Academic Research!
Chem 20
Academic vs. Personal Research

Educational setting

Research is personal or casual

Sources of information are
credible, vetted

Degree of credible resource use
varies

Information is current

References and citations
generally not needed

A list of references is submitted
and sources are cited in context
Where do you go for info?
O You’re exploring a research question like “How do I
find reliable information?” or “How do I find a
scientific or academic research article about a
molecule?”
O Where do you go for info?
O Wikipedia?
O Google?
O How about www.sweetsearch.com?
It all starts in the VLC!
Links to all of these tools and databases are
found in our RTHS Virtual Learning Commons.
O Go to http://vlc.rths.ca
O Look under Our Services →Learning
Commons → Resources
Online Reference Centre
O Find excellent databases in www.learnalberta.ca
Online Reference Centre
O At school you will not have to log in, but at home
you will have to log in with the username: LA06
and password 4105
O In the VLC find the ORC in the Learn Alberta link
under Resources
Online Reference Centre
Several excellent databases are available to find
scientific information
Science in Context
O Hint: Search for your molecule (e.g. acetone), scroll down
for general information and scientific journal articles
O Advanced Search will allow you to refine your search to a
specific type of document and to limit the date of
publication
O Try terms like: peer reviewed journals
O Currency of the information is important, especially for the
journal article
Online Reference Centre
Also try:
O World Book Advanced
O
Canadian Reference Centre for
journal articles
Citing your Sources
O Whenever you use information or ideas from a source
of any kind for a project or essay it’s essential that
you give credit to the person/people who wrote it!
O Avoid plagiarism by ALWAYS creating a list of
references showing where the information was found.
O Showing your references is a key element in being a
digital citizen at Thirsk!
Tools for Referencing
O There are two formats you will use for creating
references at RTHS: APA and MLA
O Your teacher will tell you which kind of format they want
you to use in their class
O The good news is that many resources include the
citation information in them and you can copy and
paste it right into your list.
O There are also great tools to help you! Try Citation
Machine www.citationmachine.net , BibMe or Noodle
Tools, found in the VLC
Practice!
O Using any of the databases or tools you’ve just seen, find the
following information about a country that starts with the same
letter as your last name, or find three facts from 3 resources on a
topic you are currently studying. Choose 3 different sources.
O Major exports of the country
O Climate change in the country
O Form of government
O Use Notepad to record your notes and create a
Reference for the sources using Citation Machine.