Welcome! In this guide, you will find search strategies and tips that support assignments in ENGL 147: Writing Arguments About STEM courses. The contents of this page are organized by assignment type. Jump to resources for your assignment:
Additional Resources:
If you need additional research help, visit the Research 101 Guide for self-paced tutorials, videos, and handouts, or get immediate help from a real person using the 24/7 Live Help Chat tool.
Begin with an initial background search to learn more about your topic (e.g., perform a search on Google or Duck Duck Go). Find reliable sources in OneSearch using keywords (search terms) and filtering. Use a variety of search terms including synonyms and related terms to your main research topics or ideas. Next, try searching one of the following databases using keywords, filtering, and boolean operators. Get help with your search by chatting with a librarian using the 24/7 Live Chat Help tool. For data-related search strategies, visualization techniques, and help from peer instructors, visit the Data, GIS, and Digital Projects Lab Guide.
Example topic: sustainability issues with plastic
Lenses in which to view the topic: production, disposal, and consumption
Example keywords to try in OneSearch and/or databases:
Begin with an initial background search to learn more about your topic and identify potential stakeholders. A general web search, like on Google, is a good starting place. Next, perform a search in OneSearch using keywords you identified in your preliminary search and filter your results to your resource needs (e.g., by date, by source type, etc). Following OneSearch, try searching one of the recommended databases below using keywords, filtering, and boolean operators.
Tip: find international policies through trusted websites such as United Nations and/or Government.
Example: Search for a country (Germany): Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection
Council of Foreign Relations offers overviews of international agreements.
GovInfo: provides free public access to official publications from all three branches of the Federal Government. It is a service of the United States Government Publishing Office (GPO), which is a Federal agency in the legislative branch.
Govtrak by Subject: tracks the United States Congress and helps Americans participate in their national legislature. Find the status of federal legislation, information about your representative and senators in Congress including voting records, and original research on legislation.
You can find STEM-focused peer-reviewed scholarly journal articles, conference proceedings, and trade publication articles in the databases below.
Visit the Patents Research Guide for resources that will help you understand, search, and access patents.
For a more precise search, identify database-specific subject headings (also called subject terms or index terms) to use in addition to concept keywords. In some engineering databases, like Engineering Village, subject headings are referred to as controlled vocabulary.