How to Find Library Resources for

UIUC Geology 107 Physical Geology Assignments

Link to Geology 107

Quick Links

Tools for Finding Articles

Full Text Electronic Journals

Tools for Finding Books and Documents

UIUC Online Library Catalog (Web)
WorldCat
GeoRef
Amazon.com
Index of USGS Online Publications (Central Region)- Includes links to Bulletins, Circulars, Fact Sheets, Open File Reports, Professional Papers, and more
USGS Publications Warehouse

Borrow Material not Owned by UIUC

I-Share: Get material from one of the other Illinois Libraries
Interlibrary Loan and Document Delivery Service

Internet Resources

Style and Writing Guides & Tools

Reference

Online Reference Collection
Encyclopedia Britannica and Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary
Other online reference resources are available from the Geology Library home page.
Print reference resources are available in the Reference Section (Reading Room) of the Geology Library.
Glossary of geology, 4th ed., 1997 [Geology Ref: 550.3 Am3gL1997]

Link to more detailed help for finding information

Tips for Assignments

Assignment #2: Geology of a National Park

1) Look at the national park books in the reserve section on the Geology Library.

Author: Harris, Ann G.
Title: Geology of national parks / Ann G. Harris, Esther Tuttle, Sherwood D. Tuttle.
Edition: 5th ed.
Published: Dubuque, Iowa : Kendall/Hunt Pub. Co., c1997.

Author: Kiver, Eugene P.
Title: Geology of U.S. parklands / Eugene P. Kiver and David V. Harris.
Edition: 5th ed.
Published: New York : J. Wiley, c1999.

Author: Harris, David V.
Title: The geologic story of the national parks and monuments / David V. Harris, Eugene P. Kiver ; graphics by Gregory C. Nelson.
Edition: 4th ed.
Published: New York : Wiley, c1985.

The Story Behind the Scene Series (select the one for your park)

NOTE: For many of these, there is an older edition in Geology Stacks (not on reserve; can be checked out)

2) Use the UIUC Online Library Catalog (Web) to search for other books (e.g. "grand canyon national park").

A couple of examples::

Author: Fillmore, Robert, 1957-
Title: The geology of the parks, monuments, and wildlands of southern Utah / Robert Fillmore.
Published: Salt Lake City : University of Utah Press, c2000.
Location: Geology
Call Number: 557.925 F485g

Title: Geology of Utah's parks and monuments : millennium field conference / Douglas A. Sprinkel, senior editor ; Thomas C. Chidsey, Jr., co-editor ; Paul B. Anderson, co-editor.
Series: Utah Geological Association publication ; 28
Published: Salt Lake City, Utah : Utah Geological Association, c2000.
Location: Geology
Call Number: 557 Ut1up

3) Look at the Roadside Geology Series (Mountain Press) for the state containing the park.
4) Look at other general geology books about the state.
5) Look at the journal National Parks. Current issues are in the Geology Reading Room. Older issues are in Geology Stacks (711.05 NATI). Careful, much of this information is non-geology.
6) Use GeoRef to find more technical information about the park.
7) Try National Geographic.
8) Use Scirus ; uncheck the Web resources to get only journal artices; uncheck journals to get only Web pages.
9) Use GeoRef to search for technical information.

For Web resources (follow the guidelines of the assignment)

1) Geology of National Parks - NPS
2) ParkSearch - LLBean(TM)
3) Use Scirus
4) List of Parks
5) Other

NPS Publications: The Berkeley Collection

ASK THE GEOLOGY LIBRARIAN FOR HELP (I may know just the resource that you need)

Assignment #3: Environmental Geology

1) Consult a general Environmental Geology text book for ideas. There are several on Reserve in the Geology Library:

Author: Murck, Barbara Winifred, 1954-
Title: Environmental geology / Barbara W. Murck, Brian J. Skinner, Stephen C. Porter.
Published: New York : John Wiley & Sons, c1996.

Author: Keller, Edward A., 1942-
Title: Environmental geology / Edward A. Keller.
Edition: 7th ed.
Published: Upper Saddle River, N.J. : Prentice-Hall, c1996.

Author: Merritts, Dorothy.
Title: Environmental geology : an earth system science approach / Dorothy J. Merritts, Andrew De Wet, Kirsten Menking.
Published: New York : W.H. Freeman, c1998.

Author: Murck, Barbara Winifred, 1954-
Title: Dangerous Earth : an introduction to geologic hazards / Barbara W. Murck, Brian J. Skinner, Stephen C. Porter.
Published: New York : J. Wiley, c1997.

Author: Coch, Nicholas K.
Title: Geohazards : natural and human / Nicholas K. Coch.
Published: Englewood Cliffs, N.J. : Prentice Hall, c1995.

NOTE: There are additional copies and older editions elsewhere in the Library system; these can be checked out.

2) Consult the "Further Readings" and references in these books for more information on your selected topic.
3) Consult the UIUC Online Library Catalog (Web) for books on your topic
4) Use the online indexes such as:

GeoRef
Applied Science & Technology Index
Scirus (both journal articles and Web resources...uncheck Web for journals only)
Compendex /Engineering Village
Environmental Sciences and Pollution Management
Index of USGS Online Publications (Central Region) - Includes links to Bulletins, Circulars, Fact Sheets, Open File Reports, Professional Papers, and more
USGS Publications Warehouse
National Technical Information Service (NTIS) (Change selection to NTIS)
National Academy Press - some full text online

NOTE: Much of the information from these sources will be highly technical.

For Web resources (follow the guidelines of the assignment):

EPA Envirofacts Data Warehouse
Superfund Query Form
Chemical Scorecard
National Library for the Environment (CNIE) - Congressional Research Service Reports
Global Change Master Directory - NASA
Other links to environmental information

CAUTION: Don't stray too far from the geology of the topic. Don't forget to check with your professor before proceeding with your topic.

ASK THE GEOLOGY LIBRARIAN FOR HELP (I may know just the resource that you need)

Assignment #4: Historical Geology

Individuals:

1) Very famous geologists may have entire books or book chapters devoted to them. First try the UIUC Online Library Catalog (Web) for books on your individual (e.g. John Wesley Powell).
2) Biographical information for more modern geologists can be found in society journals in the obituary or awards sections. This information can take some digging to find.

3) If you don't know where to start, you could try Guided Keyword = (biograph? geolog?) [in Any Words] in the online catalog.
4) Try some of these indexes:

American National Biography
Biography
Biography and Genealogy Master Index
Eighteenth Century Collections Online
Biography Reference Bank

5) Try GeoRef

6) To find literature written by the individuals, use the online catalog, WorldCat, and GeoRef.

For Web resources (follow the guidelines of the assignment):

From the Archives (Geological Society of London)
Use Scirus ; uncheck the Web resources to get only journal artices; uncheck journals to get only Web pages.
Google (be careful to evaluate any and all information)

Events:

Use the same tips as for National Parks and Environmental topics above. Select indexes according to your topic.

ASK THE GEOLOGY LIBRARIAN FOR HELP (I may know just the resource that you need)

Steps for Finding Information on Your Topic

Step 1. Select and narrow your topic.

Step 2. Choose your search terms.

Think of synonyms. You will add to your list as you search and evaluate your search results. Example:

scablands AND washington AND floods
OR . OR . OR
. AND washington state AND flooding
OR . OR . OR
. AND . AND catastrophic flooding
OR . OR . OR
. AND . AND glacial outburst*

Step 3. Choose your Database and define your search strategy.

Your search strategy will partly depend on the search engine you use. One database may be available from a number of different vendors, each with its own search engine. For example, the GeoRef database is available from CSA, Silver Platter, Ovid, DIALOG and other vendors, each having a unique search engine. Search engines are not yet standardized, and each will handle elements such as search operators (combining terms), truncation, and so forth differently. Consult the help functions for each search engine to ensure that you obtain the correct results.

Using GeoRef:

For help in using GeoRef via CSA, try this tutorial, or consult the "help and support" link on the GeoRef search screen.

Step 6. Conduct your search

Step 7. Evaluate search results, note additional terms and unwanted terms.

Step 8. Refine search and re-do.

Step 9. Find out whether UIUC has the material; if not, use Interlibrary Loan.

To find out whether UIUC has a particular book, use the online catalog.

For journals:

Use the online catalog to find the call number of the journal. You can use the ISSN number from database output (For example, the "IS" field in GeoRef). Note: The truncation symbol in the online cataog is "?".

Or find the location of many of the print geology journals by looking at this list.

Check the Full Text Electronic Journals pages.

Note: Many people have difficulty finding articles within other works such as proceedings, transactions, and books. Give some thought to what you should enter into the online catalog in order to find the material. Ask for help in the Geology Library if you encounter difficulty.

If UIUC doesn't have what you need, and it isn't available full text on the Web, use the online catalog to find out if one of the other Illinois Libraries has it. You can directly request circulating material held at these institutions without going through the Interlibrary Borrowing Office.

If none of the Illinois Libraries have the material, use Interlibrary Loan.

Make sure you leave plenty of time to receive material through Interlibrary Loan!

Other:

Please come see me if you need any help. If you'd like to make an appointment, contact me by phone (333-2676) or e-mail (luraj at uiuc dot edu).

Lura Joseph
Created 09/24/04 LEJ

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Library Gateway Homepage
Comments to UIUC Geology Library
Modified on:7/7/2006 lej

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign