Chapter 5 Reference Sources -- Selecting the Right Reference Source

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"Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose."--Zora Neale Thurston



 

Now that you have reviewed some of the reference sources on which researchers depend, let's practice matching an information need to the appropriate reference source.

For example, let's say you are in a book club and the other members ask you to find some information about Zora Neale Hurston, the author of the next book on the club's reading reading list entitled Every Tongue Got to Confess.

In which of the following sources would you find information about her?

Almanac, Bibliography, Biography, Directory, or Encyclopedia?

If you choose a Biography you would strike it rich with the following information:

Hurston, Zora Neale US author, ethnologist, and folklorist of Harlem Renaissance; 1st black graduate of Barnard College 1928; wrote novels "Jonah's Gourd Vine" 1934, "Their Eyes Were Watching God" 1937, "Moses, Man of the Mountain" 1939, "Seraph on the Suwanee" 1948, folklore collection "Mules and Men" 1935, autobiography "Dust Tracks on a Road" 1942, posthumous collection "I Love Myself When I Am Laughing and Then Again When I Am Looking Mean and Impressive" 1979; student of Franz Boas _1903?-1960. The Biographical Dictionary. S9 Technologies. July 23, 2003. <http://www.s9.com/biography/>

As you read the brief amount of information given above you discover that Zora Neale Hurston is a women writer who is African American. With this new information, you will be able to look her up in a literary source such as African American Women Authors and find several pages of information about her life and work.

Exercise

In the boxes below, select the reference source that best answers the the information need.

1. You need background information about cloning. Which source is a good place to start your research?

2. You are going to an interview for a new job at a national company and you want to be knowledgeable about the firm. Which source will provide useful information?

3. Your professor has asked you to find out which state has the largest land area devoted to National Parks. Where could you find statistics geographically organized?

4. Your class is doing a group research project on the uses of microwave technology and you need to become familiar with many new terms. Which is the best source?

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