Use Filters to Refine your Results
Step 4: Use database tools to filter your search.
- Most databases give you the ability to filter your articles by
- material type (book, article, etc.) - and some even go deeper and allow you to choose the type of article
- journal (source of an article)
- date
- and some by language, subject, geography, and more!
- An explanation of some of the tools many databases have to help you are listed below, using Start Your Research as an example. Databases you use may provide filters in different locations.
Advanced Searching
Start Your Research includes Advanced Searching tools. Notice that it has built-in Boolean search capability!
It also allows you multiple other ways to limit your search BEFORE you click on the Search button.
Start Your Research (Example)
Start Your Research can be helpful as a starting point for research because it includes databases, eBooks, and streaming media, books, movies, music, etc., that we have in the Alkek Library.
Start Your Research searches approximately 200 of our over 600 databases, but you may want to check our Chemistry & Biochemistry database list once you're doing more in-depth research in your topic.
Basic Filters
The single most important step you can take to make your searching more efficient in Start Your Research is to use the included search filters.
Below the Limit To checkbox is the Publication Date slider and the the Source Types checkbox to easily limit your Peer Reviewed results to only Academic Journal articles published within the last 5 years.
Subject Filter...and others
Use the Subject filter to choose those terms that are most descriptive of what you're looking for. Want to see the entire list of Subject terms? Click on the blue "Show More" at the bottom of the list, and you'll get the entire list. in a pop-up box.
ALSO, use the Database filter at the bottom! Start Your Research searches a lot of databases, and it will tell you what databases your best articles come from.
