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Home > Research Help > Engineering > engineering journals
 | | | Journal articles are an important source of scholarly informatin for scientists and engineers. To find journal articles you need to search indexes which, these days, are called databases. Search strategies will differ by database and the type of information you are tyring to find. This Guide provides informaiton on general database search tips, how to find the article once you have the citation, links to a list of databases for engineers, and information on how to get articles delivered to you. |
| | | More often than not, each database has a different way to present its information. Some are more intuitive and easier to search. However there are certain things all good searchers do before begining a search in any database. - Think about whether you know what you're looking for or do you have no idea about what you're looking for? If you're uncertain about what you're looking for then using the default or general keyword search field is probably a good idea. If you know your topic might give you many results, try limiting your terms to specific fields like the title or subject fields, your results will be more precise.
- When doing an author search look at how the database formats their author entries. Is it last name, full first name, last name; or first name and initial; or some other variant. Do they use a comma between the last name and the first name? If the database has an author thesaurus or index for authors use it. It can save you time and frustration trying to think of all the variations of an author's name.
- If the database has a search history feature it can often be better to build your search in steps then combine the search steps in the search history. This allows you to mix and match your terms together without having to do a lot of retyping.
- Confused about where to start? Not having any luck finding anything on your topic? Have way too much and don't know how to narrow the topic down? Contact your departmental librarian.
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| | | Different databases have varying degrees of full text articles available within the database. If you have been searching for articles in a database that does not have full text available, you have several options to find the full text of the article. - When you are in the database always look for the JHU SFX link.
This link will help you move between the database, the full text of the journal, or the Libraries' catalog. In some databases the link may look slightly different, but it will work the same.
- If there is no JHU SFX link in the database, you will then need to check the JHU Libraries catalog to see if we own the journal that contains your article.
Tips for finding journals in the JHU Libraries catalog.
- You can find journal articles indexed in Google, Yahoo or other web search engines. However, that doesn't always mean you can find the full text of the article or all the articles by an author. Sometimes the Web links don't take you to the actual journal article, either it is just a citation in someone else's paper or they take you to the journal but you have to be a subscriber to get the actual article. Also, most search engines still do not index articles that are in databases, so be careful if all you use is a web search engine to find articles you will be missing articles that might be important to your research.
- Here's a list of the electronic science and engineeirng journals that JHU subscribes to. The list is only updated occassionally so it's always best to check the catalog for the most recent information, but sometimes, a list is nice.
- Need help? Contact your departmental librarian.
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| | Engineers and scientists often need information from a wide variety of sources depending on the problems they are trying to solve. Because fields in engineering and science are often so interdisciplinary there is not one database that indexes all the journals in either science or engineering. The Library has over 400 databases. One way to find databases is HERMES, Hopkins Electronic Resource Management System. Having trouble deciding where to start, want to know more about a particular database, or need help searching a database? Contact the librarian for your department. Back to top |
| | | So you found an article, then you found the journal title in the catalog, but the holdings record says the volume you want is at the Libraries Service Center (LSC). If the article you need is in a journal that is at LSC you can request to have that article scanned and e-mailed to you. This service is fast and free to you. Details. Faculty and graduate students use Eisenhower Expres to have journal articles delivered to yourr Homewood campus offices. Details Back to top |
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