EN 090 Basic Composition
Ms. Carol Anderson

Finding Library Materials

Library Catalog
Indicates the books, periodicals, government documents, and audiovisual materials the library owns.  To find the location of materials listed in the library catalog, see the Library Map . Also, for help with call numbers including an outline of call numbers by subject see the Guide to Library of Congress Call Numbers.

The Library Catalog cannot be used to find articles in magazines or journals, only which magazines and journals the library owns (Time, Newsweek, etc.).

Interlibrary Loan allows you to obtain materials not owned by Olson Library.  Materials such as books and periodical articles, among other sources, can be borrowed from other libraries.  The average time to receive requested materials is 10-14 days and you will be notified by email when your items arrive. MeLCat Search Michigan libraries for books, books on tape/CD/DVD, music, magazines, and more.

MLA Style Guide
Reference Collection: LB 2369 .G53.
Examples of how to cite some of the more common sources, including web sites and online articles, according to the most recent edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers.  Consult the Handbook in the library reference collection for sources not listed at this site.

CQ Researcher
A weekly publication covering the critical events and controversial subjects of the day. Each issue offers an in-depth analysis of a contemporary topic. A good source for selecting a topic since you can browse the issues by topic. The index to the collection can be viewed by unlimited simultaneous users. Also available in-print from 1991-2003 in the bound Periodicals Collection. Call number: H 35 .E352.

Newspapers

Access World News
Access World News provides full text articles from over 600 U.S. and over 500 international news sources. You can search across all newspapers or titles from a particular state, country, or continent. While coverage varies from title to title and typically goes back only to the late 1990's, some titles extend back to the mid 1970's.

Journal and Magazine Articles

General OneFile
Index to articles in over 11,000 general magazines, newspapers, and multimedia. Contains full-text articles from over 6,000 magazines and journal titles, as well as newspapers from the Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Services, and multimedia such as National Public Radio recordings.  Indexing begins in 1980 with full text starting in 1983.  Full text coverage varies widely from title to title.

Academic OneFile
Journal articles from more than 8,000 scholarly and general periodicals across all fields of study. Indexing from 1980 to present; full-text from 1989 to present.

List of NMU Databases by Subject
This list is from the general to the specific.

Keyword Searching: For a decent guide on how to do keyword searching, see Mathewson--IGT Knowledge Center.

Internet Resources

Evaluating Internet Sources

Britannica Online - Premier encyclopedia for college students. Also includes audio & video clips.

Oxford Reference Online - NMU has access to this online reference database. Over 172 publications available from the arts to the sciences.

Electronic Reference Sources - Subject guide from NMU listing online resources from Anthropology to Statistics.

Librarian's Internet Index — Evaluates & reviews popular & scholarly web sites.

INFOMINE scholarly web sites - Comprehensive virtual library and reference tool for academic and scholarly Internet resources.

Need Further Assistance?

Stop by the Reference Desk for further assistance with any of these sources.  You can also contact the Reference Desk through IM or
by phone at 227-2294.