HIST 301: Yugoslavia and its Historians -- Professor Babovic: Library Session, February 5th, 2020
Start with this activity
Databases for this session
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JSTORContains almost 1,000 full-text journals spanning multiple disciplines. Some journals go to back to the mid-1800's. There is a gap, typically from 1 to 5 years, between the most recently published journal issues and the issues available in JSTOR.
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Historical AbstractsBest database for world history. Lists scholarly articles from history journals. Allows you to search by journal name. Each article is summarized. Covers the history of civilization (excluding the United States and Canada) from 1450 to the present.
Search Field Ins 'n' Outs
Techniques to improve search accuracy and fruitfulness in databases, search engines, and websites:
- If you're consistently not getting lots of good results, make sure the literature you're looking for uses the same words. Thesauruses may be helpful, and are frequently provided in databases (see Search Term Tailoring).
- Use the asterisk, nest words to improve search specificity, and insert Boolean terms to specify search term relationships.
- Some research materials are more suitable for a research topic than others depending on the subject (see Materials Pros and Cons for more information).
- See Database Tutorial Videos for tours of recommended subject databases and To Full Text or Not to Full Text for an explanation of resources and the time required to get them.
Assignment
By the end of class, complete Library assignment #1 using the link directly above this.
Library Assignment #1 (in class): The scholar Charles Ingrao identifies ten controversial topics in contemporary Yugoslav historiography in the following article: Charles Ingrao, “Confronting the Yugoslav Controversies: The Scholars’ Initiative,” The American Historical Review 114, 4 (October 2009): 947-962. First, locate the article through one of Milne’s databases. Then, work with a partner to locate four reliable secondary sources such as a book, article, or chapter on one of the topics (each group will receive a number). Post the full citations of each source on the Google Docs page for the class activity.