The search engines associated with different vendors vary in complexity and flexibility, with some designed to be very user-friendly while others are intended for expert searchers. See Science Database Vendors for descriptions of some of the search systems that provide science databases. For a discussion on the types of indexing databases and their structure, see the Research Databases lesson of the Information Literacy Tutorial. Selected Databases for Research in Ethology provides a listing of the science-related databases that may be useful when searching for information in ethology. Which Database to Use page provides access to all databases available to the College community, listed alphabetically or grouped by subject.
Online help is available within each search system and database.
Back to Top Understanding Citations Print and electronic bibliographic databases or bibliographies from books or periodical articles will provide references to many types of literature on your topic. It is sometimes difficult to tell whether a citation refers you to a book, a book chapter, a periodical article, or some other type of document. See the Understanding Citations lesson of the Information Literacy Tutorial for guidance with regard to deciphering citations found in bibliographies and databases. After you have retrieved citations to relevant articles from print and electronic databases, you will need to determine whether the journals are available at The College and how to access them. See Access to Journals in the College of Wooster Libraries for descriptions of types and formats of periodical literature, as well as instructions for accessing them at the College.