Your citizen science project asks you to find and cite the resources you use to discuss the biology, ecology, and metabolic needs of your research subject. Use the TCC Library Catalog and databases to help you find information about your research species.
To Find Print Books in the TCC Library:
1. Begin on the Library homepage at https://library.tccd.edu/
2. Scroll down to the box on the left that says TCC Catalog
3. Select the "In the Library" box if you want print books.
4. Select your home campus or leave the selection as Any Campus
5. Type what you want to find in the search box, such as "butterfly," and click the Search button
6. Check the location of your chosen book, and use the call number (Ex: QH437 .H37 2019) to find it on the shelf
7. For more information and more complete directions, see the Print Study Guides tab of this guide.
The TCC Catalog is also where you will go to search for ebooks. The TCC Library collections for print books and ebooks are different, so you may need to check both search options.
To Find Ebooks in the TCC Library:
1. Begin on the Library homepage at https://library.tccd.edu/
2. Scroll down to the box on the left that says TCC Catalog
3. Select the "Ebooks" box if you want ebooks.
4. Type what you want to find in the search box, such as "butterfly" and click the Search button
5. Click the Available Online link on the ebook you want and then the link under Full text Availability.
6. For more information and more complete directions, see the Ebooks guide.
Databases contain many information sources, including journal articles, ebooks, and images. The following library databases may be helpful for your research project. If you have any questions, please Ask a Librarian!
Gale Academic OneFile: Biology Topics: Includes the Gale Encyclopedia of Science, academic journals, magazines, images, and news
Credo Reference: Ebooks and encyclopedia articles. A good place for short explanations of topics and concepts.
Gale in Context: Science: Includes journal articles, videos, news, images, encyclopedia articles, and experiments for each topic.
ProQuest: Journal articles, news, ebooks, videos
Evaluating your information sources is crucial. Low-quality resources lower the quality of your paper and can lead to errors. The five factors of the CAARP test will help you evaluate the books, journal articles, and websites you come across in your research.
Run all of your potential sources through the CAARP test by evaluating each resource by these criteria:
Currency: Recent information is informed by the full range of research on your topic. If two resources are similar, choose the newer one. A good rule of thumb is to try to find information less than 5 years old.
Authority: If the author is not an expert (advanced degree and/or works in that field), the source is less credible. Google the author to try to find their credentials and work background. This technique is called lateral reading and is often used by professional fact-checkers.
Accuracy: Is someone other than the author evaluating the information before publication to make sure it is correct and the conclusions the author draws are valid? When your professors ask you to find a peer-reviewed resource, they want you to use an article from an academic journal. These articles are written by experts and evaluated by other experts before they are published. Peer-reviewed articles are easily found using the filters in library databases. If you use any resource outside of a peer-reviewed journal, you will personally need to evaluate the information for accuracy. This can be harder to do if your potential sources do not have a reference list.
Relevance: You want sources that are the best fit for your topic and are written at the right level for what you need. Give preference to articles that focus on your topic rather than just mention it.
Purpose: Be careful about biased sources. You are looking for sources that inform rather than persuade or sell. An easy way to find more neutral sources is to use library databases.
Make sure you download the handout linked above so you can apply the CAARP test while you are researching. Your job as a researcher is to find the best sources you can. If you are having trouble, please Ask a Librarian!