STANDARD TWO
Lesson 1: Introduction to Information Discovery
Finding information in a large research library can be a complex process. Having learned in Standard One how to define your information needs, this lesson describes some methods for discovering relevant information resources.
Next steps:
I AM LOOKING FOR A DEFINITION OR AN OVERVIEW OF A TOPIC...
If you just want some basic information on a topic, you may want to begin
by looking at a dictionary or an encyclopedia. These tools
give clear and thorough descriptions of terms and concepts and
often include references to other sources of information. There are general
encyclopedias such as the
Encyclopaedia Britannica, and subject-specific encyclopedias such as the Encyclopedia of Applied Physics and Technology. The Sterling Memorial Library's Starr Reference Room contains general and subject-specific dictionaries and encyclopedias on hundreds of topics, and other Yale libraries have reference works for their various specialities. A select list of Online Reference Resources is available to help you get started. Research guides by subject can also help you locate the best reference resources.
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I AM LOOKING FOR SPECIFIC FACTUAL INFORMATION...
If you are looking for basic factual information on a topic, you may want to begin by looking at an almanac, handbook, or factbook. These tools often provide data in tabular format and may include references to other sources of information. The Sterling Memorial Library's Starr Reference Room contains these kinds of reference works on a variety of topics, and other Yale libraries will contain these reference resources for their specialities. To get started, check the select list of Online Reference Resources, and the research guides by subject.
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I AM LOOKING FOR A BOOK ABOUT...
Orbis is a database of most of the books and journal titles contained within the Yale University Libraries (excluding Morris, the catalog for the Yale Law Library; search both Orbis and Morris catalogs: Orbis and Morris).
In Orbis, you can search for an author name, the title of a book or journal, or keywords found in the titled or description of the item. The Orbis record will display the name of the library where the item is held and the call number under which it can be found. If the Orbis record indicates that the item is checked out, it can be recalled using Place Requests. If the book you are looking for is not at Yale, see the section on Interlibrary Loan at the end of this lesson.
Orbis tutorials
A variety of Orbis tutorials are available. For an overview on how to use Orbis effectively, see the following Orbis tutorials in HTML or
PowerPoint formats.
For Orbis and other library tool tips and tricks, see the list of tutorials listed on the Workshops and Tutorials page.
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I AM LOOKING FOR A JOURNAL ARTICLE ABOUT ...
There are some questions you need to ask yourself when you begin a search for journal articles:
- How in-depth do I want the information to be?
- Should the information be from a popular or a scholarly article?
- Do I want a review article?
- Do I want the most current research?
Your responses to these questions will help you decide which tools to use. Standard Two: Lesson 3 will discuss the actual tools in depth.
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I AM LOOKING FOR WWW INFORMATION...
NOTE: Information on the Internet requires additional critical evaluation when compared to peer-reviewed information.
Searching the WWW Tutorial
For an overview of different WWW searching strategies, watch the following video tutorial (this requires Flash and speakers or earphones):
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Searching the WWW (3:39): A demonstration of multiple ways to search the Web for scholarly and non-peer-reviewed resources.
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Next Steps in Information Discovery
I HAVE A LIST OF CITATIONS AND WOULD LIKE TO OBTAIN THE ARTICLES.
If you have a citation to an article and you would like to obtain the full text of the article, you have a few options:
- To find out whether Yale subscribes to a particular journal, search
for the JOURNAL TITLE in ORBIS.
Note: ORBIS will only accept complete titles (no abbreviations) so make sure you know
what the full journal title is before performing the search.
You can find out a number of things from the ORBIS record:
- Whether Yale subscribes to the journal
- Whether Yale has a print and/or an electronic subscription
- Which library holds a print copy of the journal
- The holdings information for the journal (do we have v. 1- present or did we stop subscribing 10 years ago ...)
- The location and call number for the journal (In the Sterling Memorial Library, current journals and high-use journals are shelved in the Franke Periodical Reading Room and Annex; other journals may be shelved in the SML stacks or in other libraries across campus). Before hunting for a journal it is always best to check the ORBIS record.
- The URL to access electronic journals
- You can also discover whether Yale has an online journal subscription to a title by checking the Online Journals and Newspapers page.
- You can also enter the citation data into the Yale Links Citation Linker
Note: Some paper journals cannot be checked out of the libraries; however, there are photocopy machines in each library. The Yale University Libraries charge for photocopies. Photocopies can be paid for in cash or with a copy card.
Locating a Journal Tutorial
For an overview of how to locate a journal, watch the following video tutorial (this requires Flash and speakers or earphones):
- Locating a Journal (6:56): A demonstration of the various ways to discover online and paper journals.
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I WOULD LIKE TO OBTAIN A BOOK OR AN ARTICLE THAT ISN'T
HELD IN ANY OF THE YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES.
There are two services that can help you obtain a variety of materials that aren't held by any of the Yale libraries.
- Many books can be requested using the rapid delivery service Borrow Direct.
Use Borrow Direct to borrow books from the libraries of Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Penn, and Princeton. Most books are available for pick up at designated Yale libraries within 4 business days. If the book you want is not available from Borrow Direct, use Interlibrary Loan (ILL).
- Books, journal articles, newspaper articles, videocassettes and other materials that are not held in any of the Yale University Libraries often can be requested from a library at another institution via Interlibrary Loan (ILL).
It can take anywhere from 2 days to 2 months to fill an interlibrary loan request (esoteric items that are difficult to locate take longer to obtain, and some material may not be available at all) so it is important to plan ahead. If you have a question about the status of your interlibrary loan request you can ask an interlibrary loan assistant.
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Back to Standard Two
Forward to Standard Two: Lesson 2
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