An abstract is a succinct summary of a journal article, thesis, or research project that provides a brief overview of the main points or research findings. This link includes tips and tools on how to write a research abstract from the Undergraduate Research Center at UC Davis.
An annotated bibliography is a list of articles, books, or works that includes annotations (brief explanatory paragraphs regarding the quality/significance of what is being cited).
Click here for information on how to construct an annotated bibliography from Cornell University.
This resource offers annotated bibliography samples in Chicago Style, MLA, and APA from the Purdue Online Writing Lab.
Black Metropolis is an interdisciplinary course that crosses various academic fields so it is beneficial to utilize library course and/or subject guides to make those cross-disciplinary connections. For example, if you are interested in how environmental racism impacts Black Chicagoans in Altgeld Gardens, the environmental studies, geography, or Africana studies guides may be helpful. Here is a link to all of the library guides at Mount Holyoke.
Different research sources are best accessed through various types of databases. For example, books are best located through the Five College Libraries Catalog and academic articles are best located in scholarly databases.
Image Credit: https://www.physio-pedia.com/Where_to_Start%3F
Searching in JSTOR, which is an interdisciplinary database, will only bring up articles in JSTOR, so you might miss a helpful article in ProjectMuse (another database). These sources are not cross-searchable. Also, you can't search everything with one search box (even Google has limits---check out the deep web page to learn more) so utilizing various research tools will help you with locating the most suitable research materials.
LITS Tip: Remember: where you search matters. Also, don't stop at the search results on the first page. Explore several pages to find the best possible resources.
Primary Sources provide first-hand testimony, direct evidence, or knowledge concerning a research topic. Some examples:
Secondary Sources interpret or conduct analysis on primary sources
Not all information resources are created equal! Be sure you think about what kind of information you are using. Some quick guidelines:
See the Penn State University Library's Evaluating Information page for more information about how to ask and answer the above questions and their Evaluating Information Rubric for tips on what to look for in books, periodicals, and web sites.
SAW Mentors are trained to assist with essays, lab reports, creative writing, presentations, senior theses, reflection responses, and more. Research Services can also help with locating research materials, citing and finding sources, talking through your research projects, and more. The SAW Center is on the main level of Dwight Hall in the Mediated Educational Work Space. To schedule an appointment, click here.