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Forest, Rangeland & Watershed Stewardship

Introduction to Research Webpage

Introduction to Morgan Library
How to Find Books
How to Find Journals
Web Resources

Introduction to Morgan Library:

How to find BOOKS in Morgan Library: (also look for government documents)

  • SAGE search for books or titles of journals (Does the library own the book with the title: fish hatchery management?)
    • Title or author search is good if you know the exact title and the exact author's name
    • The web of life : a new scientific understanding of living systems by Fritjof Capra.
    • Word search is good if you have a topic, keyword, or if you aren't sure of the title
    • I am looking for a book by Covich about invertebrates....
    • I need to find books on whirling disease...
    • Use the journal title or title search to locate the title of a journal (NOT the articles in the journal--use databases to find journal articles)
    • Does the library own the journal Bioscience? example

  • Prospector searches CU-Boulder, Univ. of Denver, other libraries in this area. Good for books, not articles.
  • What if I need a book or journal article or conference proceeding or dissertation and the library doesn't have it? Order from Interlibrary Loan ILL. It can take several days for an article, about two weeks for a book. Sign up for webview, get your articles via the web!
  • Help, I need a good general encyclopedia about fish? Ask at the Information Desk, the reference collection has good encyclopedias, overviews to classification, etc. Do a word search in SAGE: fish and encyclopedia then limit to location: reference.
  • A book chapter can give you an overview on the topic, frame some of the issues, give you a starting point to expand your research.

How to find BOOKS or DISSERTATIONS not in Morgan Library:

  • Worldcat will let you search for books in ANY research library in the U.S.
  • Digital Dissertations will let you search for dissertations. Are you looking for someone who is a "Dr.", then check here for information on their dissertation.

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How to find TITLES OF JOURNALS in Morgan Library:

  • SAGE search for books or titles of journals (NOT articles in the journal--use DATABASES to find articles)
  • Does the library own the journal Bioscience? example

How to find GENERAL JOURNAL ARTICLES or NEWSPAPER ARTICLES:

How to find SCIENTIFIC JOURNAL ARTICLES on a topic, subject, or by an author

Use Databases to search, for journal articles on your topic or subject. The library has over 300 databases, this is a "short list" of starting points.

Be careful when you search databases for an author. Sometimes the databases use last name and first name, sometimes they use last name and just the first initial and middle initial. For example if you are searching for articles by Dr. Alan Covich you might search by:

  • Covich, Alan
  • Covich A
  • Covich A* (the * is if you don't know the middle initial of their name, the * acts as a "wild card")

    DATABASES to start with.....don't just search yahoo.com or google.com

  • Aquatic Science and Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA)
    One of the key sources for information in fisheries and wildlife biology. Includes abstracts for journal articles and conference proceedings. Topics include life sciences, natural sciences, earth sciences, engineering, marine environments, freshwater environments, brackish environments, aquaculture, oil, minerals, pollution, oceanography, meteorology, marine technology, engineering, aquatic organisms, aquatic pollution, conservation, environmental quality, fisheries, freshwater environments, limnology, marine biotechnology, marine environments, oceanography, policy, legislation, wildlife management.
    Coverage from 1978-current. Updated monthly.
    More information: http://www.csa.com/csa/factsheets/asfaset.shtml

  • Biological Abstracts
    Biological Abstracts is one of the foremost sources of bibliographic references to the life science journal literature. This database enables researchers and students to retrieve references to vital biological and medical research findings, clinical studies, and discoveries of new organisms. Coverage is international, and includes agriculture, biochemistry, biomedicine, biotechnology, botany, ecology, microbiology, pharmacology, and zoology. Approximately 75% of the records include abstracts.

  • CAB Abstracts -
    Offers abstracts and citations to a wide range of research in agriculture, veterinary medicine, earth sciences, natural sciences, bioagricultural sciences, crop science, forestry, natural resources management, biology, agroforestry, aquatic sciences, fisheries, wetlands and other subject areas. The coverage includes international articles and conference proceedings.
    Coverage from 1973-current. Updated quarterly.

  • GeoRef -
    The GeoRef database, established by the American Geological Institute (AGI) in 1966, provides access to the geoscience literature of the world. GeoRef is the most comprehensive AGI database in the geosciences and continues to grow by more than 60,000 references a year. The database contains over 2.2 million references to geoscience journal articles, books, maps, conference papers, reports and theses.
    Coverage1785-current; updated biweekly.

  • Water Resources Abstracts -
    Water Resources Abstracts provides summaries of the world's technical and scientific literature on water-related topics covering the characteristics, conservation, control, pollution, treatment, use and management of water resources. Abstracts are drawn from journals, books, conference proceedings, and technical reports in the physical and life sciences, as well as from engineering, legal and government publications.
    Coverage 1967 - current; updated monthly.

  • Wildlife & Ecology Studies Worldwide
    Wildlife Worldwide is the world's largest index to literature on wild mammals, birds, reptiles, and amphibians. Topics include mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, behavior, habitat use, damage, foods, feeding, management techniques, habitat management, habitat alteration, captive-animal care, endangered species, threatened species, traffic & disturbance, forestry, parasites, disease, pesticides, pollution, physiology, morphology, ecosystems, and ecology. There are over 500,000 bibliographic records, many include abstracts. The databases in this exclusive collection offer a global perspective and together form the ultimate resource on wildlife information. More details found at: http://www.nisc.com/factsheets/ww.htm.
    Coverage from 1935-present. Updated quarterly.

  • Web of Science
    Science (ISI) - Formerly known as the Science Citation Index. This powerful database tells you who cited a particular article and who that article cited. There is keyword searching, but no thesaurus or descriptor terms. Best search results include using a variety of search terms.
    Coverage from 1945-present. Updated: Weekly!!

  • Zoological Record
    (CSA) - Zoological Record Plus (ZR Plus), produced by BIOSIS, provides extensive coverage of the world's zoological and animal science literature, covering all research from biochemistry to veterinary medicine. The database provides an easily searched collection of references from over 4,500 international serial publications, plus books, meetings, reviews and other non-serial literature from over 100 countries. Zoological Record has long been recognized as the "unofficial register" for taxonomy and systematics, but other topics are also given comprehensive treatment using indexing in both controlled- and natural-language format. An online thesaurus of around 10,000 controlled terms arranged in hierarchies makes it easy to locate appropriate search terms. Scope notes and related term references are also provided. Coverage from 1978-present. Updated monthly.
    More information: http://www.csa.com/csa/factsheets/zoorec.shtml Start early on your assignment!

  • How to find articles, not just scientific articles.

  • Ask at the Information Desk as a starting point. START EARLY ON YOUR ASSIGNMENT! Don't wait until the last night before it is due and then ask at the desk!

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Web Resources

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