Biology 370: Aquatic Biology: Search Tips

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This Common Search Tips (2:16 minutes) tutorial provides an overview of commonly used keyword search tips. Generally, you will start your research with keyword searches, so it is a good idea to memorize these tips. Also, instructions for searching databases, including date and format limits and other searches types, can be found on help screens in the databases.
Sample search:

("african clawed frog*" OR xenopus) AND "bisphenol a"

To access library databases, select the Articles/Databases tab on the box on the Andersen Library homepage. Here is a video tutorial that demonstrates Accessing Library Databases (0:59 minutes).

Below are some tutorials about searching in specific databases.

• Biological Abstracts and Web of Science
  • How to Use Biological Abstracts and Web of Science: Topic Search (2:58 minutes)
  • Web of Science: Tracing Citations (1:22 minutes)
  • Web of Science: Cited Reference Search (49 seconds)
• PubMed
  • How to Use PubMed: Simple Search (2:24 minutes)
  • Searching with the MeSH Database (3 minutes, From the National Library of Medicine)

How do you know whether an article is scholarly or not? Check out the Scholarly Journal, Trade Magazine, & Popular Magazine guide.