Understanding Keywords

Search databases using keywords, such as concepts or subject phrases, that are linked together by and, or, not used to identify articles and sources.  Once you have identified your topic, selecting your keywords is pretty simple.

 1. Divide your topic into concepts/segments/pieces.

In the question, “How do the experiences of first-gen students compare based on socioeconomic status or race, ethnicity, culture, background?” The concepts are: First-generation students, socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, culture.

2. Brainstorm for synonyms and related terms.

You will need to translate these terms to keywords later when you are searching databases for articles and sources. Even if a combination of words works well in one database, you may have to change keywords to find results in another database.

Concepts: first generation socioeconomic race
Related terms: first-gen household income national origin
first in family financial aid historically under engaged

3. Create your search by combining your keywords using and, or, not.

    • And is used to narrow your search. Results returned will contain both sets of keywords.
    • Or is used to expand your search.  Results returned will return either keyword.
    • Not will limit your search and will exclude a keyword from the results.

You can also use parentheses to combine your search strings:

(first generation OR first-gen) and (socioeconomic OR financial aid)

4.  Follow the database-specific language.

As you do your searching, keep track of the words that appear in the detailed descriptions, or records, of your results list in the fields that will be labeled with headings such as subjects, descriptors, or subject headings.   These synonyms and related terms are the specific vocabulary used to describe your search term in that database or discipline.  Using these in your search can often improve your search results by making it more accurate and efficient/less time.

Aja Bettencourt-McCarthy joins UC Libraries as Science & Engineering Global Services Librarian

Aja Bettencourt-McCarthyAja Bettencourt-McCarthy joined the University of Cincinnati Libraries on February 1, 2023 as the science & engineering global services librarian.

Aja holds an MLIS degree from University of Washington and Bachelor’s degrees (French, community and regional development) from the University of California, Davis.

Aja may be a familiar face to many as she comes to UC Libraries from the Faculty Enrichment Center, located in the Walter C. Langsam Library, where she was the manager of special projects and programs.  Aja brings a wealth of experience in science and engineering academic librarianship, including previous positions in instruction and public services. Prior to arriving at UC, Aja was the STEM instruction librarian at the University of Kentucky (UK). Before UK, she worked as instruction coordinator / head of public services at the Oregon Institute of Technology’s Library.

Welcome, Aja to UC Libraries!

Scholar@UC and the New NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy

Join us for Scholar@UC and the New NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy

Event: Scholar@UC Informational and Chat

Date: Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023

Time: 1-3:30pm

Location: Donald C. Harrison Health Sciences Library, 231 Albert Sabin Way

Did you know that Scholar@UC enables the UC community to share research and scholarly works with a worldwide audience? Do you how it can help you with the new NIH Data Management and Sharing Policy?

Come interact with Scholar developers and learn how you can simultaneously meet grant and publisher requirements while also contributing to the intellectual output of UC.

The Scholar Team will present for ~15 minutes at 1:30pm and 2:30pm. The rest of the time will be reserved for individuals to dialog with team members about Scholar.

Need more incentive, join us during this time and receive a free Scholar@UC coffee mug filled with Lindor Truffles!

event flyer

Announcing the 2021/22 UC Libraries Annual Progress Report: A Year of New Beginnings…

annual progress report header

Announcing the 2021-22 University of Cincinnati Libraries Annual Progress Report: A Year of New Beginnings…a year that saw the broad return of students, faculty and staff to campus for fall semester. The transition from virtual to in-person was an extensive process as library spaces were re-evaluated to allow for a safe return to working and studying on campus. We welcomed students, faculty and staff back to campus with refreshed spaces, enhanced safety protocols for social distancing and a revived appreciation for working together in person.

The year also saw the announcement of our renewed Strategic Framework: NEXT Directions. The University of Cincinnati’s NEXT Lives Here Strategic Directions focus on the core areas of Academic Excellence, Urban Impact and the Innovation Agenda in order to engage people and ideas – and to transform the world. The University of Cincinnati Libraries is key to what’s NEXT.

In this Annual Report, we look back at the top News & Events, applaud Staff Accomplishments & Milestones and look at the Libraries By the Numbers and Financially.

While we celebrate the accomplishments of the past academic year, we also continue to move forward in pursuit of our vision of being the globally engaged, intellectual commons of the university – positioning ourselves as the hub of collaboration, digital innovation and scholarly endeavor on campus and beyond. I invite you to be a part of our journey – a journey led by our Guiding Principles of Investment in our People; Diversity, Equity & Inclusion; and Digital Transformation.

The Annual Progress Report is available online via Sway. Happy Reading!

UC Libraries resources in celebration of Black History Month

UC Libraries presents resources and collections in celebration of Black History Month.

black history month graphic

Louise Shropshire: An Online Exhibition
An online exhibit featuring Louise Shropshire a Cincinnati Civil Rights pioneer and composer.

Theodore M. Berry Papers Project
An exhibit highlighting the 2010 project to completely process the papers of Theodore Moody Berry, Cincinnati’s first African mayor.

Marian Spencer: Fighting for Equality in Cincinnati
An alumna of the University of Cincinnati (Class of 1942), Marian Spencer fought for Civil Rights in Cincinnati for nearly seventy years. This exhibit examines her career and her papers at the Archives and Rare Books Library.

The Colored Citizen
Published in Cincinnati sporadically from the height of the Civil War in 1863 until approximately 1869, The Colored Citizen was edited by a group of African American citizens from Midwestern cities, including Cincinnati. It was a paper with general news, but with a focus on the political, economic, and cultural affairs that had an impact on African Americans of the age. The Archives and Rare Books Library hold one issue of this paper.

Phillis Wheatley
In 1773, at the age of 20, Wheatley published Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral, making her the first published African-American poet.

Lucy Oxley
Source article highlighting Lucy Oxley, MD, the first person of color ever to receive a medical degree from the College of Medicine. Continue reading

UCBA Library’s February Spotlight: Fiction

by Christian Boyles

The UCBA Library is excited to showcase titles in our collection which we hope will be of interest.  We will feature different genres, authors, or themes, so watch for new titles at the start of each month. Spotlight titles can be found at the Library’s Information Desk. 

collage of book covers

February’s Spotlight is Fiction. 

  • Water Dancer by Ta-Nehisi Coates 
  • The Love Songs of W.E.B. Du Bois by Honorée Fanonne Jeffers 
  • Harlem Shuffle by Colson Whitehead 
  • Libertie by Kaitlyn Greenidge 

Interested in more fiction titles? Ask Us! 

Research Lightning Talks at UCBA Library

by Lauren Wahman

title banner reads Research Lightning Talks. Conversation. Collaboration.Action. Sponsored by the UC Blue Ash Library

Tuesday March 28, 2023 from 12:30-1:30 pm
Learning & Teaching Center Room (Muntz Hall 117)
Registration: via Faculty Development OneStop

These 5-minute presentations showcase current research efforts of UCBA faculty, spark conversation, encourage collaboration, and inspire action within the UCBA community.

Presentations:

  • Matt Bennett, Media Communications & Technology
    Social Media as Culture Industry
  • Jen Carter, Behavioral Science & Lori Wortylko, Business & Economics
    UCBA Student Experiences with Canvas
  • Matt Norman, History, Philosophy & Political Science
    Knowing Him by Heart: African Americans on Abraham Lincoln
  • Yoshi Odaka, Biology
    Molecular Dissection of Brain-Eating Amoeba Cousin

Xin Gu Joins RDS Team as GIS Research Consultant

The UC Libraries Research and Data Services Unit is pleased to welcome Xin Gu to our team as the GIS Research Consultant.

Xin Gu is a doctoral candidate from the Department of Geography and GIS at the University of Cincinnati (UC). Before joining UC, he received master’s degrees in Criminal Justice and GIS, respectively. His current research examines the impact of business closure and mobility reduction during COVID-19 on crime. Xin has several research papers published in Cities, Social Science Computer Review, Computers, Environment and Urban Systems, and ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information. He also serves as a research fellow for the Institute for Research in Sensing and a GIS research consultant for the Geology-Mathematics-Physics library at UC, enabling him to spread geographical knowledge to the rest of the campus and beyond. In his spare time, he likes to play badminton and practice Yoga.

His consultation hours will be Tues, Wed and Thurs from 10:30 to 5 pm. Xin is here to help you understand how to use GIS software, think about project plans, and find data for your project.  He can share information, offer advice, and even partner on certain projects (on a case by case basis). Please come by the Data & GIS Collab, located in the Geology Math and Physics Library (240 Braunstein Hall).

Image of Man standing next to a sign.  The sign reads Data and GIS Collab