Start Here: Survey Your Topic

Finding general, background information on your topic helps you set the context for your paper to identify concepts and terms you can use to find additional books and articles on your topic.

• Search Tri-C's catalog for encyclopedias:
  africa* and encyclopedia*
  
  
• Use Electronic Books & Research Databases
  
  New Encyclopedia of Africa
  On Campus Link | Off Campus Link
  
  A Dictionary of World History, Oxford
  On Campus Link | Off Campus Link
  
  Oxford Reference, History
  On Campus Link | Off Campus Link
  
  Encyclopedia of Women in the Ancient World
  
  Encyclopedia of African Religion
  On Campus Link | Off Campus Link
  
  
• Search the Web (but evaluate what you find!)
  
  Best of History Web Sites
  
  History World
  

Evaluating Websites

The best thing about the Web is also the worst thing: anyone can post anything.

You should be look at a Website and carefully judging its information before using it as one of your sources. Here are 5 things to keep in mind:

1. Authority
   Who created the site?
   Do they have expertise or experience with the topic?
   Is organizational or contact information provided?
   
   
2. Objectivity
   Is the purpose and intention of the site clear, including any bias or particular viewpoint?
   Is the information presented as being factual or opinion, primary or secondary in origin?
   
   
3. Accuracy
   Are the facts documented or well-researched?
   Are the facts similar to those reported in related print or other online sources?
   
   
4. Currency
   Is the information and content current?
   Are the pages date-stamped with last update?
   
   
5. Usability
   Is the content written at a level that is readable by the intended audience?
   Has attention been paid to presenting the information as error-free (e.g., spelling, punctuation) as possible?
   Is there a readily identifiable link back to the institutional or organizational home page?

Finding Books

Use Tri-C's online catalog or OhioLINK's online catalog to find books about your topic.

1. Try a KEYWORD search: African art
   
   This type of search will find the phrase "African art" somewhere in the information about the book. Check the catalog record and the actual book carefully as the book may or may not be *about* your topic.
   
   
2. Narrow your search if you get too many results:
   african art AND modern
   
   Use AND to connect different concepts.
   
   Combine like terms with OR.
   
   Use the * to get different word endings:
   africa* = africa, african, africans
   

Books may be requested from other campuses or university libraries free of charge. Use the Request button or link. You will need your name, S number, and college.

Materials take 2-5 days to arrive, depending where in the state it is coming from. Pick them up at the 3rd floor circulation desk. Check your Library Account to see if they have arrived, or call first (216-987-4292) before making a trip.

Finding Articles

Use our History research databases to find articles about your topic.  Much of what you will find is full-text. No need to come to the library to find a copy!

Try:

1. Electronic Journal Center - History
    
   
2. Academic Search Complete
   (On Campus Link | Off Campus Link)
   
   
3. Historical Abstracts (1450-present)
   On Campus Link | Off Campus Link
   
   
4. Humanities International Complete
   (On Campus Link | Off Campus Link)
   

Again, use Keyword searching like you see in the Finding Books example. However, to narrow your search further, try adding in terminology you found during your background search. For example: african art and nonlinear scaling

Be sure to connect your terms with AND or OR for best results. Catalogs and Databases are very literal creatures! They look for things in the exact order you type them, and you will need to use AND or OR to tell them to find those words separately.

Citing Your Sources

You need to cite the information you found for several reasons.

1. You are using the intellectual property of others, and you need to give credit where credit is due for other people's words and ideas.
   
   
2. It lends credibility to your paper by demonstrating you researched your topic.
   
   
3. If people are interested in reading more about your topic, they can use your Works Cited page to find the sources you used.

Metro Campus also has the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, a *fascinating* 292 page read on citing just about anything.

Online examples of MLA citation style can be found by doing a Web search for: MLA citation style

For those that prefer more assistance, try using the Son of Citation Machine website to format your citations for you. Copy and paste the result into your paper.

Or, as you are searching in Historical Abstracts or Academic Search Complete, use the FIND IT button to format your article citation for you. Alternatively, email the article to yourself with the MLA citation. Copy and paste into your document!