Lab - Introduction to Online Resources and the Internet.

 
   

We=ll start by going to the FMCC website - http://fmcc.edu.   The main FMCC Aentrance@ site is the home page of an internet website - it has a brief, simple address and many webpages it links to (anything that Aturns@ the cursor into a hand is a link, which in this case will send you to other FMCC-related places).   From wherever you are, find the link at the top of the screen for AThe Evans Library@ and click on it.

 

On the Main Page of the Library’s subsite, click on AFind Articles@ in the middle of the screen.  Take some time to look over what=s offered at the new page.  From off-campus, you=ll need your number from your ID card for access (from on-campus, you won=t).  Each green tab brings up a list of databases, which are collections of magazine and newspaper articles stored on distant computers.  When you click on one of them, you=re not really going to an internet site - you=re accessing a service that the library buys over the internet lines.  This resource is equivalent (almost) to getting the actual magazines and newspapers themselves and reading the articles.  Click on AGeneral Topics,@ then use AAssociates Programs Source.@  This is that database=s Asearch@ - the supporting computer will search that database for all of the articles it has for whatever terms / words you tell it to look for.  It can do this simply or, by selecting a different option from the search result page, look with particular focus and/or limitations.

Pick a biology-related topic - something specific works better... __________________________

       put it in for a search.

What are your search=s results (how much did the computer find)?  (If you don=t get any, try a different term and write it

here with those results.)___________________________________________________________

 

You may need to ANarrow@ your focus to get a result small enough to be useful, but eventually, find an article that shows the full original text (just because a link says it=s there, it may not be - check it).

 

Give the name of the source the article is from.  __________________________________________

It should have the magazine, author, the publication date, the volume, issue, and page numbers, the sort of information you=ll need if you’re going to list it as a reference in a paper or class abstract.

 

Briefly, what=s the article seem to be about? _________________________________________

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

Return to the library=s AGeneral  Topics@ webpage and use the AResearch Library@ link.   Run a search on the same subject you used above.  This should access at least a few different sources.

 

What are your search=s results?  _____________________________________________________

 

Look through - the details below each entry will tell you if an abstract (a brief summary) or the whole article text, or if more is available - until you find a whole article (there=s an option above the search list that lets you confine the list only to whole text) that seems appropriate to what you were looking for.  Click on that article.

 

What source is the article from?  ____________________________________________________

There may be parts of the original article not available through the database - if you use a database article in a paper, always cite the database at the end of the reference so that info missing because of the database=s omissions doesn=t get blamed on you.

 

Briefly, what=s the article seem to be about? ___________________________________________

 

______________________________________________________________________________

Click on the library=s AScience Topics@ or AHealth and Medical Topics@  tab and briefly check out the databases available there.   Please note that some of them will be more useful in this type of search than others.  Pick one that wasn’t on the General Topics list and run a search on the same subject you used above.

 

Which database did you decide to use? ______________________________________________

 

What are your search=s results?  ____________________________________________________

 

Pick a periodical reference (often what you find is a pamphlet, or book entry, etc.) if there are any.  Look through until you find a whole article that seems appropriate to what you were looking for.  Click on that article.

 

What source is the article from?  _______________________________________________

 

 

Briefly, what=s the article seem to be about? _______________________________________

 

 

___________________________________________________________________________

 


 

 

Part Two - Internet Searches & Sources.

 

Put  Awww.infopeople.org/search/chart.html@ in your address window and work from there. 

Also, Awww.scirus.com@ and Awww.onlineuniversities.com/blog/2010/03/100-time-saving-

search-engines-for-serious-scholars@ are specialized science / biology-oriented possibilities, but may link to sites that demand registration.  Use an engine, not a directory.

 

Which Search Engine have you chosen?  __________________________________________

 

Now choose a Biology-based Topic again.  It can be the same as Part One=s or something else.

 

Which Topic have you chosen?  _________________________________________________

 

If your chosen topic is more than one word, put down how you are going to put it into the Search Engine so that only sites with all of the words will be found in the way you want them:

 

If needed:       _______________________________________________________________

Note that most sites have Aadvanced search@ capacities and allow you to link phrases and exclude certain words.

 

 

How search engines look for things depends not just on what you tell them (although learning how to search is very important!), but also on what their computer Aassumes,@ combined with the basic patterns that each search takes.  If what this means is not entirely clear, a trip to http://www.searchengineshowdown.com/features/byfeature.shtml may help to explain things.

 

 

Look over some - at least 20 if you have that many - of the descriptions of possible pages your search called up.  You don=t have to actually click on them.

 


 

 

 

What sorts of Non-biology pages have come up (a couple of brief examples), if any?

 

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

Pick what seems a promising Biology-related page and click on it to go there.

 

What is the page name

(Blue or black bar, top of screen)  _________________________________________________

 

What is the page address/location?

(Long white box)   http://                                                                                             

 

Briefly describe the page you=re on:  ______________________________________________

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

What sorts of links (usually in blue, cursor turns into a hand when your point at them) are here?

 

___________________________________________________________________________

 

___________________________________________________________________________

 

 

What main site is the page part of?  Look for a home link, banner name, link at the bottom, or Apeel@ (you may need to ask for help) the address back to slashes or to the end of A.com@ or A.org@ or whatever.  Give the site name, (blue bar) not the address.  It probably will be in the top blue bar, but may be just on the screen.

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

 

Would this source be a reliable reference for a college-level paper?  Why or why not?

 

____________________________________________________________________________

Clue: who put the information there, and do they have the expertise to be trustworthy?


 

 

 

Repeat the procedure you just did. 

 

Pick a different topic and find a different webpage this time.  You can try a different search engine, too.

 

 

Which Search Engine have you chosen this time?  ___________________________________

 

Now choose a different Biology-based Topic.

 

Which Topic have you chosen?  _________________________________________________

 

If your chosen topic is more than one word, put down how you are going to put it into the Search Engine so that only sites with all of the words will be found:

 

(If needed)     ________________________________________________________________

 

 

Begin your search.  If your response is 5 or fewer hits, try another topic.  Use the line below to keep track of any additional topics until you get at least 5 hits - the last topic listed should be the one you=re working with for the rest of this section.

 

(If needed) ___________________________________________________________________

 

 

Look over some - at least 20 if you have that many - of the descriptions of possible pages your search called up.  You don=t have to actually click on them.

 


 

 

 

What sorts of Non-biology pages have come up (a couple of brief examples), if any?

 

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

Pick what seems a promising Biology-related page and click on it.

 

What is the page name

(Blue bar across top of screen) ___________________________________________________

 

What is the page address/location?

(Long white box)  http://                                                                                             

 

Briefly describe the page you=re on:  ______________________________________________

 

___________________________________________________________________________

 

___________________________________________________________________________

 

 

What sorts of links (usually in blue, cursor turns into a hand when your point at them) are here?

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

 

What main site is the page part of?  Look for a home link, banner name, link at the bottom, or Apeel@ (you may need to ask for help) the address back to slashes or to the end of A.com@ or A.org@ or whatever.  Give the site name, (blue bar) not the address.  It probably will be in the top blue bar, but may be just on the screen.

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

 

Would this source be a reliable reference for a college-level paper?  Why or why not?

 

____________________________________________________________________________

Clue: who put the information there, and do they have the expertise to be trustworthy?


 

 

Repeat the procedure you just did. 

 

You can repeat topics or search engines, but don=t repeat any exact combinations from the last two pages - in other words, try new mixes.

 

 

Which Search Engine have you chosen this time?  ___________________________________

 

 

Now choose a Biology-based Topic again.

 

Which Topic have you chosen?  ________________________________________________

 

If your chosen topic is more than one word, put down how you are going to put it into the Search Engine so that only sites with all of the words will be found:

 

(If needed)     _______________________________________________________________

 

 

Begin your search.  If your response is 5 or fewer hits, try another topic.  Use the line below to keep track of any additional topics until you get at least 5 hits - the last topic listed should be the one you=re working with for the rest of this section.

 

(If needed) ___________________________________________________________________

 

 

Look over some - at least 20 if you have that many - of the descriptions of possible pages your search called up.  You don=t have to actually click on them.

 


 

 

 

 

What sorts of Non-biology pages have come up (a couple of brief examples), if any?

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

Pick what seems a promising Biology-related page and click on it.

 

What is the page name

(Blue bar across top of screen) ___________________________________________________

 

What is the page address/location?

(Long white box) http://                                                                                         

 

Briefly describe the page you=re on:  ______________________________________________

 

___________________________________________________________________________

 

___________________________________________________________________________

 

 

What sorts of links (usually in blue, cursor turns into a hand when your point at them) are here?

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

 

What main site is the page part of?  Look for a home link, banner name, link at the bottom, or Apeel@ (you may need to ask for help) the address back to slashes or to the end of A.com@ or A.org@ or whatever.  Give the site name, (blue bar) not the address.  It probably will be in the top blue bar, but may be just on the screen.

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

 

Would this source be a reliable reference for a college-level paper?  Why or why not?

 

____________________________________________________________________________

Clue: who put the information there, and do they have the expertise to be trustworthy?


 

Part Three - Plagiarism of Internet Resources.

 

Choose a Search Engine to work with and click on it.

 

Which Search Engine have you chosen?  __________________________________________

 

For this part, you need to find a definition of Aplagiarism@ from a web page about plagiarism and the internet.

 

If you decide to do your search for more than one word (a good idea), put down what you are asking the engine to search for.

Search terms:                ____________________________________________________

 

Begin your search.  You need to find a source that defines plagiarism and relates it specifically to internet sources.  For the webpage you=re going to use as a source for the definition, give the...

 

Page Name ___________________________________________________________

 

Page Address  http:// ____________________________________________________

 

Below, give the definition of plagiarism in your own words, using your internet source as a reference.  To avoid plagiarism, do not copy your source.  You need to rephrase , which involves substantial rewriting - changing only a word or two is still plagiarism.

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

____________________________________________________________________________

 

Don=t forget that plagiarism on written assignments is a violation of the college=s Code of Conduct and can result in severe penalties.
 


 
     

 

 

First Written 1998;   Web Version 2001:  Last Update 2011;  M. McDarby

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