Resources for Student Inquiry and Research
The Structure of Scientific Literature
The following content is excerpted from the "IMSA Research and Information Skills Guide" by staff members Dr. Don Dosch, Mr. Chris Jocius, Dr. Susan Styer, and Mr. Joe Traina.
Literature can be roughly divided into 3 categories: Primary, Secondary, and Tertiary. Primary literature contains original reports of scientific and technical investigators. Secondary literature is that which has been derived from primary literature. Tertiary literature consists of guides which aid in the use of primary and secondary sources and does not contain subject knowledge.
Primary Literature
1. Periodicals. This is the bulk (95%) of the primary literature. It consists of journals (i.e. Science, Nature, JAMA), bulletins, transactions, proceedings that appear regularly and continuously in numbered sequence. The contents range from basic to applied research. The articles are reviewed by subject experts who critically evaluate the submitted work before approving publication. Periodicals are published by professional societies, research institutes, and university experiment stations.
2. Conference papers . These are publications of technical talks given at professional society meetings.
3. Research monographs. These are separately published reports on original research that are too long and/or too specialized for publication in a standard journal.
4. Research reports. These are progress reports from research organizations doing work under government contract.
5. Preprints. These are research-in-progress reports to fellow scientists working in the same field. They are sent out to keep others informed of the latest findings and to get feedback before a paper is sent in for publication in a periodical.
6. Patents. Inventions must be original to be patented and this makes patents part of the primary literature. Often it is the only published description of the idea or application.
7. Standard. This is usually a pamphlet or technical publication describing acceptable levels of dimension, quality, or performance of a material, product, or process. They are issued by trade associations, technical societies, and government agencies.
8. Dissertations and theses. These are reports of original research done in partial fulfillment for an advanced degree at a university. Often, the dissertation or thesis is subdivided into several parts for articles which are then published in technical or scientific journals. Theses and dissertations are still important because they contain details of procedures and an extensive literature review which can be used as a bibliographic starting point.
9. Festschriften. These are compilations of scholarly papers honoring a distinguished scientist, scientific society, or scientific event. Each technical paper is usually related to some aspect of the subject's work.
10. Manufacturers' literature. This is often the only source of specific information about a particular product or its development. It includes data sheets, price lists and technical bulletins.
Secondary Literature
1. Survey Type. Represents assimilation of scientific knowledge, derived through compaction of information.
a. Review. A subject survey of the primary literature. This covers material published since the last and most recent review. Good for keeping up in the field or obtaining a bibliography, but the material is not the most up-to-date.
b. Treatise. A comprehensive compilation of known information on a subject. Not up-to-date, but good for acquiring a foundation in a subject so an individual can do research in that area.
c. Encyclopedia. An idea book. It summarizes data for background knowledge and orientation in a new subject area.
d. Textbooks. Need more be said?
2. Repackaged Information. These are reference tools for rapid access to specific pieces of information on topics.
a. Dictionary. Defines scientific terms as simply as possible without using other technical terms.
b. Handbook. A compilation of specific data or procedures in table, graph, and diagram form. Usually for readers with broad knowledge in the field because it has symbols, equations, and other technical language to keep it condensed.
c. Tables. These are standard reference data, such as physical and chemical properties of materials.
d. Data banks. A compilation of numerical, statistical data in machine readable form.
3. Index Type. Those which index selected portions of the primary literature and are aids in finding what has been published on a given subject. This includes the following:
a. Journal Indexes. A detailed alphabetical list of names, terms, topics, etc. in a completed work with exact page references to material discussed in that work.
b. Bibliographies. A list of references that may be annotated to sources related to a given subject.
c. Indexing serials. A regularly issued compilation of titles of articles that appear in current primary journals.
d. Abstracting serials. Regularly issued compilation of concise summaries of research articles.
e. Bibliographic databases. Current bibliography, indexing, or abstracting serial in machine readable form.
Tertiary Literature
1. Directory or Yearbook. An alphabetical listing of names, addresses of people, etc. belonging to a particular group. They can be simple, such as an annual membership list, or complex, such as a "who's who" type.
2. Literature guides . A manual to help users find their way through the literature of a specific field.
3. Lists of Research in Progress. These are published by research institutes.
Where the Internet fits in
The Internet can be a source of primary, secondary, or tertiary literature. It can also be a source of misinformation. Just because someone puts something on the net does not mean that it is valid, accepted, and correct information. You must carefully screen the information and judge its validity.
The information can range from what is called “vanity” publications to the very scholarly. It is easiest to assess the quality of the scholarly publications. For instance, many scientific journals now publish an online version. The material that appears in these has gone through the publication process so it is equivalent to the paper journal. Other scientific organizations (National Academy of Science, or NASA, for example) offer some of their publications on the net. These types of publications can be trusted, as they have gone through some type of peer evaluation. A sample collection of reputable Internet Resources may serve as a guide to assessing the validity of on-line information.
Vanity publications are harder to judge. It may be something that contains information of great value, but it has not undergone scrutiny by peer evaluation. These electronic publications may be much less formal than those put out by scientific organizations and can change frequently. You should even by wary of information published for or about a university course by the professor who teaches the course.
How do you evaluate the information? One way is to check the information with other sources that you can trust. If that is not possible, ask some of the following questions:
Why is the web site supported? What is the authority of the moderators? How complete is the information? How does it compare to related sources? If the information is not complete, how was the selection made of what to have there? When was the information last updated? Remember, there is much more variation in the information available on the web compared to printed information, and you need to develop skills to evaluate this information.