IL Step 1:IL Step 1:Sources of InformationSources of Information

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Information Sources: Information Sources: IntroductionIntroduction

Questions to consider► What types of information sources are available?► Where can we find them?► How to choose the best sources?

Terminology► Subject Knowledge

• Knowledge of information resources in a subject area• Ability to understand & critically evaluate relevant information• Awareness & ability to utilize the full range of information sources

► Literature Review• Review of materials (e.g., books, articles) from a wide range of resources

► Peer Review• Evaluation of a material by qualified individuals in a related field

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Sources of Information:Sources of Information: Overview Overview Articles/Papers

► Scientific & Professional journals► Conference papers

Books► Books and book chapters► Textbooks► Technical reports► Encyclopedias

Internet► The world wide web (WWW)► Blogs, Wikis, Email

Library► Library catalogs► Bibliographic databases► Newspapers

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Scientific JournalsScientific Journals A collection of articles written by academic scholars

► Editorial board reviews submissions for acceptance► Reflect the outcome of scientific research► Published on a regular intervals (e.g., monthly)

ISI Journals► 17,594 journals: A&HCI (1975-present: 1722), SCI (1900-present: 3756+4864), SSCI (1956-present: 3131)

► Selected by the Institute of Scientific Information (ISI)• Part of Thomson Reuters

Provides Web of Science database (search engine and citation index)► Considered to be of high quality and impact

Non-ISI Journals► Good quality but does not meet all the ISI standards

• Review process, editorial board, international diversity, importance of papers► Only 40% of journals by Springer are indexed by ISI (2009).► Scopus by Elsevier

• 20,000 journals

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Professional Journals/MagazinesProfessional Journals/Magazines A collection of articles written by journalists & scholars

► Published by professional organizations for general public► Cover general/specific applied science topics and professional news

• e.g., forestry, electrical engineering, education, etc.► Published on a regular intervals (e.g., monthly)► Examples

• Scientific American• GeoInformatics

Use Professional Journals► To find general or simplified information on scientific research & discoveries► To find current information on events/activities for a professional group► To find information on practical scientific applications or reports

Use Scientific Journals► To find consistent scholarly information► To do literature review for a research paper

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Conference PapersConference Papers Original papers presented at a scientific meeting

► Typically minimally reviewed or not reviewed► Quality varies

• Some with no quality control► Published on a semi-regular intervals (e.g., yearly)► Examples

• Proceedings of Text REtrieval Conference• Proceedings of the ACM SIGIR Conference

Exceptions ► In disciplines such as Computer & Information Science

• Major conferences are highly-regarded.• Papers are strictly peer-reviewed.• Published proceedings have high impact and are good sources of information.

► Edited Proceedings reviewed by a scientific editor are reliable.• Sometimes papers are presented in a special issue of a scientific journal.

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Books & Book ChaptersBooks & Book Chapters Books

► Cover any topic, fact or fiction.► For research, look for books that synthesize all information on one topic.

Book Chapters► Original contributions that are edited into an edited book on a specific topic

• Often they are review articles or summaries► Quality control not as strict as journal articles

• Edited and may undergo some peer review► Examples

• Annual Review of Information Science and Technology (ARIST)

Uses► When looking for comprehensive information on a topic► To find historical information► To find summaries of research to support an argument

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Textbooks & Technical ReportsTextbooks & Technical Reports Textbook

► A published book to introduce a subject for teaching or self-study► Typically not peer-reviewed but extensively edited

Technical Reports► Publications from an institution or project

• May be considered to be a special type of book► Contain primary data that do not appear elsewhere

• Often the only source of information on projects► Not peer-reviewed

• Quality control only as good as the project► Examples

• Center for Intelligent Information Retrieval (CIIR) Technical Reports

► Uses• To find information on a particular institute or project

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The World Wide WebThe World Wide Web Access most types of information via the Internet

► Quickly links to other related information Contains information beyond text

► Sound, images, video► Online versions of printed journals, technical reports, and books

Information is not permanent► May change, move, or disappear.

Often difficult to determine authorship, quality, & currency► Not edited or peer-reviewed► No quality control

Uses► To find current news & information► To find popular opinion► To find information about companies & governments

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EncyclopediasEncyclopedias Collections of short factual entries

► Often written by different contributors with topic knowledge► General Encyclopedias

• Provide concise overviews on a wide variety of topics► Subject Encyclopedias

• Contain in-depth entries focusing on one field of study► Typically found in libraries

• Increasing Web presence (e.g. Wikipedia)

Uses► To find background information on a topic► To find key ideas or concepts► To find concise summaries

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Library Catalogs & Bibliographic DatabasesLibrary Catalogs & Bibliographic Databases Library Catalogs

► Searchable collection of library holdings• Point to the location of particular source that library owns on a topic

► Uses• To find a list of items that library owns on a topic• To find the location of a specific item in a library

Bibliographic Databases► Database of records/references to

• Journal & conference articles, reports, books, book chapters, etc. ► Bibliographical records with abstracts or summaries of articles

• Some have links to fulltext or actual contents► Covers quality resources

• Often for high fees (e.g. Web of Science)• Most libraries offer them via Web

► Uses• To do research on a scientific topic• To find specific articles

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