For my research i changed my topic because i don't believe my cluster topic, relating to helium and balloons, would be broad enough to use with any ease. My chosen topic is how the icebergs and melting ice caps affect global warming.
The first research tool i used was Academic Search Premier. I chose this because it seems to give a broad range of results and i used it to determine how specific i would have to get with my search terms. I ended up using "global warming" as my first search term and it was sufficiently accurate. The search term yielded a medium amount of search results and i found one in them that closely matched my topic. I used an article relating to global warming and the future. I evaluated the results with relevance in title and description. I didn't have to make any adjustments to my search due to my original criteria producing usable results.
My next search was on Science Direct database. I chose it because i figured it would generate relevant results for global warming being a science specific site. For this database i used the search terms "global, warming, ice," hoping to generate results not only involving global warming but also touching on the ice caps or icebergs. These terms however didn't yield any results at all. After seeing this i narrowed my search to just "global warming," and received many relevant results. From them i chose another article on global warming and the environment. I evaluated the results, and chose the one i did, based on once again relevance of title and description to my topic. I also based my choice on how recent they were written, which luckily didn't exclude too many.
After finishing up with the databases, i proceded to the library catalog to look for a print copy relating to my topic. I learned from my previous searches that using the term global warming worked pretty well so i proceeded to use that. The search produced adequate results and i narrowed them from there with relevance and date once again. I settled on a book titled "Global Warming: Opposing Viewpoints." This search didn't take too long seemingly due to my experience with the previous two.
For my fourth source i went on the search engine "Yahoo" on the world wide web. This was by far the easiest of my sources to search due to the ability to specifiy my topic to the fullest. I was able to use the term "global warming and the polar ice caps" and still got more results than the other databases with less specific terms. I chose an article on the NRDC website regarding the melting of the arctic ice. It was easy to evaluate my results based on relevance and the site i chose was actually the first one i clicked on to examine and it ended up fitting my topic very well.
My research sources included: Academic Search Premier, Science Direct, The library webpage and Yahoo. After refining my search terms i was able to find sufficient results in the first database or search engine for each. In Academic Search Premier, i found an article titled "Changes in year-round air temperature and annual energy consumption in office building areas by urban heat-island countermeasures and energy-saving measures," by a list of Japanese scientists. In Science Direct I found the article "A modeling approach to forecast the effect of long-term climate change on lake water quality," written by another group of Japanese scientists. In the library catalog I found a bok titled "Global Warming: Opposing Viewpoints," by Cynthia A. Bily. Finally on Yahoo.com I was linked to an article on NRDC titled "Global Warming Puts the Arctic on Thin Ice." I kept the title, and author when applicable for each source of information. I also kept links with exact web addresses for each of my sources and included them in bibliography.
I learned that there are many counter measures being tested to fight off the pending effects of global warming.
To continue my research i would honestly continue looking on Yahoo or similar search engines as they generated the most and easiest to navigate information. If i had to choose another database to look in i would look to "lexis-nexis" for further information. But given the choice i would continue on the World Wide Web. Two more questions to further my topic are: What is the world, and specifically the US, planning or doing to combat global warming; What is the current rate that the polar ice caps are melting at and how does it compare to 10,20 and 50 years ago?
Bibliography:
The World Wide Web: Global Warming Puts the Arctic on Thin Ice. http://www.nrdc.org/globalWarming/qthinice.asp
The Library Catalog: Global Warming: Opposing Viewpoints. http://libcat.csueastbay.edu/search?/Xglobal+and+warming+and+ice&SORT=D/Xglobal+and+warming+and+ice&SORT=D&SUBKEY=global%20and%20warming%20and%20ice/1%2C2%2C2%2CB/frameset&FF=Xglobal+and+warming+and+ice&SORT=D&1%2C1%2C
Science Direct: http://134.154.30.15:2058/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6VBS-4PMJB5J-1&_user=521381&_coverDate=12%2F16%2F2007&_alid=648105352&_rdoc=7&_fmt=full&_orig=search&_cdi=5934&_sort=d&_docanchor=&view=c&_ct=2468&_acct=C000059560&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=521381&md5=be6aef4122efc29ac740d77b5a302649
Academic Search Premier: http://134.154.30.15:2058/science?_ob=ArticleURL&_udi=B6V1T-4PK8B8T-4&_user=521381&_coverDate=01%2F31%2F2008&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=C000059560&_version=1&_urlVersion=0&_userid=521381&md5=ad2be8d9b9d53a0bc7ca73b6fe6a9dce
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I'm sorry you chose to change your topic. Please don't give up so easily. You can find information on helium and balloons if you want to.
Based on your current choice, which is a very broad topic and easily searched in a general way, you did a good job of starting your research and completing this review assignment. I am glad you provided the Persistent URLs for your examples. I was able to view them with no difficulty.
This type of work is introductory, however, because you started a new topic and because you selected something so broad. If you were going to write a research paper, you'd need to narrow it down.
I also have concerns with your statement that you'd continue using the Web. While that is perfectly valid (you selected an authoritative site for your example) in itself, it's not valid to search exclusively on the Web.
With the two topic questions that you developed, in order to be thorough, you'd need to search political and news sources for the first and scientific sources for the second.
By Sunday, you will be able to view your grade on BlackBoard. Your grade is based on the appropriateness of the information you collected and your ability to develop and evaluate research processes and strategies. I am deducting a point, however, for your decision to change your topic, not because you have chosen a bad topic, but because you didn't stick with your cluster topic and chose to take the easy way out.
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