Water and Science
Suggestions to begin a Three Day Study
Water and Science (Plan B)
Our Results
1. For years I helped maintain a mini-reef in a 90-gallon tank. There were some wonderful successes but many more failures. The expense of replacing lost marine life and the guilt surrounding the deaths of other living creatures for mere entertainment led to a decision to scale back the project and more wisely choose members for the reef community. However, I still retain interest in the natural habitat of these fragile creatures. A project involving “Water and Science” allowed me to further explore this interest.
2. I printed out the on-line research log.
3. I first researched keyword “reefs” through the Columbia Encyclopedia on bartleby.com. 121 hits (many not related to the “reefs” I am exploring) caused me to refine my keyword to “coral reefs” which returned 1 hit with some very good background on coral reefs and a bibliography which gives me two more potential sources. My search experience with “reefs” vs. “coral reefs” leads me to check for other search terms in the dictionaries and Roget’s Thesaurus on bartleby.com. The dictionaries added nothing, but the thesaurus had some interesting potential. I made a note of their synonyms in case I need them later. Bartleby.com has a quotations search. If I can locate a good quote, I may be able to use it in my work; a really good one may provide a great introduction to my paper. Since I am here, I check it out. Two of the six hits interest me so I note them in my log.
4. Searching for “coral reefs” in the library catalog returns 62 hits-too many to mine with the time I have. The information I noted from the encyclopedia leads me to refine my keyword search to “coral reef damage” which yields a government document. I now have a lead on step 6 PLUS I have five subject headings that I can search if needed. Remembering the two sources I found in the encyclopedia bibliography, I search the catalog for these books. The A. Emery book is not available through Evergreen-although a title search does return other options for follow-up. Evergreen owns the book by Fagerstrom and it is available. I’ll locate it in the stacks and check out the books around it on the shelves for other potential sources. Checking the subject headings under the Fagerstrom book leads to another potential source-Reef Evolution by Rachel Wood.
5. Due to time constraints, I need to limit my journal database searches to full-text only. To lend credence to my research and reduce the need to verify sources, I further limit my search to peer-reviewed sources. I begin with the interdisciplinary H.W. Wilson. Using keyword “coral reef damage” yielded 17 hits while a subject search of “coral reef conservation” yielded no hits. I could follow up on the keyword searches. To find other sources, I could search some of the other subject headings I found during my earlier research. Since my topic is “Water and Science”, I decide to check out the scientific databases. I notice Biological and Agricultural Index plus full-text is part of H.W. Wilson which I have already researched. I move on to BioOne. A full-text search yields 53 hits. An article titled Ratcheting Down the Coral Reefs looks interesting. Going back to the science databases, I locate Nature.com. A keyword search yields 260 hits. I need to further refine my search; however, I make note of three articles which have potential.
6. My earlier library catalog search yielded several government documents-all were released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) so I could expand my government documents search by going to their website.
7. A keyword search for “coral reef damage” on Google yields an article from the HonoluluAdvertiser. A quote by Charles Birkeland (author of the peer-reviewed journal article I located in step 5) lends authority to this Internet source.
8. What have I learned? My topic of “coral reefs” is very broad. However, my research has taken on a particular slant-that of coral reef damage and conservation. I conclude that this subject is still too broad. I could narrow my scope by choosing only damage to coral reefs or only coral reef conservation. I could also narrow my topic by geographical location. My research yielded numerous documents issued by NOAA. Charles Birkeland, an apparent expert in the field, also came up repeatedly. As both of these sources deal mainly with the U.S.-Hawaii in particular-this would be a way to narrow the scope of my topic.