Welcome!
If you
are taking a physics class where there is outside-of-lab
research involved, chances are you need to use library resources
to find that information!
The
links and tips in this guide are designed to help you find what you need
without having to search useless sites, waste time wading
through un-related search results, and to avoid plain old, bad
research in general.
Books
Tip #2: Almost as important as
understanding your subject is knowing how to describe it using
keywords. Computers don't think like people do, and using
the proper keywords can make the difference between getting 5
search results back versus 55. Try writing down a varied
list of keywords on your subject and search them all in
different combinations of one or two at a time - you'll get VERY
different results - and you'll be glad you took the time to do
so!
LINK #2: While books are not as frequently used
in the sciences as journal articles are, they still hold
valuable and often necessary information, and as such should not
be overlooked. You can easily search through the entire
USM system's book holdings by using the link below. If you
find a book that you want/need that is not available at SU, you
can put a hold on that book and have it sent to you here in
about a week - at no cost - all done electronically on the
computer by you via the link below...
Search & Request Books in the Whole USM System
Journals & Databases
TIP #1: When searching for
journal articles in the area of physics, it is integral
that you first completely understand your topic and what it is
you are looking for. Because it is so important that you
have a firm grasp of the basics on your topic, I always
recommend that people who feel they are a bit unsure of
themselves look up their topic(s) in a
basic science encyclopedia (that link will take you to
Access Science, a very good general science encyclopedia)
first to get a general understanding of what they are looking
for before starting to search for journal articles.
LINK #1: The link
below will take you straight to all of the article-containing
databases that the library has access to. These databases
are NOT the same thing as what is available to anyone/everyone
out on the web - they are much much much better! They have
been screened, reviewed, etc. and therefore contain valid
scientific research that has in itself been thoroughly reviewed
and scrutinized. These are the databases you always want
to start off searching before anything else!
Journal Article Databases for Science & Medicine
List of Physics & Astronomy journals
available in Science Direct
NB:
Astronomy & Astrophysics; American Journal of Physics;
Astrophysical Journal - these three journals can all be searched
via the PsychInfo database...
PROLA - Physical Review
Online Archive - a searchable database from the American
Physical Society
Websites
