FAQ: How can I look for certain information, or do research on a specific topic in the Shapiro Library?

Where and how to start your research?

A good starting point for your research is the Multi-Search on the library homepage, which searches across many article and ebook databases all at the same time.

Start simply, using two of your main ideas or concepts (“keywords”) joined with the logic connector AND. Use as few words as possible initially. Search words are not case-sensitive. For example:

chocolate AND health

gender AND science

lincoln AND emancipation

The more keywords you use, the fewer your search results. Using just a few keywords for starters gets you many more hits which can be easily narrowed down in a few easy steps. For more on refining your search results, see this FAQ: What are limiters and how can I use them?

If your research topic falls within a specific field of study, like Psychology or Nursing, you may find a better variety of sources more quickly using the subject-specific databases on the A-Z Database List. See this FAQ: How do I find a database on a specific subject?

Find more in the library Research Guides, created by Shapiro librarians to assist you in finding specialized sources. See this FAQ: When should I use a Research Guide for my research? 

More about search strategies

For more tips on using keywords and searching the library databases, see the Getting Started with Research guide.

See these other FAQs for additional tips and tricks:

• What is subject searching and how can I use it?
• What are limiters and how can I use them?
• How can I search for a book or article by author?
• What is Boolean searching and how can I use it?
• How can I use quotation marks for phrase searching?