Perspectives on Inquiry MTU Library Resources

Our Universe in Perspective

UN1001, Section R24, Wellesley Pereira

Hans Kishel, Librarian (Room 205, hfkishel@mtu.edu, 487-3118)

 

Guide to the Library - http://www.lib.mtu.edu/about/MTU_Library_Guide.pdf

Answers your questions about the basics of using the MTU Library.

 

For Assistance

For individual assistance or instruction from a librarian, visit or phone the Reference/Information Desk (487-2507), e-mail reflib@mtu.edu, or use the Ask a Librarian button on the Librarys web page.

 

Interlibrary Loan (ILL) access to items from other libraries.

Requests are made through ILLiad, the personalized online ILL account system.  After your initial registration is complete, use ILLiad to request books and articles.   ILLiad also allows you to track the status of your requests and cancel requests. 

ILL requests may also be made directly through most research databases such as WorldCat, CSA Metadex, and Compendex.  Follow the HuskyFetch menu options and select "Get Item from another Library via ILLiad."  Please be sure to check the JRVP Library holdings before submitting a request directly from a database.

Locating Books & Periodicals

Books are located on the Third Floor in the Main Collection, shelved by Library of Congress call number.

Periodicals are shelved by Library of Congress call number in these locations:

CURRENT JOURNALS (1^st Floor): Recent issues kept here until bound or reissued in microfilm/fiche.

SERIALS COLLECTION (Garden Level): Bound periodicals.

MICROFORMS AREA (2nd Floor): Microfilm & Microfiche cabinets located on west side of 2nd floor.

E-Journals: The Library subscribes to an increasing number of journals which provide electronic versions of their publications online. Access them through the Librarys web page.

 

Reference Collection - 2^nd Floor

The Reference Collection is a good place to collect background information on an issue or start your research. The collection is arranged by subject, using the Library of Congress Classification System (LCCS) call numbers. An outline of the system is available at http://www.loc.gov/catdir/cpso/lcco/lcco.html.

 

Suggested reference materials

 

The Astronomy and astrophysics encyclopedia - QB14 .A873 1992 Ref

Cambridge astronomy dictionary - QB14 .C34 1996 Ref

Encyclopedia of astronomy and astrophysics - QB14 .E54 2001 Ref

The history of modern astronomy and astrophysics: a selected, annotated bibliography - QB15 .D48 Ref

History of astronomy: an encyclopedia - QB15 .H624 1997 Ref

The Biographical dictionary of scientists - QB35 .B56 1984 Ref

Encyclopedia of space science and technology - QB497 .E53 2003 Ref

The chronological encyclopedia of discoveries in space - QB500.262 .Z56 2000 Ref

Star names, their lore and meaning - QB802 .A4 1963 Ref

Encyclopedia of cosmology: historical, philosophical, and scientific foundations of modern cosmology - QB980.5 .E53 1993 Ref

 

JRVP Online Catalog

Contains records of materials owned by the MTU Library.

Two search interfaces, Basic and Keyword allow the user to search for items by author, title, subject, call number, ISBN/ISSN, or keyword(s.) Catalog records include bibliographic and location information for items retrieved in your search. Use the Location, Status, Call Number information to find an item in the Library collections.

 

Journal, magazine, and newspaper article databases

 

Database Keyword Search Tips - http://www.lib.mtu.edu/reference/tutorials/databasekeyword.aspx

 

To find citations to recent articles from journals, conference proceedings, and other publications, go to the Librarys web page and select E-Resources & E-Alerts. The resulting screen offers four search options for finding databases or electronic journals: (1) Keyword search of database titles and/or descriptions, (2) E-Resources A-Z to browse an alphabetical list by title (3) Search by Subject Headings, (4) Search by Provider.

 

Here are some recommended databases:

 

Academic OneFile

Scope: premier source for peer-reviewed, full-text articles from the world's leading journals and reference sources. With extensive coverage of the physical sciences, technology, medicine, social sciences, the arts, theology, literature and other subjects.

 

ArXiv

Scope: this e-print service in the fields of physics, mathematics, non-linear science, computer science, and quantitative biology.

 

CERN Document Server

Scope: over 630,000 bibliographic records, including 250,000 fulltext documents, of interest to people working in particle physics and related areas.

 

CERN Library Catalogue

Scope: catalogue of the European Laboratory for Particle Physics (CERN) Library. In addition to books, periodicals, and conferences are preprints, e-prints, and much more.

 

Conference Papers Index

Scope: provides citations to papers and poster sessions presented at major scientific meetings around the world. Subject emphasis since 1995 has been in the life sciences, environmental sciences and the aquatic sciences, while older material also covers physics, engineering and materials science.

 

Dryden Flight Research Center: Technical Reports

Scope: covering reports ranging from validation of advanced aeronautical and control systems concepts and atmospheric flight testing of future space-access technology demonstrators to Earth science experiments.

 

Expanded Academic ASAP

Scope: from arts and the humanities to social sciences, science and technology, this database meets research needs across all academic disciplines. Provides access to scholarly journals, news magazines, and newspapers.

 

General Science Abstracts

Scope: indexes and abstracts English language periodical articles in areas such as astronomy, biology, botany, chemistry, earth science, environmental issues, mathematics, medicine, physics, and zoology.

 

GLTRS (Glenn Technical Reports Server)

Scope: a service that allows users to search available online technical reports and abstracts. It is provided by Glenn's Logistics and Technical Information Division.

 

IEEE Xplore

Scope: provides access to full-text articles from all journals published by IEEE and IEE (the Institution of Electrical Engineers. Full-text for all IEEE and IEE conference proceedings and standards is included as is select legacy content dating back to 1950.

 

INSPEC

Scope: comprehensive database of bibliographic information and abstracts for published works in physics, electrical engineering and electronics, computing and control, and information technology. Covers scientific and technical journals, conference proceedings, books, reports, and dissertations. The print version is Science Abstracts, Sections A, B, and C.

 

NASA Astrophysics Data System

Scope: contains four bibliographic databases containing more than 3.6 million records: astronomy & astrophysics, instrumentation, physics & geophysics, and the Los Alamos e-print server. Also provides links to astronomical data catalogs and data archives.

 

NTIS/GPO DARTS (Depository Access to Reports, Technical and Scientific)

Scope: This is a pilot NTIS and GPO project which includes documents from the Department of Energy (DOE), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Defense Technical Information Center (DTIC), and NTIS. The documents in the NTIS collection with the PB accession number prefix are the products of many different Federal agencies and include both agency and contract studies. Most reports from 1997-2000 are scanned into the image system.

Access Note: Available only in the library. Please see a reference librarian for access.

 

NTIS - National Technical Information Service

Scope: a resource for accessing the latest U.S. government-sponsored research and worldwide scientific, technical, engineering, and business-related information. NTIS is the central source for the sale of unclassified and publicly available information from research reports, journal articles, data files, computer programs and audio visual products from Federal sources.

 

NTRS: NASA Technical Reports Server

Scope: to provide students, educators, and the public access to NASA's technical literature. NTRS also collects scientific and technical information from sites external to NASA to broaden the scope of information available to users.

 

Optics Infobase

Scope: Search engine providing a single unified search of all issues of Applied Optics from 1962 to the present.

 

ScienceDirect

Scope: extensive and unique full-text collection covers authoritative titles from the core scientific literature. ScienceDirect is designed as a basic electronic version of Elsevier Science print allowing you to access full-text articles published since 2003.

 

Science.gov

Scope: contains reliable information resources selected by respective government agencies as their best science information. Two major types of information are included: selected authoritative science Web sites; and databases of technical reports, journal articles, conference proceedings and other published materials.

 

Scitation Database

Scope: SPIN Web is Scitation's own easy-to-use physics research environment and home to the online version of the SPIN (Searchable Physics Information Notices) database. SPIN provides the most current indexing and abstracting of more than 100 major physics, astronomy, and engineering journals and conference proceedings.

 

Web of Science

Scope: offers Web of Science access to ISI Citation Indexes (Science Citation Index Expanded, Social Sciences Citation Index and Arts and Humanities Citation Index), which contains multidisciplinary, high quality research information from the world's leading science, social science and art and humanities journals. We now have unlimited access to WoS.

 

Wiley InterScience

Scope: search across over 250 electronic journals covering many subject areas.

 

Suggested public websites

 

Evaluating Information Sources - Consult these sites provided by other institutions:

Identifying Research Articles: http://gateway.library.uiuc.edu/lsx/tutorial/section3.html

Identifying Refereed Journals: http://gateway.library.uiuc.edu/lsx/tutorial/section3_1.html

Identifying Scientific Journals: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_journal

Evaluating Web Sites: http://www.library.cornell.edu/okuref/research/webeval.html

 

Citation style guides: http://library.concordia.ca/help/howto/citations.html- A site on citation styles produced by Concordia University Libraries.