When consulting these sources or engaging in any research project, patrons should determine what type of source would contain the information or type of information necessary to satisfy their research needs. Books might contain more extensive information, but perhaps not the most current. Journals would contain information about the latest trends, but would most likely not cover the basic concepts within a discipline. Sources of information should be evaluated for validity when collecting informational material about a topic. Brief biographical information about authors is sometimes included at the end of research articles and books.
Dates are important in research.
A source entitled Current Trends in Microbiology published in 1950 would probably not be appropriate to use in researching the future of Microbiology. Published by the American Library Association, this guide gives annotated entries of various information sources by subject. Coverage of each subject area includes bibliographies, dictionaries, encyclopedias, indexes, electronic databases, and other valuable reference tools. This source also provides Library of Congress call numbers for each entry, which will assist the user in identifying a source within the local library catalog. Most importantly this guide contains entries for subject specific guides.