Keywords to use when searching for information on your topic:
Solar ground source system
Solar panels
Heat transfer
Gravel
Green energy
Geothermal heat
schools geothermal
insulating properties
Virginia bedrock
Virginia geology
thermal conductivity
concrete
heat sink
Anatomy of a research paper:
Anatomy of a Crevasse Fill Ridge
In Clara’s Woods, Stony Brook, New York
By Carrie Friello and Gilbert Hanson
Department of Geosciences, Stony Brook University, SUNY, Stony Brook, NY
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Introduction/Hypothesis
Background
Methods or experimental design
Results/Data/Analysis
Discussion
Conclusion
Criteria for evaluating a resource
 Authority
 Bias
 Purpose
 Timeliness
 Audience
 Accuracy
Resources
Books –
 WHY - Geothermal energy has been used for many years and there is a large
body of literature describing how it is used, the technology behind its use and the
geological resources by area that support it. Books have been through an editorial
review process, and the information is organized and generally comprehensive.
You will get a good overview of the basic process for using geothermal energy,
and can also find the geological structure of an area, although you may not see the
latest developments in the field because it takes several months and possibly a
year to create, publish and distribute a book.
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HOW - In the PFHS library, go to the iPAC (online catalog) and change the
default search parameter to General Keyword. Enter some of the search terms you
identified with your class. You will find books in the Dewey Decimal areas:
o 333.9, reflecting subjects in ecology and a social science interest
o 551.2, reflecting earth science, geology
o 621, reflecting technology.
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You can do the same search at the public library and university libraries. Catalogs
for both types of libraries are available online. Start with Loudoun County Public
Libraries, but you can also check Fairfax Public Libraries. Use your library card
to borrow books from the public library. Your Loudoun card also gives you
borrowing privileges at Fairfax libraries. Try searching George Mason, NOVA,
Shenandoah Universities. The cataloging system at universities is Library of
Congress, so the call numbers will look different. If you find a book at a
university that will suit your purposes perfectly, come to the library at PFHS and
ask us to get the book on interlibrary loan. This process can take as much as a
week, so plan ahead and arrange your time. If you wish, you may go to any
university library and use their books onsite. It is courteous to let a staff member
know you are visiting, and you will also get a little help in understanding how to
use their resources.
Online databases—
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LCPS has purchased several online databases for your use. They can reference
books, journal articles, websites, newspapers, pictures, speeches, and so on. The
only thing ‘online database’ defines are that they are available via the computer
and they are organized into a searchable group of items. Some of our databases
will be particularly helpful for this project, and they are listed below.
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HOW - All of our databases are accessible at the site pictured below. Go to the
PFHS home page. Click on the library page on the purple bar. On the left side of
the page find Online Databases, and click. Each of the databases shown will be a
hyperlink and will open in a new tab.
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The databases you may want to use for this project are:
o Encyclopedias –
 Britannica Online
 World Book Online Reference Center
o EBSCOhost Research Center (peer review, Geothermal energy vs
geothermal heating, look at subject terms. Thermal conductivity
“Geophysics: Hot blanket in earth’s deep crust” – not full text; point out
ILL opportunities)
 MAS Ultra
 Science Reference Center
 General Science Collection
o eLibrary
 (geothermal conductivity – adv search) Tenebaum, David (1995,
January 01). Tapping the fire down below. (hot dry rock energy).
Technology Review, ({98}) 38(10), Retrieved from
http://elibrary.bigchalk.com
 (Virginia geology) Virginia: Geologic Map. (2008, November
01). In ProQuest Editorial Website G. Retrieved from
http://elibrary.bigchalk.com
o InfoTrac
 Cross-Searchable products – Environmental studies, General
Science Collection, Virtual Reference Library (search geothermal
heating and show results. Talk about perspective; point out types
of results tabs at top esp academic jnls)
 Additional products - Gale Science in Context
o NetTrekker (geothermal heating ; thermal conduction ; Virginia
geology)
Internet searches—
 Google
o Search for sites in specific domains by including the following terms in
your search statement : inurl:edu ; inurl:gov ; inurl:org.
o Scholar (search geothermal heating Virginia ; point out “cited by” ; how to
get articles)
 http://www.energy.vt.edu/vept/index.asp
 http://www.geo4va.vt.edu/indexGeo4VA.htm
 http://www.geoexchange.org/downloads/case-studies/schools