Geography 212: The World in Cultural Perspective Laboratory

Instructor: Ronald Luna
Web Page created by Clare Sebok, UM Libraries

The University of Maryland Libraries have many resources that will help with the research for your Geography 212 project. If you need additional information, please contact Otis Chadley, Geography specialist, at ochadley@umd.edu, or talk with a reference librarian at McKeldin Library's Information Desk.

• Using the Catalog
• Identifying Scholarly Sources
• Using Research Port to Find Articles
• Finding Government Information
• Citing Sources

Using The Catalog

Search the catalog for books and government documents on your topic. Start with a word/s anywhere search.

You can also use the catalog to find out whether the Libraries own a particular journal. From the catalog's basic search screen, click on Journals. Then type in a journal title (not an article title).

See the Catalog Guide for tips on using the catalog.

Identifying Scholarly Sources

Scholarly sources are important to use for your research because of their credibility and authority. A scholarly source is written by experts and includes a detailed explanation of research methods as well as an extensive list of references. Scholarly journals are often called peer-reviewed or refereed journals.

For more information on scholarly journals, consult Identifying Scholarly Journals.

Using Research Port to Find Articles

The University of Maryland Libraries subscribe to many databases that can help you find journal articles on topics related to geography.

Databases usually provide citations and abstracts to journal articles; sometimes they provide complete articles. When you find a good article that is not available full-text, note the journal title and search for it in the catalog to find whether you can locate that journal in the Libraries. If the Libraries do not own the journal you need, you can request a copy of the article through Interlibrary Loan.

Most of the following databases can be found by selecting Social Sciences from the Databases by Subject menu on the Databases page. Each individual database can also be located using the alphabetical index. When you click on one of the database titles below, you will go to the page that contains all databases that begin with that letter. Scroll down to find the title you need.

America: History and Life
Anthropological Literature       (About the database)
GEOBASE             (About the database)
Social Science Citation Index

To find out how to use databases from your home computer, consult Off-Campus Access to Library Resources.

Finding Government Information

You can find a great deal of geographical information in the U.S. Government Information, Maps & GIS collection on the 4th floor of McKeldin Library. The collection includes Census and other demographic information, publications from other federal agencies, and thousands of maps.

You can use the catalog to search for government publications on your topic. Another useful tool for finding U.S. government publications is the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications. This database includes government publications from 1976 to the present, a wider range than you will find in the library's catalog.

If your research focuses on Maryland, try the Maryland Room, which holds a wide variety of materials on the state, including publications of the state government. The Maryland Room is in Hornbake Library.

Citing Sources

The official guide to APA style is found in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association:

American Psychological Association. Publication manual of the American Psychological Association. 5th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2001.

Also, handbooks used in English 101 usually have an APA style section. The American Psychological Association maintains a current guide to citing electronic sources on its Web site.