BCC Library Resources and Research Strategies for English 110/111: Databases

• Research Questions? : Ask-A-Librarian or Reference@bcc.cuny.edu
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INTRODUCTION

Databases often focus on a particular subject. This means that, as long as you are using an appropriate database, you will find more material on your topic and less irrelevant information. But how do you select the best database? Here are some tips.

To reach the list of databases from the BCC Library's Homepage go to the following link:  https://bcc-cuny.libguides.com/az.php

DATABASES

The names of the databases will appear, listed in alphabetical order. However you probably don't want to search the entire A to Z listing! Fortunately, it's possible to filter the databases by subject.

Use the drop-down menu (ALL SUBJECTS) to choose the subject area you want — for instance, accounting, education, or diabetes. Or you could choose a type of source, ALL DATABASE TYPES) such as encyclopedias or newspapers. This will narrow down the list of databases.

CHOOSING A DATABASE

When choosing databases to use for your research, there are several factors to consider:

• the academic subjects covered
• the types of materials included (e.g. scholarly journal articles, professional reports, images of works of art, encyclopedia articles, popular magazine articles)
• the availability of full text of articles
• date range of materials covered

If you have a general topic, and aren't sure where to search, it is often a good idea to start in Academic Search Complete, because that is a general database with some information on almost every topic. If you are looking for newspaper articles, you should try New York Times Digital & The Wall Street Journal (free to students, staff and faculty- learn more at: Library Resources, and Nexis Uni,

Choosing the right database is one of the most important parts of the research process. It can be difficult when you aren't familiar with all the databases, so don't feel shy about asking a librarian for help, stop by the Reference Desk, call 718-289-5974 or Ask-A-Librarian

DEFINING YOUR TOPIC

A database is a collection of records, one for each item (e.g. a journal article, book, DVD), that is indexed. A record consists of elements of information about the item, called “fields.”

Common fields include: title, author, subject, and source, that is, the magazine or journal in which the article was originally published. A keyword search searches all fields. You can obtain the record for an item by searching in one or more fields.

You can use these and other databases to find research about more standard controversial topics. 

The premier source for peer-reviewed, full-text articles from the world's leading journals and reference sources. Extensive coverage of the sciences, technology, medicine, the arts, theology, literature and other subjects - authoritative and comprehensive.