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Library Terms
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Abstract:
An abstract is a summary. In some of the databases
you will find abstracts of periodical articles. An abstract
gives you an idea of the topic of the article. |
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ATHENA:
ATHENA is a virtual online catalog, offering a reference
and interlibrary loan service for VSCC students, faculty, and staff.
It represents twelve libraries within a hundred mile radius of
Nashville, Tennessee. The Nashville Public Library and the
Vanderbilt Library are included. |
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Bibliography:
A bibliography is a listing of
sources (books, periodicals, web sites, interviews, etc.) used.
Some bibliographies simply provide a bibliographic citation.
Others provide summaries or evaluations. These are called
annotated bibliographies. Sometimes bibliographies are called the
List of Works Cited. |
| Bibliographic Citation:
A citation provides one with information about sources used: author,
title, place of publication, publisher, date, etc. |
| Biography:
A biography
is a written history of a person's life. If the history is written
by that person, it is called an autobiography. |
| Boolean Logic:
Named
for English mathematician George Boole, this search method allows you to
limit or to broaden your search by use of the words "and,""or," and
"not." These words are called operators. |
| Brainstorm:
To
brainstorm, an individual searches for an idea or an inspiration.
It is used when selecting a proper keyword search term. |
| Browser:
Software used
to make navigating or searching the World Wide Web easier is called a
browser. An example is Microsoft Explorer. |
| Browsing Collection:
A
collection of current fiction and non-fiction books, CD's, and audio
books for leisure reading and listening. |
| Call Number:
A call
number is a number located in the catalog and on the spine of the
material to help you locate that material. VSCC uses a system
called Library of Congress Classification system. It groups books
on the same subject together on the shelves. |
| Citation:
A brief
credit of a source in a paper leading to the Bibliography where the
complete description of each source is given. |
| College @ Home:
College
at Home telecourse tapes are used for viewing lectures on your
television. |
| Database:
A database is
a large collection of information organized for efficient search and
retrieval. Click on
Electronic Resources to access the VSCC databases. |
| e-books:
A full text of books in electronic format are available to VSCC
Library users. |
| General Collection:
The
VSCC Library has a book collection of over 48,000 volumes. These
books can be checked out and are located on the second floor. |
Information Literacy encompasses the "ability to locate, evaluate, and
use information to become independent lifelong learners."
--Southern Association of Colleges and Schools,
Commission on Colleges
An information literate person:
•Determines
the nature and extent of the information needed,
•Accesses
needed information effectively and efficiently,
•Evaluates
information and its sources critically,
•Uses
information effectively to accomplish a specific purpose,
•Uses
information ethically and legally.
--
Association of College and Research Libraries
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| Interlibrary Loan/Document
Delivery:
Students and faculty may request books and periodical
articles from other libraries through
Interlibrary Loan. |
| Internet:
The Internet
is an electronic communications network that connects computer networks
worldwide. |
| Journals:
Journals
contain articles written by experts in a specific field. These
articles are reviewed by others in that field before they are accepted.
All will have authors listed and a bibliography. There will not be
a lot of color pictures and advertisements. |
| Keyword:
A keyword is a
significant word that is used when searching for a book or information
on a database. |
| Link:
A link points the
computer to another area of the computer or the Internet. It will
show up underlined and in a different color than the regular text. |
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Microfilm/ Microfiche:
A format of storage of periodicals where the pages
are photographed and reproduced onto film. Pages can be viewed or
printed from a film reading machine. |
| Online Catalog:
The
online catalog is an index of books and audiovisual collections by
author, title, subject, and keyword. It indicates availability and
can be accessed by computer on campus or at home. |
| Periodical:
A periodical
is a magazine or a newspaper. One needs to be able to distinguish
between a popular magazine and a scholarly journal. Each serves a
different purpose. |
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Periodical Index:
As with any index, the
periodical indexes refer one to articles that are contained in magazines
and newspapers. The VSCC library contains print indexes that can
be searched by subject. A lot of periodical indexes are
computer databases. |
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Periodical Locator:
The VSCC Periodical
Locator is a listing of all magazines and newspapers that one has access
to in the library. It indicates the date and the format of the
periodical. |
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Plagiarize:
To present the ideas or words of another as one's own on a paper or speech is to plagiarize.
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| Popular Magazines:
A
popular magazine covers news, current events, hobbies or special
interests. Articles (often with no author listed) are intended to
be read by the general public. They contain a lot of color
advertisements. |
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Reference Books:
Reference books provide definitions, quick facts,
statistics, and overviews on a topic. These books cannot be checked
out of the library. All of the books on the first floor of the VSCC
library are reference books. |
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Reserve Materials:
Instructors place books and other materials on
reserve for their classes. These materials have a more limited amount
of checkout time than the books on the circulating shelves. |
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Stacks:
Stacks are the shelves of the library where books are located.
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Tennessee Electronic Library:
TEL is available
to all citizens of Tennessee. It includes eleven Infotrac
electronic databases with information on a variety of topics.
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Uniform Resource Locator (URL):
A URL is the
address to a website or source of information on the Internet. |
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