Course Pathfinder: Mr. Steven Kenneally
Ask A Librarian
We're here to help you!! There are four different ways to contact a librarian. 1.) Phone: 330-823-3795, 2.) Chat with a librarian, 3.) In person at the Reference Desk, 4.) E-mail: referencedesk@muc.edu.
Getting Started
A library reference room can be a good place to find expert sources of quick information. Encyclopedias and dictionaries offer concise information in a variety of subjects and can also spark ideas for specific research topics. These are examples of a few of the resources found in our reference room or online; the same titles might also be found in another library
Print ResourcesEncyclopedias: General
The Cambridge Encyclopedia
Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Encyclopedia.
The World Book encyclopedia of people and places.
Dictionaries: General
Webster's third new international dictionary of the English language unabridged / editor in chief, P
The American Heritage college dictionary.
Finding Books
For finding resources in the Mount Union College Library and other libraries, construct keyword & subject searches. A good strategy is to do a keyword search first, using words that you think might be in the title or content notes. When you find a resource that looks worthwhile, see what subject headings are used to categorize that item and use them to do subject searches. Searches in the online catalog will display what resources MUC owns in those areas. Once you find a material's call number, you can determine what floor of the library this item is located on by clicking the 'locations' link found on the homepage.
Finding Journal & Magazine Articles
Some indexes and databases will provide the full-text of articles online; others offer only a citation and/or abstract of the article. If the database you're using doesn't provide the full-text of an article, first check 'Research by Title' (found on the Library Home Page) to see if it is available online in another database or in Mount Union College Library's in-house collection.
Useful Journals --Use 'Research by Journal Title' to view the holdings and access options for subject & related topic journals--Some journals are full-text within databases, others are in print holdings in the Mount Union College Library--Journals published from 2001-present are on the 1st floor of the Old Building--Journals published from 1976-2001 are on the second floor of the Old Building--Journals published from 1800's-1975 are located in the basement of the Old Building
Article Databases & Indexes (General Interest)
Academic OneFile (InfoTrac)-Full text expanded coverage including news magazines, popular culture, medical and legal information
Academic Search Premier-Index, abstracts, and full text for many scholarly publications covering all academic areas of study
Accunet/AP Multimedia Archive-Photos from The Associated Press, plus graphics, text and audio
American Periodicals Series Online-Digitized images of the pages of over 1,100 historic American magazines, journals, and newspapers
Article First-Index to articles from over 12,000 journals
Books in Print
Dissertation Abstracts-Index to doctoral dissertations and master's theses from North America and Europe
The Chronicle of Higher Education
EJC ' Electronic Journal Center-Full text of 6000+ research journals
Electronic Theses and Dissertations from OhioLINK member Institutions-Online theses and dissertations from Ohio graduate students
Facts On File -20 years of Facts on File, weekly news updates, biographies, maps, photos
GPO (Government Printing Office)-Catalog of U.S. government documents
Infotrac OneFile-Full text expanded coverage including news magazines, popular culture, medical and legal information
JSTOR-Full text scholarly journals in the Arts & Sciences, Business, Language and Literature
Learning Express-Online, interactive practice tests, career building tools, and writing aids
LexisNexis Academic-Full text news, business, legal, medical, and reference information
MarciveWeb Docs-Index to U.S. federal government publications
OCLC FirstSearch-includes Books in Print, EconLit, Readers Guide Abstracts, Wilson Select Plus
Opposing Viewpoints-Full text of major debate and research topics
Oxford Scholarship Online-Complete texts of important scholarly books from Oxford University Press, over 1150 titles included
PapersFirst -Index of papers presented at conferences
RefWorksOnline bibliographic management tool
Testing & Education Reference Center Basic-Free access, but each user must create an account with user name and password different from campus user name and password
TOPICsearch -Full text covering social, political and economic issues, scientific discoveries and other popular topics discussed in today's classrooms
Vocational and Career Collection-Index, abstracts, and full text for 350 trade and industry related periodicals
WorldCat-Catalog of books and other materials held by libraries worldwide
Finding Internet Resources
Search Engines
Google Scholar (search engine for scholarly literature links on the open web) http://scholar.google.com/
Infomine (selected web resources for university-level work) http://infomine.ucr.edu/
The Internet is a very useful resource, but it can be frustrating to use if you don't know where to look for scholarly information, or to learn if the information you have found is accurate and true.
If you question the information found on a website, ask your instructor or a librarian. They will be happy to help you evaluate various web sites.
Final Writing and Presentation
A Writers Response, Electronic Resource
Publication manual of the American Psychological Association, 808.06615 A512p5
MLA handbook for writers of research papers, 808.02 G437m6
Mount Union College Writing Center http://www.muc.edu/academics/writing_center
Academic Honesty
"Academic honesty is expected of Mount Union College students. Academic standards and practices are influenced by culture. What is considered appropriate academic behavior in your home country might be different from what is appropriate in the United States; it is important that you understand U.S. standards and practices. Not meeting these standards can result in charges of academic dishonesty and possibly expulsion from the College.
Academic dishonesty includes, but is not necessarily limited to, cheating on assignments and examinations; plagiarizing, representing as your own work any part of work done by another; or unauthorized use of library or computer materials." **(Information obtained from 2006-07 Mount Union College Catalog)