American Natural History
The Library owns 153 of the 264
American Natural History microfilm collection which is based on Max Meisel’s
Bibliography of American natural history, 1769-1865 (published by Research Publications, Woodbridge, Conn., ca. 1977). Previously a user had no finding aid to locate a specific document on a reel, other than looking through each reel.
One of the library's work study students recently edited an existing online list to reflect our holdings. It's now possible to
search this electronic list to obtain the reel number on which a specific document may be found. (Use the ‘Find on this Page’ feature in Microsoft Word.)
The link to the electronic list may also be found by going to the Library's Web page >> Collections >> Microforms and searching for "American natural history."
Users may either go to Meisel's
Bibliography (in 3 volumes) to search for a topic or document and then go to the list, or they may search the electronic list using the 'Find on this page' search function, using simple key words. Part 1 contains periodicals and academy publications covering that time period (we have 104 of 203 reels for Part 1), Part 2 contains state geological and natural history surveys (we have all 30 reels for this part), and Part 3 contains reports of explorations (we have 19 of 31 reels).
The microfilm is shelved under Microfilm # 667 on the 1st floor of the Library; Max Meisel's
Bibliography of American natural769-1865, is located in Reference, call number, Ref Z 7408 .U5 M5
Labels: biology, geography, geosciences
Searching (almost) everything
The Library acquired a new federated search service last spring, and since then we've been testing and refining it. What exactly is federated search? Simply put, federated search allows you to search across multiple databases using one interface. Some of you may have used our old federated search service, called Encompass. Our new service, still called
Discovery Search, uses WebFeat Express technology to search approximately 90 of our bibliographic databases.
So how might you use the service?
- Use it to identify what databases are generally suggested for your discipline. If you check the box for for your discipline, databases are automatically selected. You can then either search across those selected databases OR you can click on the link to an individual database to get to the native interface for that database.
- Use it to search across all (or almost all) databases to identify those you might not normally use but which contain relevant research. Since the results link directly into the databases' native interfaces, if you want to go into that database for a more comprehensive search (using controlled vocabulary, etc.), you can.
- Export records directly into RefWorks. Just mark the records, select 'Save', and select 'Direct Export to RefWorks'. The citation, with Article Linker link, will be moved into your RefWorks account. Or email or print out the results instead. (NOTE: the abstract is not exported to RefWorks, just the 'bare bones' citation.)
As always, if you have any questions about using this or any other library resources, just ask.
Labels: federated searching
New Database -- Sage Journals Online
This semester the Library gained access to SAGE Journals Online through a consortial deal through PALINET. We now have access to over 485 full-text SAGE journals in Business, Humanities, Social Sciences, and Science, Technology and Medicine, some of which are listed below by subject area. Linking from within any library database (including Google Scholar on campus) will be seamless.
All SAGE journal content is peer-reviewed. Over 50% of the journals are covered in the Thomson Scientific Databases, 47 of which rank within the top 10 in their subject category in the 2004 ISI Journal Citation Reports.® SAGE’s electronic journal package represents one of the largest collections in the social sciences and now includes an extensive STM list as well.
Science & TechnologyGeneral ScienceBulletin of Science, Technology & SocietyInternational Regional Science ReviewScience CommunicationScience Technology & SocietyScience, Technology & Human ValuesBiological & Health SciencesJournal of Biological RhythmsJournal of Biomaterials ApplicationsJournal of Biomolecular ScreeningJournal of Diagnostic Medical SonographyChemistryHigh Performance PolymersJournal of Bioactive and Compatible PolymersJournal of Composite MaterialsJournal of Elastomers and PlasticsJournal of Thermoplastic Composite MaterialsMathematics, Computer Science & StatisticsMathematics and Mechanics of SolidsSimulation & GamingStatistical ModellingGeographyCultural GeographiesEnvironment and BehaviorEnvironment and UrbanizationInternational Journal of Rural ManagementProgress in Human Geography Progress in Physical GeographyGeosciencesThe HolocenePhysics & Electronics Engineering TechnologyBuilding Service Engineering Research and TechnologyConcurrent EngineeringInternational Journal of Damage MechanicsInternational Journal of High Performance Computing ApplicationsThe International Journal of Robotics ResearchJournal of Vibration and ControlLighting Research and TechnologyMedicine General MedicineAmerican Journal of Alzheimer's Disease and Other DementiasAmerican Journal of Hospice and Palliative MedicineAmerican Journal of Lifestyle MedicineAmerican Journal of Medical QualityAmerican Journal of Men's HealthAngiologyAutismBritish Journal of Visual ImpairmentChronic Respiratory DiseaseClinical and Applied Thrombosis/HemostasisClinical PediatricsComplementary Health Practice ReviewDementiaThe Diabetes EducatorEvaluation & the Health ProfessionsHealth Education & BehaviorHealth Education JournalHealth Informatics JournalHealth Promotion PracticeHome Health Care Management & PracticeHuman & Experimental ToxicologyJournal of Aging and HealthJournal of Applied GerontologyPalliative MedicineQualitative Health ResearchAudiology & Speech PathologyChild Language Teaching and TherapyNeurorehabilitation and Neural RepairThe NeuroscientistExercise ScienceThe American Journal of Sports MedicineClinical RehabilitationJournal of Sport & Social IssuesJournal of Sports EconomicsNursingBiological Research For NursingClinical Nursing ResearchJournal of Family NursingJournal of Holistic NursingJournal of Human LactationJournal of Research in NursingJournal of Transcultural NursingNursing EthicsNursing Science QuarterlyPolicy, Politics, & Nursing PracticeLabels: new journals
Library instruction and student information fluency
Would you like your students to become more familiar with the library’s resources and confident about finding the best resources for your class assignments? I would be happy to design a library instruction session specifically for your students, focusing on information that your students will need to complete the assignments in your class.
Just phone or e-mail to schedule a session. You can reach me via telephone (x4801) or e-mail, or you can directly request times and dates for Library Instruction sessions at
http://libraryinstruction.bloomu.edu/. I look forward to working with you!
Web-Based Resources for Journal Rankings
From a colleague, I recently learned about three free online resources that may be useful for citation analysis and locating information about the value and prestige of scholarly journals.
SCImago Journal & Country Rank (
http://www.scimagojr.com/index.php) is a “portal that includes the journals and country scientific indicators developed from the information contained in the Scopus® database (Elsevier B.V.).” These indicators could be used to assess and analyze scientific domains.
Eigenfactor (
http://www.eigenfactor.org/) is a “non-commercial academic research project sponsored by the Bergstrom lab in the Department of Biology at the University of Washington that provides influence rankings for 7000+ science and social science journals and rankings for an additional 110,000+ reference items including newspapers, and popular magazines.” For an explanation of their rankings, click on the
Information tab and choose
'Why Eigenfactor' from the menu.
Journalranking.com (
http://journal-ranking.com/ranking/web/index.html) is a service that “introduces two new indicators relevant to journal quality by considering both the journal influence index and the paper influence index.” To use, mouse over 'ranking' and select 'common ranking', then select from among the categories in the drop down list of journals to be ranked. You can use this feature without registering, but if you register you can create a profile that will enable you to create your own reports and participate in type of social community service for faculty.
As always, please let me know your thoughts on the usefulness of this resource.
Labels: journal impact factors
