The Research Paper and the World Wide Web

by Rodrigues, Dawn; Rodrigues, Raymond J.

• ISBN13: 9780130210203
• ISBN10: 013021020X
• Edition: 2nd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 1999-07-01
• Publisher: Pearson College Div

Summary

Helping today's writers tap into technology, this systematic, non-technical, state-of-the-art guide to writing research papers using the Web demonstrates how to use Web tools to search the Web and libraries on the Internet; provides starting points for finding local and world-wide resources on the Internet; and suggests ways to organize all the information once gathered. Begins with a thorough review of the research process. Provides a strong link between library and Web research and helps readers map out effective searching strategies. Includes current documentation citation styles for all standard sources—print as well as Web—and contains new sections on summarizing, paraphrasing, and quoting sources. Dedicates entire chapters to evaluating sources; using mail, newsgroups, forums, and listservs as research tools; taking notes and organizing information. Presents “A Beginner's Guide to the Internet”, and offers an online companion website that complements both chapter content and end-of-chapter exercises. For anyone writing research papers who wants to get the most out of available print and online resources.

Table of Contents

PREFACE	ix
1 THE RESEARCH PROCESS IN THE INFORMATION AGE	1	(15)
The Research Paper in the Information Age	1	(1)
The Research and Writing Process	2	(11)
Establish a Topic or Research Project by Reading and Searching	3	(2)
Establish Research Questions	5	(2)
Plan Research Methodologies	7	(1)
Identify Keywords through Research Questions	8	(2)
Develop a System for Note Taking and Organizing Sources	10	(1)
Prepare a Working Bibliography	11	(1)
Validate Your Sources	12	(1)
Draft, Revise, and Edit Your Paper	12	(1)
Conclusion	13	(1)
Exercises	14	(1)
Suggestions for Research	14	(2)
2 RESEARCHING LIBRARY AND WEB	16	(17)
What is the Library? What is the Web?	17	(1)
Exploring Your Library	18	(5)
The Physical Library	18	(1)
The Card Catalog	19	(2)
Indexes and Databases	21	(2)
Exploring the Web	23	(1)
Navigating and Basic Searching	23	(5)
Using the Navigation Panel	23	(1)
Using the Location Bar to Enter URLs	23	(1)
Using Search Tools and Search Strategies	24	(4)
Using Bookmarks	28	(1)
Advanced Searching	28	(3)
Standard Search Engines	29	(1)
Metasearch Engines	29	(1)
Unified Search Interfaces	30	(1)
Conclusion	31	(1)
Exercises	32	(1)
3 LIBRARY RESOURCES ON THE WEB	33	(13)
Finding Libraries on the Web	33	(2)
Using a Library Access Site to Find Your Library	34	(1)
Exploring Library Catalogs	35	(2)
Traditional Library Resources on the Web	37	(7)
Books on the Web	37	(1)
Journals and Magazines on the Web	38	(2)
Online Journals and Zines	40	(1)
Indexes and Abstracts on the Internet	40	(1)
Encyclopedias and Other References	41	(1)
Newspapers	42	(1)
Government Publications	43	(1)
Conclusion	44	(1)
Exercises	44	(2)
4 FINDING RESOURCES IN THE DISCIPLINES	46	(13)
Finding Resources in Your Field	46	(2)
Using Subject-Area Collections as Starting Points	48	(2)
Locating Subject-Area Collections	49	(1)
Evaluating Subject-Area Collections	50	(1)
General Purpose Subject-Area Collections	50	(2)
The World Wide Web Virtual Library	51	(1)
The Argus Clearninghouse	51	(1)
Einet Galaxy	51	(1)
BUBL (Bulletin Board for Libraries)	52	(1)
Librarians Index to the Internet (Berkeley)	52	(1)
A Collection of Resources in the Disciplines	52	(6)
Humanities	52	(1)
Social Sciences	53	(1)
Natural Sciences and Mathematics	54	(1)
Business	55	(2)
Education	57	(1)
Engineering	57	(1)
Conclusion	58	(1)
Exercises	58	(1)
5 EVALUATING SOURCES	59	(8)
Evaluating Information: The Early Stages of a Research Project	60	(3)
Preliminary Evaluation of Web Sources	61	(1)
Determining Whether the Journal or Magazine is Appropriate for Your Topic	62	(1)
The Importance of Exploring Varied Sources	63	(1)
Evaluation at the Drafting Phase	63	(3)
Determining What Kinds of Sources to Explore	64	(2)
Conclusion	66	(1)
Exercises	66	(1)
6 E-MAIL, NEWSGROUPS, FORUMS, AND LISTSERVS AS RESEARCH TOOLS	67	(21)
E-mail	68	(7)
Using E-mail for Data Gathering: Questions to Ask	68	(1)
The Etiquette of E-mail: Netiquette	69	(2)
Creating and Sending E-mail Messages to Request Information	71	(2)
Attaching Documents to E-mail Messages	73	(1)
Saving and Filing E-mail Messages	73	(2)
Mailing Lists	75	(6)
Subscribing to a Mailing List	76	(1)
Mailing List Basics	77	(1)
The Etiquette of Mailing Lists	78	(3)
Using Mailing Lists for Research	81	(1)
Using Newsgroups for Research	81	(2)
Forums	83	(1)
Other Research Tools	84	(3)
MOOs	84	(3)
Conclusion	87	(1)
Exercises	87	(1)
7 TAKING NOTES AND ORGANIZING INFORMATION	88	(15)
Bookmarking	88	(6)
Organizing Bookmarks	89	(5)
Setting Up Your Electronic Work Space	94	(1)
The Research Project Directory	95	(5)
Research Notebook Directory	95	(2)
Subtopic Directories	97	(1)
Electronic Note Cards	97	(3)
Draft Files	100	(1)
E-mail as an Organizational Tool	100	(1)
Summarizing the Organizational Process	100	(2)
Conclusion	102	(1)
Exercises	102	(1)
8 DOCUMENTING SOURCES	103	(60)
Different Citation Styles in Different Disciplines	104	(1)
Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Quoting	104	(4)
Summarizing	104	(2)
Paraphrasing	106	(1)
Quoting	107	(1)
What to Cite? Avoiding Plagiarism	108	(1)
Internal Citation and Bibliographic Citation	109	(11)
Guidelines for Internal Citations	110	(5)
Guidelines for Bibliographic Citations	115	(5)
Guidelines for Electronic Citation	120	(12)
General Guidelines	121	(1)
MLA Electronic Citation Style	122	(3)
APA Electronic Citation Style	125	(3)
Alternate APA Electronic Style	128	(4)
Formatting the Research Paper: MLA and APA Examples	132	(27)
Exploring Citation Problems	159	(2)
Copyright Considerations	161	(1)
Conclusion	161	(1)
Exercises	162	(1)
APPENDIX: INTERNET BASICS	163	(4)
GLOSSARY	167	(6)
WORKS CITED	173	(4)
INDEX	177