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Science Research: Science Research Articles @ Redeemer

Welcome to the Turkstra Library's Science Research Guide. If you have any questions or if you require assistance in your research, please do not hesitate to contact one of our librarians! Also, if any of the information is incorrect or out-of-date or if the links no longer work, please contact us ASAP!

Step 1: Search the Science Databases & Resources @ Redeemer

  1. Start by searching the databases listed below. 
  2. For biology topics, JSTOR is a decent additional option to search as it provides access to a number of biology-related journals. Do not start here as JSTOR (short for Journal Storage) is an academic journal archive service and, in general, it will not have articles published in the past recent 3-5 years. Nevertheless, this is a great place to look for slightly older articles. 
  1. Start by searching the databases listed below. 
  2. For science topics, JSTOR is a decent additional option to search as it provides access to a number of biology-related journals. Do not start here as JSTOR (short for Journal Storage) is an academic journal archive service and, in general, it will not have articles published in the past recent 3-5 years. Nevertheless, this is a great place to look for slightly older articles. 
  1. Start by searching the databases listed below. 
  2. For Environmental Science topics, JSTOR is a decent additional option to search as it provides access to a number of biology-related journals. Do not start here as JSTOR (short for Journal Storage) is an academic journal archive service and, in general, it will not have articles published in the past recent 3-5 years. Nevertheless, this is a great place to look for slightly older articles. 
  1. Start by searching the databases listed below. 
  2. It is recommended to use Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) for your search. To find the best possible MeSH subject headings for your topic, use the US National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings database. 
  1. Start by searching the databases listed below. 
  2. It is recommended to use Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) for your search. To find the best possible MeSH subject headings for your topic, use the US National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings database.
  1. Start by searching the databases listed below. 
  2. Also use the EBSCO Discovery Service (EBSCO) which allows you to select and search within one or more of 42 different "Disciplines" (e.g. Mathematics)
  3. JSTOR is another decent option as it provides access to a number of science-related journals. Do not start here as JSTOR (short for Journal Storage) is an academic journal archive service and, in general, it will not have articles published in the past recent 3-5 years. Nevertheless, this is a great place to look for slightly older articles. 
  1. Start by searching the databases listed below. 
  2. Also use the EBSCO Discovery Service (EBSCO) which allows you to select and search within one or more of 42 different "Disciplines" (e.g. Physics)
  3. JSTOR is another decent option as it provides access to a number of science-related journals. Do not start here as JSTOR (short for Journal Storage) is an academic journal archive service and, in general, it will not have articles published in the past recent 3-5 years. Nevertheless, this is a great place to look for slightly older articles.
  1. Start by searching Academic Search Ultimate and ProQuest Central Premium.
  2. Also use the EBSCO Discovery Service (EBSCO) which allows you to select and search within one or more of 42 different "Disciplines" (e.g. "Life Sciences," "Applied Sciences," or even just "Science").
  3. JSTOR is another decent option as it provides access to a number of science-related journals. Do not start here as JSTOR (short for Journal Storage) is an academic journal archive service and, in general, it will not have articles published in the past recent 3-5 years. Nevertheless, this is a great place to look for slightly older articles. 

Step 2: Search key Science Databases & Resources (Open Access)

  • Dimensions (free account required). For each article/resource indexed, Dimensions provides a list of its references and a citation count plus a list of citing documents. Also, if the article/resource is available in open access, it will provide a link. This can be very useful if you are looking for articles related to the ones you have already found.
    • Dimensions Search Tips:
      • When you enter the keywords for your topic into the Dimensions search window. Choose either "Full Data" (searches all data in their database), "Title and Abstract" (Searches just the article/resource titles and abstracts) or "DOI" (searches just the "Digital Object Indicator" or DOI, a number unique to each article/book).
      • For more help using Dimensions,please see the Dimensions Quick Start guide (PDF).
      • If you find article(s) in Dimensions that are not open access and linked directly through Dimensions, take the title(s) found in Dimensions and search for them in WorldCat Discovery. Many of the articles we have in our databases are discoverable through keyword, author, or title searches in WorldCat Discovery. If it does not appear here, try searching for the title in EBSCO, JSTOR, Google Scholar or ResearchGate.
  • Cochrane Libraries
    • For Health Sciences and related fields.
    • Cochrane Search Tip: When you search, look for the resources labeled "Free Access."
    • For more help using Cochrane, click here.
  • arXiv (free account required)
    • This is an open access, searchable resource that includes more than 2 million academic articles in the fields of  physics, mathematics, computer science, quantitative biology, quantitative finance, statistics, electrical engineering and systems science, and economics.

    • arXiv was founded by Paul Ginsparg in 1991 and is now maintained and operated by Cornell Tech. Operations are maintained by the arXiv Leadership Team and arXiv staff at Cornell.

  • zbMATH Open
    • "zbMATH Open (formerly known as Zentralblatt MATH) is the world's most comprehensive and longest-running abstracting and reviewing service in pure and applied mathematics. . . .  Currently, zbMATH Open contains around 4.4 million bibliographic entries with reviews or abstracts drawn from more than 3,000 journals and book series, and some 190,000 books. Our coverage, which starts in the 18th century, is complete from 1868 to the present day, due to the integration of the "Jahrbuch über die Fortschritte der Mathematik" database. Our database contains more than one million profiles of identified authors connected with various platforms, the database of mathematical software swMATH, about 35 million references, and connections to various full text platforms or Q&A forums like MathOverflow (opens in new tab)"
    • "zbMATH Open covers all available published and peer-reviewed articles, books, conference proceedings as well as other publication formats pertaining to the scope given above that present a genuinely new point of view. For the list of journals and book series covered see the Serials search"
  • Carrot2
    • Carrot2 (https://search.carrot2.org) is a great (and not well known!) search results clustering engine. In addition to "regular" web searches (try it out!), it also searches PubMed.
    • "Web Search Clustering organizes search results from public search engines into clusters; offers treemap- and pie-chart visualizations of the clusters." (Source: About Carrot2)
    • "Clustering Workbench clusters content from local files in JSON or Excel format, Solr or Elasticsearch; allows tuning of clustering parameters and exporting results as Excel or JSON." (Source: About Carrot2)

Further Steps, if required

  • Step 3: If required, search Google Scholar.
    • This is generally NOT the place to start in your search for peer-reviewed scientific literature at Redeemer but it is a place to consider once the other options are exhausted
  • Step 4: If you still require additional resources, consider Other Libraries & ILL.
    • Redeemer University students are permitted to use the McMaster University libraries in person. Redeemer students are classified as "Users from other Universities (non-OCUL) / Reciprocal Borrowers." This permits them to access and borrow print resources. Redeemer students are also permitted to apply for a Guest Internet Account that will allow them to use a McMaster University library computer in person (only) to access many of their electronic resources. See McMaster's list of Electronic Products Which Do NOT Permit Walk-in Users.
    • If we do not have the article you need, we might be able to bring it in via interlibrary loan (ILL). For more information about getting articles and resources via ILL@ Redeemer, please click here.
      • NB: Please note an article's date of publication BEFORE requesting it via ILL. There is little point in requesting an older article via ILL unless, despite its age, it remains a leading publication on the topic.

Science Databases

Research: The Foundation

  1. Teamwork: Scientific research is usually done by teams/groups of researchers who may not necessarily even be in the same laboratory or country! There may be multiple teams (or scientists) simultaneously researching the same question/issue, but 'competing' teams (or scientists) generally will share at least some knowledge between the different teams (or scientists) to aid progress.
  2. Communication: Scientific research may initially be presented at a scientific conference but ultimately will always be published in a respected, peer-reviewed, international scientific journal. This is THE means by which scientists disseminate their research.
  3. Context: Scientific research continually builds upon and interacts with the research of others scientists, past and present.

Primary Scientific Literature: Research Article

  1. Original research of a team of scientists (or scientist) is presented.
  2. Research team's affiliations are stated clearly. 
  3. Research methodology is described clearly and in enough detail to permit it to be duplicated by other scientists. 
  4. Scientific data is present, prevalent, and precise (e.g. statistics, graphs, tables).
  5. References are included.
  6. Language needs to be precise and scholarly, so non-subject experts may find these somewhat hard to read and understand.
  7. Peer-review takes place prior to publication.
  8. If seeking primary scientific information, focus on primary research articles in peer-reviewed international scientific journals. If you are seeking the latest research that is currently undergoing (or about to enter) the peer-review process, look for conference proceedings, theses, dissertations, and scientific reports. Remember, however, that for the latter the peer-review process is not yet complete and, thus, they should be treated accordingly.

Secondary Scientific Literature: Review and Summary Publications

  1. Does NOT contain the original research of a scientist or a team of scientists.
  2. Objective is to review, summarize, and synthesize the present state of research for a given topic.
  3. The author of the summary or review is not necessarily the same person who did the research that is being summarized.
  4. Language may be less precise and scholarly, thereby possibly making it a bit more accessible/readable.
  5. Useful to quickly give scientists and science students an overview of and introduction to research for a given topic, field, or subject.
  6. Examples include review articles, monographs, textbooks, handbooks, and manuals.

Tertiary Scientific Literature/Resources: Scientific Information for the General Public

  1. Target audience is the non-scientific community.
  2. Language is simplified and less scientific.
  3. Examples include science magazines, newsletters, and websites as well as articles in newspapers and encyclopedias.