SAMPLE SEARCH PROCESS: ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE:GENETIC ASPECTS Introduction INFORMATION IDENTIFICATION AND RETRIEVAL STEPS The initial phase of writing a paper involves searching for information about your topic. It is an exciting stage of the research process. It is also a stressful phase because you have not yet narrowed your topic. You will encounter a great deal of information during this part of your investigation. Some of the stress will be related to your subject expertise of the area you are investigating. If your knowledge is slight, search for a few selected articles that will give you an overview of the topic. Reading one or two overview articles will give you an idea for something more specific. Please be aware that most researchers experience anxiety in this phase of the research process until they have narrowed their search and formulated a thesis statement. STEP 1 Make a list of all relevant search terms such as Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia and search under these terms in the online catalog, SIRS(Social Issues Resources, Inc.) CD-ROM database, TOM (Text-On-Microfiche) and various academic libraries via modem. STEP 2 Check out all relevant materials from ( NCSU, NCSL, STAU and STAL) libraries. STEP 3 Search SIRS CD-ROM database in the keyword search mode . Look at the example below. STEP 4 Browse through the list of article titles until you find 2 or 3 that seem to present a solid overview of your general topic. In the example below I chose to read 2 articles whose titles seemed to indicate that they presented general information about Alzheimer's Disease. STEP 5 Read the articles and take appropriate notes. Keep your mind open for more specific ideas, theories, facts, etc. that may interest you and help you narrow your topic. STEP 6 Determine a preference for a particular area of the general topic. For example, I decided to focus upon the genetic aspects of Alzheimer's Disease. STEP 7 Make a second list of search terms that you can use to narrow your search of the online catalog, SIRS and TOM . STEP 8 Return to SIRS. This time, input more specific search terms in the spaces provided in the keyword search mode screen . I chose, for example, to search Alzheimer's disease again with the words gene therapy . Notice the number of articles that I retrieved compared to my first search which resulted in 95 articles. STEP 9 Enter and browse through the various articles that you find from your narrowed search strategy. At this point, you may elect to print several pertinent articles or you may download them onto your own floppy diskette, take it home and print the results on your own printer. STEP 10 Use the same narrow search strategy to browse through TOM . Make a list of microfiche numbers, retrieve the identified fiche or hard copies of the periodicals and make copies of appropriate articles. If you cannot locate a specific magazine article on microfiche, the library can search for the title in WISSC (Washington Independent Schools Serials Cooperative). Please give one of the librarians specific information re: title, author, title of magazine, date and page numbers.) We will try to have the cooperating library fax us the article within 48 hours. STEP 11 At this point, you may feel that you have gathered sufficient information on your topic to begin reading for purposes of developing a thesis statement. If you do not, proceed to Step 12. STEP 12 Make an appointment with one of the librarians to search the catalogs of Montgomery County Public Libraries, University of Maryland, Georgetown University and ALADDIN (a consortium of libraries consisting of the University of District of Columbia, American University, Catholic University and George Washington University.) Materials from these libraries cannot be borrowed unless you have a library card or know someone who has a card. With the exception of George Washington University, you may enter these libraries and use or photocopy any necessary materials. ** ADDITIONAL RESOURCE Ms. Sue Alford - librarian at the Center for Population Options 1025 Vermont Ave. N.W. Suite 210 (Washington, D.C.) 347-5700 has an excellent set of materials pertaining to topics such as abortion, adolescent pregnancy, child development, sexuality and education, AIDS, etc. Please call her to make an appointment. Identify your self as an NCS student and be certain to tell her about your topic before you make an appointment to use their library. Materials must be used on their premises.
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