Be aware that "fulltext" can mean a page image (i.e., PDF), text only, or other combinations of text and graphics.)  Research guides are available to help identify the best databases for your topic. 

 

^{*If you must use Google, use Google Scholar.}

Tip #4: These databases are better resources for most research than Google. Use them!

Learning to choose appropriate information resources is an important skill. See tips for evaluating information sources (in the Information Literacy and You tutorial) for help in selecting quality resources.  (Learn why professors object to Wikipedia.)

Tip #5: Learning to use scholarly versus popular resources is an important skill. Impress your professor by using scholarly resources!  On the Try These First webpage, try the ProQuest database for scholarly and popular articles on most  topics. There are lots of fulltext articles in this database too!

Other subject databases include:

• GeoRef for articles on geosciences topics;
• Meteorological & Geoastrophysical Abstracts for meteorology;
• Compendex for engineering;
• Materials sciences for materials sciences;
• Geobase for geography.

or try Access World News (Newsbank) for newspaper articles.

Tip #6: When using databases or the CAT, use    to quickly locate fulltext and/or where items are at Penn State. When it works, it's a time saver.

Tip #7: RefWorks is free for students and is a useful tool for managing your references.  It will automatically format your references to match the citation style required by your professor!

 How do I find articles when all I have is a citation?

The first step is to figure out which piece of the citation to search. Ask yourself if it is a book or a journal article? For journal articles, look for two title-like entries - one for the article title + another for the title of the journal (or book) it appeared in. Always use the second title-like entry to search in the CAT.

Tip #8: In some styles, the italicized, underlined, or bold text is the text to search in the CAT.  Do not include any volume designation or numbering when you search the CAT.  That text isn't searchable.

In the following examples, what text do you search in the CAT?

Strain rates from snowball garnet 
C. Biermeier and K. Stuwe.  Journal of Metamorphic Geology, vol.21, no.3 (April 2003) pp.253-268

Title: Climate change in northern Africa: The past is not the future
Author: Claussen M.; Petoukhov V.; Brovkin V., and others
Source: Climatic Change 57, no. 1-2 (2003) p.99-118

The Stately  Cycles of Ancient Climate
Richard A. Kerr. Science, vol.252, no.5010 (May 1991) pp. 1254-1255

Tip #9: If you still cannot find the item, try using Citation Linker to help locate your citation.

**Why aren't the CAT and the library databases more like Google?

Libraries are transitioning from old methods of indexing to something more like Google but it takes time.  Library catalogs were created to track packages of information (e.g., books) and there wasn't time to include much information about the contents.  The     button is one example of libraries trying to link users from the CAT interface to our online resources.  Concepts and terminology are also gradually changing (e.g., the multiple meanings of "fulltext").  You may still encounter the occasional instructor who asserts "No Internet sources will be allowed in the bibliography!", when what they may really mean is "no random, free Internet site" (always ask).  In reality, many scholarly resources - journals and books - are now purchased by the Libraries in electronic format only!

Tip #10: Ask for assistance!  Librarians are available at many locations, online and onsite, to help.  Our aid is free!

 

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