Biology Research Guide

Experience

Most students (who answered the survey) reported having no experience using the library's resources.

Most students (who answered the survey) had some experience developing keywords for searching databases.

Print (0) vs. Electronic (10)?

Class Mean: 3.5 -- you lean towards print

Other Questions

I'll be covering most of the questions written in, but:

Can I eat a snack?

- Absolutely! Please just be considerate and clean up after yourself.

Do I have to pay a fee to use anything in the library?

- No way! Libraries are all about free stuff. Printing (not run by the library, but available at the library) is run by UTS, and there is a charge. But, students get printing credit every semester that works out to about 750 pages of printing.

What are the policies for study rooms? Where are they?

- The Library has different rooms for different uses available throughout the building. You can make a reservation online to use the type of room you need.

This semester, we’re going to dive into two really interesting aspects of diabetes. In the first half, we’ll look at the bigger picture—things like diet, overall health, and how social and racial inequities play a role in who gets diabetes and why. We’ll explore how these factors connect to the rising prevalence of the disease. Then, in the second half, we’ll get more hands-on by studying a Drosophila (fruit fly) model of diabetes to see how different dietary compounds might affect health. It’ll be a great mix of understanding both the social and biological sides of diabetes!

If you remember only 3 things, let it be these:

• Always, always, always start your research at the NEIU Libraries home page.
  Our catalog and A-Z databases list provide special links that identify you as an NEIU student.
   
• Use your NEIU NetID and password to log in to library resources if off campus.
  UTS refers to this as your "User ID" (as opposed to the NEIU ID number, which they call the "University ID"). Neither of these is your email address. Leave off the @neiu.edu.
   
• Frustrated? Ask for help!
  Sometimes our systems can be a little confusing. Not finding what you need? Contact me!

Know What You're Searching

Find everything? Really?

Not quite -- the "Everything" search scope includes references to articles in addition to books, videos, maps, etc. Databases are still the most efficient way to search for articles, though.

Right here. Right now.

If you are actually in the library and want to leave with an item TODAY, use the NEIU Libraries scope to find things we have on our shelves.

Have a little time?

We are very fortunate to be part of CARLI, a consortium of more than 90 academic libraries that lends materials across the state, quickly (usually 2-3 days at most). Use the All I-Share Libraries scope to search across all CARLI libraries.

Adjust Your Results

Filters, just like with online shopping.

For instance, if you want to find materials available online, search for your terms then select:

• Availability: Available online and Resource Type: Books

The WHY Method is a straightforward approach to source evaluation developed here at NEIU. This method can help you decide if unfamiliar sources you found online are credible.

"Database"?

NEIU Libraries subscribes to dozens of search tools that are not freely available online. We pay annual subscription fees for these resources. You can access them anytime, from anywhere with your NEIU NetID and password.

Why use these?

• The content can be limited to peer-reviewed or scholarly journals, which is what many instructors want you to use in academic papers.
• Databases offer advanced search features that make searching more efficient.
• Many of the subscriptions include full text articles.

How do I choose?

• Consider the level of the course.
• Consider the type of information you want.
• Consider how many references you need.

For this class, we will take a look at one database, Academic Search Ultimate, from the Biology subject databases list.