Explore Databases
- Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window A multidisciplinary database providing full-text access to scholarly and popular journals in broad areas of academic study, as well as indexing and abstracts of additional titles unavailable in full text. Coverage: 1990-present.
- America History and Life This link opens in a new window Article abstracts and some full-text articles on the history and culture of the United States and Canada from the prehistoric era to the present, drawn from international periodicals from 1954 to the present.
- Sociological Abstracts This link opens in a new window Indexes the international literature in sociology and related disciplines in the social and behavioral sciences. Provides abstracts of journal articles and citations of book reviews as well as abstracts of books, book chapters, dissertations, and conference papers. Coverage dates from 1952 to the present.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new window Full-text access to thousands of scholarly journals covering the humanities, social sciences, and sciences, plus monographs and other academic materials.
- Arts (Proquest) This link opens in a new window Search across journal articles, historic periodicals, newspapers and dissertations to find scholarly and popular analyses on topics in fine arts, fashion, design, film, music, dance and theater.
- MLA International Bibliography This link opens in a new window The Modern Language Association of America's database of journal articles, books, dissertations, working papers, proceedings, and bibliographies covering scholarship on literature, language and linguistics, folklore, literary theory and criticism, dramatic arts, printing, publishing, rhetoric, and composition, with coverage from 1926 to the present.
To identify databases focused on other subject areas, check our Research Guides page.
Databases are searchable collections of articles and other materials.
Scholarly, peer-reviewed journals are periodicals written by and for scholars. They are particularly important for formal, college-level research papers.
Magazines are periodicals aimed for public readership. Magazines with thoughtful, critical articles on culture, literature, places, people and the arts include the following titles:
- The New Yorker American magazine known for its cultural, creative and political writing.
- The Atlantic Monthly You can search this in the database Academic Search Complete. "Features articles for the general reader, reports & comments on recent events in history, humor, fiction, poetry, arts & leisure, & book reviews."
- Harper's Magazine Culture, literature, politics.
- New York Review of Books Literary-intellectual magazine founded in 1963.
Newspapers are designed to offer the most current information available. Older newspapers can be used to understand the attitudes and beliefs of a particular time.
For databases specializing in newspapers, check the Colby Libraries Newspaper Guide.
Database filters can make your search results more manageable and easier to compare. Limit by format, dates, publication or subject area.
Find Articles in a Known Magazine or Newspaper
Want to see if Colby has a subscription to a particular magazine or journal? On the Colby Libraries home page click on the "Journals and Articles" tab. 
Once the orange bar has moved down, enter the publication's name in the search box. 
Note that Colby also has arrangements with the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal that enable Colby students to have their own FREE digital subscriptions to those publications. Sign up HERE.
MLA Citation Help
- OWL Purdue MLA Formatting & Style Guide The OWL Purdue citation guides provide clear instructions and examples of the correct formatting of citations.
MLA Handbook by
Relied on by generations of writers, the MLA Handbook is published by the Modern Language Association and is the only official, authorized book on MLA style. The new, ninth edition builds on the MLA's unique approach to documenting sources using a template of core elements--facts, common to most sources, like author, title, and publication date--that allows writers to cite any type of work, from books, e-books, and journal articles in databases to song lyrics, online images, social media posts, dissertations, and more. With this focus on source evaluation as the cornerstone of citation, MLA style promotes the skills of information and digital literacy so crucial today. The many new and updated chapters make this edition the comprehensive, go-to resource for writers of research papers, and anyone citing sources, from business writers, technical writers, and freelance writers and editors to student writers and the teachers and librarians working with them. Intended for a variety of classroom contexts--middle school, high school, and college courses in composition, communication, literature, language arts, film, media studies, digital humanities, and related fields--the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook offers *New chapters on grammar, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, numbers, italics, abbreviations, and principles of inclusive language *Guidelines on setting up research papers in MLA format with updated advice on headings, lists, and title pages for group project *Revised, comprehensive, step-by-step instructions for creating a list of works cited in MLA format that are easier to learn and use than ever before *A new appendix with hundreds of example works-cited-list entries by publication format, including websites, YouTube videos, interviews, and more *Detailed examples of how to find publication information for a variety of sources *Newly revised explanations of in-text citations, including comprehensive advice on how to cite multiple authors of a single work *Detailed guidance on footnotes and endnotes *Instructions on quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing, and avoiding plagiarism *A sample essay in MLA format *Annotated bibliography examples *Numbered sections throughout for quick navigation *Advanced tips for professional writers and scholars
Call Number: LB2369 .M52 2021 Colby Miller 1st Floor Research Librarians Alcove Reference. Also Colby Miller 1st Floor Research Librarians AlcoveISBN: 9781603293518Publication Date: 2021-04-06
Reference Sources
- Provide helpful overviews
- Help you identify search terms
- Allow topic exploration
- Oxford English Dictionary This link opens in a new window The full text online version of the Oxford English Dictionary contains both the complete Second Edition and the New Edition in progress.
- Credo General Reference This link opens in a new window A search engine covering hundreds of reference works, including dictionaries, encyclopedias, thesauruses, and books of quotations, plus subject-specific titles covering topics such as arts, business, history, law, literature, medicine, music, philosophy, psychology, religion, science, and technology.
Exploratory Research is like a forest with many paths to choose from. Photo David Shea, cropped (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Use a Research Log to map your paths. You are welcome to copy this blank template. Go to File, "Make a Copy."
- Research Log FormOr download a word copy of the form.
Explore Primary Sources
For an extensive list of primary sources, see the Colby Libraries Primary Sources Guide
- Local Museums, Archives, Historical Societies
- Local College & University Special Collections
- Colby Libraries Newspaper Guide
- Government records
Primary Source search terms to use on the web with your topic:
- "digital collections"
- "oral histories"
- diaries
- manuscripts
Primary Source Databases:
- HathiTrust This link opens in a new window A digital library containing assets from over 100 research libraries, with document types including books, images, images, music scores, newspapers, and videos. Use the yellow "Log In" button to find and select Colby College, then follow the login prompts.
- Ancestry Library This link opens in a new window Ancestry.com's online search tool, providing access to a collection of documents -- including census data, birth, marriage, and death records, almanacs, and newspapers -- meant to facilitate genealogical research.
- Women's Magazine Archive This link opens in a new window This is a searchable, full-text archive of 12 leading American women’s magazines. including Essence, Good Housekeeping and Ladies’ Home Journal, which serve as canonical records of evolving assumptions about gender roles and cultural mores. In combination, the publications cover topics such as family life, home economics, health, careers, fashion, and culture. 1846-2005
View from the Cliff, Ripogenus Falls, Maine (NYPL CC0 1.0)
Searching Tips in Databases & the Library Catalog
KEYWORD SEARCHES
- Experiment with different search combinations, using synonyms and related terms.
- Use an asterisk to stand in for multiple word endings: narrat* = narrate, narrates, narration, narrator
- Use quotation marks to "glue together" a phrase: "stream of consciousness"
- Use AND between terms to narrow results to items containing both terms: sex* AND identity
- Using OR between items (within parenthesis) widens results: (freedom OR liberty)
- Combine terms to build search strings.
SUBJECT SEARCHES
Find an item of interest using a keyword search? Look at its item record to identify Subject Terms. These links group material together by topic which can yield more precise results. Sample subject headings:
- Cities and Towns
- City Planning (state name)
- Dwellings (state name)
- Families
- Gentrification
- Massachusetts History
- Place Attachment
- Public Spaces
Note that searching a broad subject in CBBcat can lead to a further list of sub-divisions. These can be helpful in focusing your research.
CITATION TRAILS
Check the notes, references and bibliographies of every relevant article or book. You may discover more books and articles of interest.
Look for BOOK TITLES in CBBcat or MaineCat
Put ARTICLE TITLES in OneSearch or Google Scholar to get access to full-text. (Try just first part of title in quotes along with author's last name.)
Photo: The Look, Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
OneSearch
- OneSearch should only be used for very precise searches, such as:
- Finding an known article by searching its title
- Finding book reviews for a specific book
- Finding articles or book chapters on lesser-known people or narrow topics
- Use limiters! E.g. journal articles, scholarly material, book chapters, book reviews
- It's usually NOT good for searching broad topics. Instead use CBBcat or recommended databases.
More Guides & Tutorials
Explore our Book Catalog
SEARCH our library catalog.
To focus on books, change the 2nd drop-down to Books & E-books.
Books in Miller, Olin or Bixler Library? Ask for directions at a library Service Desk.
Books at the Colby Storage Facility, Bates or Bowdoin? To order click 
You will be notified by email when your request is available to pickup at the Miller Service Desk.
Not finding what you want in CBBcat?
Look on the CBBcat search result page for a link to MaineCat, which expands your search to other Maine libraries.
Books photo by Julochka (2014). Creative Commons license 2.0.
Librarian
Tips for Using Google
Don't use Google to find scholarly material - Use library databases or the library catalog.
Use Google with crafted searches to find digital primary sources at archives, museums and academic institutions; alternative voices; zines and community organizations.
Search precisely - Beware of common words or words that have multiple meanings. Specify as much as possible, but also explore alternative phrasing. Use the names of known, trusted people to get recommendations of reliable online sites and publications. Add terms that focus on the type of material desired. Examples: "digital collections", zine, "literary journal", "literary magazine", "oral histories"
Use "Advanced Search" - On your Google search results page, click on Settings. Use supplied fields to carefully map choices. The "Site or Domain" field can be useful in limiting your results to government information (.gov) or items created at educational institutions (.edu).
Evaluate Extremely Carefully! - Do separate searches of source creators, authors and publications. What are their values and motivations of site creators? Are they getting their information from reliable sources and interpreting evidence fairly and intelligently? Who is the intended audience?
Know the Limitations of Web Searching - Most scholarly articles are either not found by search engines or are behind paywalls. Information is sorted and ranked according to commercial/consumer/popular considerations. Information is not vetted for accuracy or reliability.