English 100- College Writing (Muthyala)

Introduction | Reference Sources | Indexes & Databases | Internet Resources | Writing the Paper

For further research assistance, please contact Zip Kellogg 780-4272), USM Libraries, University of Southern Maine

In order to find books, journal titles, videos, government documents and other materials held in the University of Maine System you will need to consult URSUS, the online catalog. Because journal article citations are not individually included in URSUS, you will need to use a discipline-specific index to find this information (see Resources by Subject).

If you do not know the exact subject heading describing the topic you need, try doing a keyword search using other word/s related to that topic and then click on the subject heading links found within the relevant records to find additional, useful resources.

To search databases remotely, you will need a library card. To obtain books use .

Reference sources are useful tools to obtain background information and to develop a vocabulary of possible search terms. The following items are print resources available within the University of Southern Maine system.

St. James Encyclopedia of Popular Culture
POR Ref E 169.1 S764 2000

Business: the Ultimate Resource
POR Ref HD 38.15 B878 2002

Encyclopedia of American Social History
POR Reference HN57 .E58 1992

American Decades, 1990-1999
POR Ref E 169.12 A419
(similar volumes available for other decades)

Encyclopedia of Cultural Anthropology
POR, GOR, LEW Reference GN307 .E52 1996

Encyclopedia of Human Behavior
POR, GOR, LEW Reference BF31 .E5 1994

Encyclopedia of Psychology
POR and GOR Reference BF31. E52 2000

Encyclopedia of Sociology
POR and GOR Reference HM425 .E5 2000

International Encyclopedia of the Social and Behavioral Sciences
POR Reference H41 .I58 2001

Because of the lengthy publishing cycle for a book, information in a book is not always current. Periodical articles are current sources of information. There are two main types of periodicals: scholarly and popular. Scholarly periodicals are usually referred to as journals. Articles in journals contain reports of primary research; the articles are written by experts in the field and for other researchers/scholars; use terms and language specific to that discipline; may include graphs, charts, etc. related to the topic; most often are peer reviewed via an editorial board; are published by professional organization or society, university, research centers, scholarly presses; and often include a bibliography. Popular periodical articles contain general information; are written using easily understood language that appeals to a varied audience; are usually written by journalists or others who are not experts in the field; do not include citations; has a limited or non-existent editorial review board; and may contain glossy photographs. The Finding Articles tutorial provides more information on how to find articles.

To find scholarly articles it is necessary to consult a discipline-specific electronic or print index/database. The following electronic indexing sources are available remotely.

Academic Search Premier
Date coverage: varies according to publication. See coverage information
Provides full text for nearly 4,000 scholarly publications of which 3,100 are peer reviewed. Academic areas of study include: social sciences, humanities, education, computer sciences, engineering, language and linguistics, arts & literature, medical sciences, and ethnic studies

America: History and Life
Date coverage: 1954-current
Index to research on the history of the United States and Canada, from prehistoric times to the present. Includes references to journal articles, books and book reviews, dissertations, and collective works.

ERIC-Education
Date coverage: 1966-current (note: ERIC has changes contractors and there may be some lags in coverage)
Indexes and abstracts journal articles and documents on education research and practice

Literature Resource Center
Includes: Contemporary Authors, Contemporary Literary Criticism Select, Scribner Writers, and Twayne's Authors Series.

MLA International Bibliography
Date coverage: 1963-current
Index to scholarly research in literature, language, linguistics, and folklore. Indexes articles from more than 3,500 journals and series. Also includes monographs, working papers, proceedings, and bibliographies. Updated 10 times / year.

New York Times
Date coverage: 1999-current
Includes full-text of the newspaper. The New York Times covers literary events, reviews books, etc.

Oxford Reference Online
A cross-searchable collection of 100 language and subject dictionaries and reference works published by Oxford University Press. The scope is broad, including works in the areas of science and medicine, the humanities and social sciences, and business and law. English dictionaries and thesauri, guides to grammar and usage, and dictionaries of etymology, foreign languages, quotations, and names are provided.

Project MUSE
Project MUSE covers the fields of literature and criticism, history, the visual and performing arts, cultural studies, education, political science, gender studies, economics, and many others.

ProQuest Newspapers
Full text of more than 500 U.S. and international news sources. Includes The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Boston Globe, and the imes of London, plus hundreds of other news sources and news wires. Years of coverage vary by title. Maine papers included: Bangor Daily News (1992+), Portland Press Herald (1995+), and selected business coverage from Maine Times (1994-2002) and Central Maine Morning Sentinel (1993-1997).

PsycINFO
Date coverage: 1887-current
Index to the professional and academic literature in psychology and related disciplines, including medicine, psychiatry, nursing, sociology, education, pharmacology, physiology, linguistics, and other areas. Coverage includes references and abstracts to over 1,300 journals in more than 20 languages, and to book chapters and books in the English language. The database includes information from empirical studies, case studies, surveys, bibliographies, literature reviews, discussion articles, conference reports and dissertations.

Sociological Abstracts
Date coverage: 1974-current
Covers sociology and related disciplines including anthropology, criminology, demography, education, gerontology, mental health, minority studies, political science, public health, social psychology, social work, urban studies, welfare programs, and women's studies. Comprehensive and international in scope.

In choosing Internet resources it is important to evaluate the authenticity of the source. Thinking Critically about World Wide Web Resources (UCLA College Library) provides excellent evaluation criteria.

Here are some sites that may help you with the writing process:

The Writing Center (U. of Wisconsin, Madison) an overview of the many facets of writing well.

The Writing Center (Harvard) a series of hand-outs about different aspects of the writing process.

This category contains information on how to write the paper. In using resources it is important that they be used ethically and legally. The sources listed here provide assistance in this process.

Writing Handbook

A Writer's Reference, by Diana Hacker, 5th Edition
POR and GOR Reference PE1408 .H2778 2003
Includes sections on composing and revising, design, sentence structure, grammar, punctuation, writing, and documentation. The Student Companion web site includes online help.

Online: A Reference Guide to Using Internet Sources

Using American Psychological Association (APA) Format (Updated to 5th Edition) (Purdue University Online Writing Lab)

Citation Style: MLA

Citing Sources (MLA) (Indiana University)

MLA (University of Wisconsin-Madison Writing Center)

MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th edition
POR Reference LB2369 .G53 2003

Using Modern Language Association (MLA) Format (Purdue University Online Writing Center)

Plagiarism

Avoiding Plagiarism (University of California-Davis)

How to Recognize Plagiarism (Indiana University School of Education)

Created by: Zip Kellogg
Created on: 03.09.2006
Last Updated: 10.04.2006