Web Sources
Pierce College Library. "Smart Web Search Strategies." Pierce College Library. 7 June 2012. Web. 15 July 2014. https://youtu.be/gLTmlinTmqw
Here are some of the advanced search features available in the Google search engine. Using these can help you to improve the relevancy of your search results. Each example below has a live link that will demonstrate the search in Google.
" " (double quotes) |
Use these to search for a phrase or an exact word match (not synonyms) |
| Examples: | |
| "marcellus shale" | |
| "metabolic syndrome" "college students" | |
| "grammy award winners" 2014 | |
site: |
Searches within a specific domain or website. Keep in mind that anyone can register and post information on a .com, .net, .org domain. Sites that end in a .gov, .edu, or .mil have specific registration requirements, so websites on those domains are more controlled. |
| Examples: | |
| climate change site:edu | |
| atlanta snow storm 2014 site:gov | |
| site:cnn.com california drought | |
| statistics population Pennsylvania site:gov OR site:edu | |
- (minus sign) |
Place a minus sign in front of a search word to get results that do not include that word. |
| Examples: | |
| "federal reserve" -greenspan | |
| "hillary clinton" -"bill clinton" | |
| "domestic drones" -site:gov | |
When using Web Sources:
Look for an "About Us," "Mission," or "Contacts" to find out more about the organization.
You will also want to read "laterally", across many connected sites instead of digging deep into the site at hand. You do this by looking at what other sites and resources say about the source at which you are looking. This can help you find out the author’s qualifications or the trustworthiness of the site. (Web Literacy for Student Fact-Checkers by Mike Caulfield, CC BY)
Check for sources, like "Footnotes" or "References."
No author? Try finding a better site that will tell you a bit more about who is responsble for publishing the information.
Follow the steps below to learn better research skills:
1. Start Smart 2. Develop a Topic 3. Find Information NEXT STEP: 4. Evaluate 5. Cite Sources