This document provides an overview of research resources and tips available through the USC Libraries for McNair Scholars. It discusses the importance of information literacy and critical thinking skills. Key resources highlighted include research guides, subject librarians, databases like Web of Knowledge, following citation trails, and asking librarians for assistance in developing a research topic and finding relevant sources.

1. RESEARCHING YOUR PASSION
A USC LIBRARIES GUIDE
FOR MCNAIR SCHOLARS
SUMMER 2011
LEA & TOMPSON

2. THE RESEARCH PROCESS
Literacy = Foundation for Thinking/Research Some literacy/research tools for you
Our aim in the USC Libraries is to help you (more details next pages):
become “information literate” which will aid you
in critical thinking and research throughout
your life! An info literate person is able to:
• “Determine the extent of information
needed
• Access the needed information effectively
and efficiently North Carolina State
• Evaluate information and its sources University Libraries scholarly
critically vs. popular journals tutorial:
• Incorporate selected information into one’s http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/tutori
knowledge base als/pr/
• Use information effectively to accomplish a
specific purpose
Also on
• Understand the economic, legal, and social
YouTube
issues surrounding the use of information,
and access and use information ethically
and legally” Do not
[from the Assoc. of College & Research Libraries,
Information Literacy Competency Standards for plagiarize; DO
Higher Education] cite it right
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3. LIBRARIES HOMEPAGE HIGHLIGHTS
Searches
multiple
databases
including
HOMER
(catalog of
campus Research
holdings); Guides listed
great place here – try
to start if accessing it
you don’t with a QR
code reader!
know which (We have
subject suggestions.)
database to Note the
use (see subject
following librarians
pages) page links to
the Guides
too.
= resources you will want to check out
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4. LIBRARIES E-RESOURCES
E(lectronic)
Resources
include: 1) online
journals, 2) e-
books, and 3)
subject and
multidisciplinary
databases that
link to journal and
newspaper
articles.
For this class, we
will use the
article citation,
linking and
tracing Web of
Knowledge
database.
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5. WEB OF KNOWLEDGE
Web of Science is the core of this product but NOT just for science! It (and the weekly Current
Contents) cover: “the world’s leading scholarly literature in the sciences, social sciences, arts,
and humanities and examine proceedings of international conferences, symposia, seminars,
colloquia, workshops, and conventions.” It is also USC’s most robust citation-tracing resource.
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6. MORE RESOURCES
(WHEN YOUR RESEARCH TOPIC NOT SO EASY)
It’s All About the Numbers
A well-structured search
for an undergraduate
paper should find you 20-
80 results.
<(Less then) 20 results,
and you’re either missing
some stuff or your topic is Follow the Citations
An article that makes an impact on the field, like this
too narrow.
one by USC President Nikias (“Signal processing with
>(Greater than) 80 higher-order spectra” IEEE Signal Processing Magazine
results, and you just don’t 1993, vol.10 pp. 10-37), typically has an excellent
have time to weed bibliography (citation image to the left) and is, over
through all of those. time, cited by many others (image to the right).
Numbers = one practical Following citation trails of known authors in a field can
reason to use the help you find or refine a research topic.
Libraries’ article ASK a Librarian! http://www.usc.edu/libraries/
databases – preselected services/ask_a_librarian/
sources, unlike Google.
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7. PLEASE ASK US FOR ASSISTANCE!
Research Guides on
all sorts of subjects
by all librarians are
listed here – try
accessing it with a
QR code reader! (We
have suggestions)
Ben Lea, Science & Engineering
Librarian, SSL 102
http://www.usc.edu/libraries/services/
blea@usc.edu
ask_a_librarian/
Sara Tompson, Head of
Instruction & Orientation, LVY
113C, sarat@usc.edu
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