BIOL 491: Home

CNU Databases

More Databases (Dr. Webb's Class)

Google Scholar

For Help Finding Full-Text Articles:

• Use "Journal Finder" - either the link near the article citation, or on the Library's home page. Just type in the journal name and check for the date you need.
• If there are no results - Use ILL@CNU, the Interlibrary Loan system to request the article you need.

Primary Research vs. Review Articles

It's often difficult to tell the difference between original research articles and review articles. Here are some explanations and tips that may help:

Primary research articles are written accounts of research conducted by the authors. The articles can be identified by a commonly used format. Primary research articles contain:

• Methods (sometimes with variations, such as Materials and Methods)
• Results (usually followed with charts and statistical tables)
• Discussion
• Abstract - summarizes the research findings and is a tool to help determine the type of article. If there is no abstract at all, that in itself may be a sign that it is not a primary source. 

Review articles summarize, analyze, and evaluate current research related to a specific topic, field, or problem. They are often lengthy with a large number of citations. Since they review previously published material, review article are considered secondary sources. They can be of great value for identifying potentially good primary sources, but they aren't primary themselves.

Peer Reviewed / Scholarly

Peer Review is the process by which scholars critically appraise each other's work to ensure a high level of scholarship in a journal and to improve the quality and readability of a manuscript. Not all scholarly articles are peer reviewed, although often these terms are used interchangeably.

How can I tell if a journal is peer reviewed?

• Check the journal's website
• Use Ulrich's Periodical Directory (look for the referee jersey )
• Ask your professor or a librarian