LSCI 106: ONLINE RESEARCH 1: INTRODUCTION TO ONLINE RESEARCH

Assignment #5

USING WEB SEARCH TOOLS

Due: November 15

Reading:

Required Reading:

1. Write the current research question that you are working on:
(e.g. What is the effect of illegal immigration on the U.S. economy?)

Complete searches based on your research question for the web search tools in the questions below:

2. Use the Librarians’ Internet Index (LII) to find websites related to your research question.  LII is a selective subject directory of about 17,000 websites.  (You may want to read the LII “Help” screen for a complete explanation of how to search this directory.)

You may recall from the reading that subject directories are used to find high quality general websites on a subject and using these websites to “drill down” and find websites that focus on a specific topic. 

Therefore, begin your search by typing in a word or phrase that describes the general subject under which your specific research question falls. 

For example:
Research question: How will increased use of genetically engineered crops affect food safety?
General subject:  genetic engineering
Type in the search box on LII:  genetic engineering
Click here to see a search example in LII.

a. What were the exact search word(s) you used to search for sites on your general subject? 

 

b. How many sites were found from that search? (See " Viewing 1 to … of … " at the top right of the results page.) Click here to see an example of search results in LII.


c. What is the title of the best general website on your subject that you found using the Librarians' Internet Index?


d. Copy the full URL (Internet address) for the page you selected. (When copying the URL, please include the complete address beginning with: http:// )


Using the website(s) that you found on your general subject (i.e. your answer to question 3c), find a web page that focuses more directly on your specific research question.  (This is the “drilling down” part.) Do this by using one or both of the following methods:

Method #1:  Look to see if the website has a site-specific search engine.  If it does, use this search engine to try to find web pages on your specific research question.  Most likely you will do this search by typing in a search term from one or more of your other concepts.  For example:

Research question: How will increased use of genetically engineered crops affect food safety?
Search terms to use on a site-specific search engine:  food safety
Click here to see an example of a site-specific search.

Method #2:  Look for links given by the general website you’ve chosen.  These links usually take you to web pages that discuss specific aspect(s) of the general subject.  Thus, some of these links may pertain to your specific research question.  Click here to see an example of a using a link to find a more specific webpage.


e. Describe the method you used to find a webpage that focuses more directly on your specific research question. 

For example: “I used the site-specific search engine on the ‘Gene Stories’ web site.” or: “I used a link from the ‘Genetically Engineered Organisms’ home page.


f. What is the title of a webpage that focuses more directly on your specific research question. 


g. Copy the full URL (Internet address) of the page you selected that discusses your specific research question. (When copying the URL, please include the complete address beginning with: http:// )



3. A different approach to finding websites is to use a general Web search engine to go directly to websites that are as closely related as possible to your specific research question.

Use Google for this search.  All your concepts should be included when using a general Web search engine.

(You may want to read the U.C. Berkeley Google tutorial before completing this question.)

a. What were the exact search words you used? (Please try to follow the example below.) 


Please note: When using Google

·        be as precise as possible-- use at least one search term from each of your concepts;

·        put quote marks around phrases (more than one word that go together);

·        ANDs are not necessary, but ORs are required when linking synonymous search terms for the same concept. ORs must be capitalized in Google.

·       You may add parentheses and ANDs to make it easier to see & organize your concepts. Some examples:

(“genetically engineered crops” OR “genetically modified foods”) AND (“food safety” OR “food quality” OR “food contamination”)

("illegal immigration" OR "illegal aliens") AND (economy) AND ("United States" OR U.S.)


b. How many web pages/sites did Google find using your search terms?
(See "Results 1 - 10 of about ---" at the top of the results page.)


c. What are the titles of the two best web pages or websites you found using Google?


d. Copy the full Internet addresses for the pages/sites you selected. (When copying the address, please include the complete address beginning with: http:// )  (2 points)


4. a. Compare your searches and search results on Google and the Librarians' Internet Index. What were the advantages and disadvantages of each search tool in terms of ease of searching and quality and quantity of the search results? 

 

b. Compare Google and the Librarians' Internet Index to the periodical and book databases used in the previous assignments (i.e. the InfoTrac databases and the PLS online catalog) in terms of:

- quality of the information you found
- relevancy to your research question
- ease of use

 


SUBMIT ASSIGNMENT

E-mail: your answers to: brenner@smccd.net

 

| Home | Syllabus | Assignments | Text | Instructor |


last revised: 11-8-05 by Eric Brenner, Skyline College, San Bruno, CA

These materials may be used for educational purposes if you inform and credit the author and cite the source as: LSCI 106 Online Research. All commercial rights are reserved. Send comments or suggestions to: Eric Brenner at brenner@smccd.net