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The LibGuide of your librarian for the day, AR (they/them).

Source Analysis

Use the links to skim your assigned piece. If you are off-campus or on a personal laptop, please login with your G# and password when prompted. Please use one of our laptops if you are having trouble signing in.

  1. From Cisterns to Temples, These Twelve Underground Worlds Are Open for Exploring link

    1. Please note that the Paris Catacombs section includes a depiction of human remains. Please stop reading at the Salina Turda if would like to avoid seeing these depictions. You will still be able to fully participate in the excercise if you stop reading at this point.

  2. Restoring the environment, revitalizing the culture: cenote conservation in Yucatan, Mexico link

  3. Global Undergrounds : Exploring Cities Within link

  4. Cistern link

Parts of an Article Link

Review the link to click through the parts of an article. Keep in mind that it is worth determining if the article is worth reading by skimming it first. That means to look at the abstract, intro, and conclusion.

Parts of a Research Question:

  • Manageable – specific with enough information for the assignment length​
  • Researchable –information exists to help answer it​
  • Complex – not yes or no, answer comes from variety of sources​
  • Arguable – others could reasonably disagree with your answer​

Common Source Types

Source type Audience Type of information Purpose
Encyclopedia/Reference source general audience with little or no prior knowledge of topic widely accepted factual information to educate readers new to a topic; to provide overview and background information

News/Magazine 

(in print and online)

general audience who does not need prior knowledge of the topic

OR

general audience with no or little prior knowledge of the topic

the most current information that is known at the time the article was published

usually short articles that cover a topic on the surface without a lot of depth or background

OR

information and opinions about popular topics, current events, and social issues

short articles are on a surface level; longer articles may go more in-depth or cover a wide variety of perspectives on the topic

to inform readers about current events and issues usually at a surface level

OR

to inform and potentially persuade an audience that has a particular interest in the topic or subject area

to provide an overview of many aspects of a broad topic

Scholarly/peer reviewed journal 

(in library database or on the internet)

 academic audience of scholars and experts in a field

articles written by scholars for other scholars often on a very narrow topic

articles are often peer-reviewed, or reviewed by other experts in the field for quality, originality, and value to the scholarly conversation on the topic 

to share the results of a research study or in-depth analysis of an issue with other scholars 

to participate in a scholarly conversation about a topic of research interest to the author
Academic book or ebook general or academic audience, depending on the complexity of the book; individuals who have a particular interest in the topic

depending on the book, information may be written for novices or people who are new to the topic; vocabulary will be defined and main concepts will be fully explained

more advanced academic books intended for other scholars will use more sophisticated language and specialized vocabulary; ideas will be explored in depth and existing research will be referenced; new research or ideas may be presented in full detail and connected to existing research or theory

to cover a broad topic comprehensively 

or to delve into finer details of a complex topic that can only be addressed in a lengthy work