Databases

A Snapshot of PubMed Database

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This snapshot of PubMed database will give you basic information about this most relevant and beneficial online resource in the field of medicine and nursing.

A service of the National Library of Medicine, PubMed provides access to over 11 million MEDLINE citations back to the Mid-1960s.  It provides links to many sites providing full text articles and other related resources.

Coverage: full text articles (only up to the most recent six months). You can use the UA libraries collections and Interlibrary Service to get full text of articles that are not linked to in the PubMed database.

Link: http://www.lib.ua.edu/databases/ and use the alpha list on the right side to get to “P” to look for PubMed.

Direct Link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed?db=pubmed

Tips for searching:

Begin a basic search by entering a keyword (Medical Subject Heading – MeSH Term) into the search field. Then narrow the results with related keywords or by using filters (to limit) offered on the sides of the search results page. Manage Filters link is on the on the right side and more additional filters on the left side of the results page. You can select language, type of publication, years of publication and more to filter the search results

What is MeSH terms in PubMed?

Medical Subject Headings – MESH

MeSH is the National Library of Medicine’s controlled vocabulary thesaurus. It consists of sets of terms naming descriptors in a hierarchical structure that permits searching at various levels of specificity. Each bibliographic reference is associated with a set of MeSH terms that describe the content of the item. Similarly, search queries use MeSH vocabulary to find items on a desired topic.

If you would like more information about this database, or if you would like a demonstration of it for a class, contact Mangala Krishnamurthy in Rodgers Library. Contact mkrishna@ua.edu.

Don’t forget about Dissertations!

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Published Dissertations/theses are extremely useful when researching a field. They often provide a very nice basic introduction to the subject, a great collection of references, and excellent insights for future work. I have found that many dissertations also provide a level of detail which you will not find in peer-reviewed journals, for example, a worked calculation or sample data analysis. You may also glean information about how you would like to organize your own dissertation/thesis. So don’t forget about searching for your research topic in our ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Database!

http://goo.gl/OMBtj

A Tool for Finding Animal Science Research

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Rodgers Library for Science and Engineering subscribes to the complete file of Zoological Record, the premier database for finding references in animal science.

According to the publisher, Thomson, “Zoological Record is the world’s oldest continuing database of animal biology. It is considered the world’s leading taxonomic reference, and has long acted as the world’s unofficial register of animal names. The broad scope of coverage ranges from biodiversity and the environment to taxonomy and veterinary sciences.”

Zoological Record covers over 5,000 periodicals and includes as well books, reports and meetings. The database dates from 1864 to present. And we will add more years as time moves along.

Zoological Record is accessed from the ISI Web of Knowledge platform along with BIOSIS Previews, Biological Abstracts, Journal Citation Reports, and the Web of Science.

On the Rodgers Library databases page, Zoological Record is listed under the letter “Z” on the lower-right side of the page. On the ISI Web of Knowledge home page, a tab on the top, “select a database,” points to Zoological Record.

This is a major resource for UA faculty and students. It will benefit many for decades to come.

Enjoy! Databases.

SciFinder Goes Web

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Over the past few years Rodgers Library has offered two ways to access SciFinder (our popular chemistry database):  a client version loaded on local desktops and a Web version.   CAS likes the Web version and we do too.  So beginning in the fall of 2010, Rodgers Library will discontinue support for the client version.  SciFinder Web is wonderful.  Our chemistry LibGuide describes the new access.  Enjoy!  http://bit.ly/aihR2D

Discover Oil and Gas Pubs With OnePetro

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Beginning in 2010, UA students and faculty have access to OnePetro.  This major database with over 80,000 publications covers oil and gas exploration and the oil and gas industry.   Classic papers from the API Drilling and Production Practices and Secondary Recovery of Oil in the United States are included.  Meeting papers and journal articles from the Society of Petroleum Engineers, more than 50,000 documents, some from as far back as 1927,  are included too.  The database features search and full-text downloads.  OnePetro is an amazing resource for teaching and research.

Searching for Older Articles in Biology

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Want to search for an older paper in biology? Say a paper written by George H. Denny, the man of Chimes himself? The database BIOSIS Previews indexes the biological literature back to 1926 and covers it to the present.

Click on databases in the left dark grey margin on the Rodgers Library web page. Then click on B then BIOSIS Previews.

Search
Denny George H OR Denny GH in Author
Click on the Search button.

You get
Title: Cholinesterase activity of human leucocytes
Author(s): DENNY, GEORGE H.; HAGERMAN, DWAIN D.
Source: SCIENCE Volume: 123 Issue: (3205) Pages: 987-988 Published: 1956

The BIOSIS full text button leads you to a version of the journal Science we don’t have. However if you use the electronic journal list or the online catalog to search for the journal Science , you will find that we get the electronic journal Science for 1956 in the JSTOR database. What luck!

Of course, you can also search for new articles on biological topics.

Standards for Technology and Commerce

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When standards are needed by engineers, they commonly turn to ASTM (American Society for Testing Materials), ANSI (American National Standards Institute) and ISO (International Standards Organization).  Standards from other organizations can be handy as well.  Since it’s hard to anticipate what specific standards are needed for a project, the library subcribes to SAI Global’s Standards Infobase.  This database provides access to over one million standards issued by organizations from around the world.   Standards are essential for commerce and technology.  Login to the standards database at: http://bit.ly/fawwi