Library Resources for CA 110
These reference sources may help you find good information for this class. This page is by no means comprehensive; rather, it is intended to serve as a starting point for your research and assignments. For further assistance, please contact the Reference Desk.
Library Links:
- University Library Homepage - University of South Alabama
- SOUTHCat - the catalog of the libraries of the University of South Alabama. It contains records for books, e-books, journal titles, DVDs, CDs, videos, and government documents held by the libraries.
- Our Journal List - the database of all the journals we subscribe to in print and electronically. Once you have a citation to an article, go here to see if the Libraries have a subscription to this particular volume, issue and year of the journal you need. Occasionally the information is incorrect and/or unclear. Call us at 460-7025 if you have any question about the availability of these journals. (Note: Some magazine and journal publishers "embargo" the latest year of electronic versions. This means that the most recent issues will not be available online for a year from their publication date.)
Library Catalog:
The catalog contains records for books, e‐books, journals, CD‐ROMs, CDs, DVDs, videos, and government documents held by the libraries at the University of South Alabama.
Search tips:
- Keyword searches – use quotation marks to hold phrases together ("electoral college")
- Truncation – use ? after the root of a word to find all its variants (president? finds president, presidents, presidential...)
- Browse the Subject(s) field in records to find the right words for searches. (Example: Try doing a keyword search for "Congressional oversight," then look at the subject(s) field in several records. You’ll see that the subject term is "Legislative oversight -- United States." Click the subject heading to find more records with this subject.)
- Revise and refine your searches
- Watch for repeating call numbers and browse stacks in that area
- Pay attention to the Location and Status fields. You will need this information to locate the item in the library.
- Several Flash tutorials about SOUTHcat are available on the library's website.
Subject Encyclopedias
Subject encyclopedias have a wealth of background information that can provide you with a strong foundation upon which to build your research. To find a subject encyclopedia, try the search strategies show in the tutorial below:
Indexes/Databases:
Use these to identify articles on specific topics, as well as to locate full-text electronic articles. Find them on the Articles, Indexes, and Databases page linked from the Library homepage. Remote access is available for most journals.
For this course, some databases you may find particularly useful are:
- Academic Search Premier (EBSCO): A multidisciplinary database that indexes over 8000 journals, many in full text.
- Master File Premier (EBSCO): This multidisciplinary database provides full text for more than 1,750 general reference publications with full text information dating as far back as 1975.
- LexisNexis Academic: Database of news, business, and legal research.
Current Controversial Topics
- Controversial Topics Guide: Selected by USA Librarians
- CQ Researcher: Linked from Articles, Indexes, and Databases page.
- Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center: Linked from Articles, Indexes, and Databases page.
- Reference Shelf: Shelved in the book stacks there are 243 books discussing one broad social issue each. Search SOUTHcat using the keyword phrase "reference shelf"
- Taking Sides: Series of about 50 books on broad social issues. Search SOUTHcat using the keyword phrase "taking sides"
- Contemporary World Issues: Series of over 100 reference handbooks on current issues. Search SOUTHcat using the keyword phrase "contemporary world issues"
Statistics Sources
- Statistics Sources: List of statistics databases
- Electronic Reference Statistics Sources: Selected subscription and free statistics sources
Selected Political Websites
- Election 2008 Website: Created by Paula Webb, librarian in the Government Documents department.
Citing Your Sources
Style guides in the library:
- MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly Publishing
- University Library Ready Reference (2nd Floor North). Call number PN 147 .G444 1998 (Non-circulating)
- Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition
- University Library Ready Reference (2nd Floor North). Call number Z 253 .U69 (Non-circulating)
- A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers, 7th edition
- University Library Ready Reference (2nd Floor North). Call number LB 2369 .T8 2007 (Non-circulating)
- University Library Bookstacks. Call number LB 2369 .T8 2007
- University Library Circulation Desk, 7 Day Library Reserve. Call number LB 2369 .T8 2007
- Mitchell College of Business Library, Reference. Call number LB 2369 .T8 2007 (Non-circulating)
Online Style References:
- MLA Formatting and Style Guide from Purdue University
- Research and Documentation Online, Diana Hacker
- Doc Scribe's Guide to Research Styles
Searching the Web
- Use well-regarded and recommended intenet sites.
- Go beyond basic search boxes - try using advanced search options on search engines to improve your results.
- Evaluate internet information carefully.