College Writing and Research

Rod Library website: http://www.library.uni.edu

Need help or have questions? Drop by the Reference Desk (2nd floor) or call (319) 273-2838
Reference librarian/staff on duty from 8 am-9 pm, M-Th, 8 am-5 pm on F, and
2 pm-9 pm on Sun.
Ask Us! Live Chat
Ask Us! E-mail

Information Formats and Where to Find Them

UNISTAR (Rod Library’s online catalog)

Books, journals, tangible materials

How do I search in UNISTAR?
Keyword, Author, Title, Subject, Journal Title
“Opposing Viewpoints” series

Keyword/Boolean Searching
AND – Connects single words/ideas/phrases together. (Narrows search)
(OR) – Connects similar words together under one idea (Broadens search)
*,! – Truncation symbols – Child* = child, children, childhood
“…” – Phrase searching (Example: “New York City”)

Databases and Online Resources

Articles – Use Panther Prowler or Databases A-Z or Field of Study
Internet/Websites

Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com)
Find it @ UNI button

Google Government Search (http://www.google.com/ig/usgov)

Selected Databases (can access from Databases A-Z on library home page)

Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center (Gale)
CQ Researcher (Covers controversial topics and gives opposing viewpoints)
Academic OneFile (Gale)
Academic Search Elite (EBSCO)
Ethnic NewsWatch (ProQuest)
PressDisplay (Newspaper Direct)
Lexis/Nexis Academic (Newspaper articles)
Newsbank (Newspaper articles, Iowa papers)

Evaluating Sources: http://www.library.uni.edu/instruction/tips/evaluating.shtml
Style & Citation Guides: http://www.library.uni.edu/instruction/tips/styleguides.shtml
Plagiarism – Avoid Cheating: http://www.library.uni.edu/instruction/tips/plagiarism.shtml

Location of Materials in the Rod Library

First Floor: Periodicals (journals, magazines, newspapers), Microfilm, and Course Reserves
Main (Second) Floor: Reference Desk, Reference Collection, Government Documents, InterLibrary Loan, and Circulation
Third Floor: Stacks collection (A-K range), Special Collections, Art & Music Collection, and Youth Collection
Fourth Floor: Stacks collection (L-Z range)