From Inquiry to Academic Writing A Practical Guide, 3rd edition

132 CHAPTER 6 | FRom FIndIng To EvAluATIng SouRCES

■ consult experts Who can guide your research

Before you embark on a systematic hunt for sources, you may want to con­

sult with experts who can help guide your research. The following experts

are nearer to hand and more approachable than you may think.

Your writing instructor. Your first and best expert is likely to be your writ­

ing instructor, who can help you define the limits of your research and

the kinds of sources that would prove most helpful. Your writing instruc­

tor can probably advise you on whether your topic is too broad or too

narrow, help you identify your issue, and perhaps even point you to spe­

cific reference works or readings you should consult. He or she can also

help you figure out whether you should concentrate mainly on popular

or scholarly sources (for more about popular and scholarly sources, see

pages 134–37).

TABLE 6.1 (continued)

Source

Type of

InformaTIon purpoSe LImITaTIonS exampLeS

Dictionary Alphabetical list

of words and

their definitions

To explain key

terms and how

they are used

Merriam- Webster’s

Collegiate Dictionary

Oxford English Dictionary

The Oxford Dictionary of

Current English

Encyclopedia Concise art icles

about people,

places, concepts,

and things

A starting point

for very basic

information

Lack of in­ depth

information

The CQ Researcher

Encyclopedia Brittanica

Online

McGraw- Hill Encyclopedia

of Science & Technology

Internet

search engine

Web site that

locates online

information

by keyword or

search term

For quickly

locating a broad

array of current

resources

Reliability of

information open

to question

Google

Yahoo!

Google Scholar

Newspaper,

other news

sources

Up­ to­ date

information

To locate timely

information

May reflect

reporter’s or

medium’s bias

America’s Historical

Newspapers

LexisNexis Academic

Newspaper Source

ProQuest Historical

Newspapers

World News Connection

Thesaurus Alphabetical list

of words and

their synonyms

For alternative

search terms

Roget’s II: The New

Thesaurus

Pro Quest Thesaurus

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