HI 1341: Introduction to Global History

J. Forgeng

Off campus?

Off campus access to resources with proxy.

Background Information

While gathering general information and facts...

Make a list of keywords and add to this list as you find more
Follow up on relevant authors, researchers, experts
Gather statistical information to build scope and impact of problem
Consider all perspectives: historic, economic, social, political, etc.

globalization of corn
Beyond reading your class texts try...

The free web: search engines and other free web sites such as Wikipedia
Grolier Encyclopedia and Encyclopedia Americana.

Information Choices: What Sources To Use

Use different types of information to get broad coverage of your topic. Historians use primary materials to build their research. See the Primary Sources guide for information on primary literature and how to find it.

Review the 5 items below. What type of sources are the following? Newspapers, popular magazines, scholarly journal, primary material? ______________________________________________

Who's the intended audience for each?
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Maize and grace: history, corn, and Africa's new landscapes, 1500-1999 in Comparative Studies in Society and History
Food in American History, Part 1: Maize Nutrition Today
Origin of Corn: An Evaluation of Fact and Theory in American Anthropologist
Feeding the World: A Challenge for the Twenty-first Century.
Gerald Tumbleson, Farmer interview by PBS

Books

Evaluate...

Evaluating Web Resources Checklist (PDF)

According to a study at Stanford, nearly half of all web site evaluators (46.1%) used visual cues, to assess a site's credibility. Move beyond what a site looks like...

World History Archives | Corn Trade Statistics | Corn and Capitalism

Authority
Scope
Currency
Accuracy

Search the Library Catalog for items @ WPI or WorldCat to search beyond our library.

Browse the library catalog for one book that could be useful for your project and jot down the call number. If you don't have a topic yet, find one book on globalization of food, international food supply, corn, history of agriculture or crops.
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Browse WorldCat to find another book, that is not available at WPI. What library is it available at? What does ARC stand for?
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Can the library get it for you? How do you go about requesting the item? How long would it take?
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Find Articles about Your Topic

All databases listed are WPI subscriptions. But check out Google Scholar, a web search of scholarly sources.

America, History & Life and Historical Abstracts: References to articles on historic topics.
Expanded Academic ASAP: Articles on all topics, click refereed checkbox to limit only to scholarly articles. Contains articles back to the 1980s but good coverage of historical topics.
JSTOR: Complete full text of important scholarly journals in a variety of academic fields. Coverage: Varies by publication but many back to late 1800s.
Web of Science: Search abstracts of major scientific literature, most academic sources, choose LinkFinder Plus @ WPI to track down full articles.
Project Muse: Search full text of major historical and global studies journal, most academic sources.
LEXIS®-NEXIS® Academic: Current full text news, legal, medical, and business information. News coverage ranges from regional coverage (Worcester T & G) to national.

Filter and Follow Up...

Scan results: use subject headings/descriptors, keywords, phrases found to expand search
Scrutinize article titles, number of pages, and journal title
Browse promising abstract and conclusion sections of long studies
Bibliographies can clue you in on the value of the article as well
Find an interesting author? Search for more articles or for his/her web site
Notice an agency, association or expert mentioned in an article? Follow up!

Search one of the above databases for an article on your topic. Jot down the reference here, in MLA style.
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Example of a work from a library subscription service:: Wisner, Robert. "China's Status as Corn Export Market; Warrants Debate." Feedstuffs 76.40 (2004): 1-4.; Expanded Academic ASAP. Gale. Gordon Library; Worcester Polytechnic Institute, MA. 30 Aug. 2005; <http://www.galegroup.com>.

What journal or magazine is this article from? Is it available in full text? Or just an abstract? If only an abstract is found, find the full text, using the library's Journals, Magazines, & Newspapers list.

Only Finding a Citation? Getting the Full Text

Is the journal online or here in the library? Search our Journals, Magazines, & Newspapers list
Visit another library: Search WorldCat to find one
Request delivery from another library: Interlibrary Loan.

Give Credit! Cite Your Sources

Is Your Topic to Broad?

Getting from globalization of corn to a working hypothesis. After browsing research tools, databases, the web, you should be able to zone in on a narrowly focused question that with your research, you attempt to take a position and answer.

Threat of the Globalization: The Case of Mexico
Evolution of a Global Corn Market and it's Impact on Global Poverty Reduction
Tortilla Chips in China? Adoption of Corn Crops and It's Impact

Think of two others to enter class raffle (for fun prizes), write them on an index card with your name and email address.

Questions?

Stop by the reference desk or set up a research consultation.

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Last modified: May 13, 2008, 13:21 EDT