WRT 102

Simply put, a database is a collection of information, often organized by information type (for example, research articles or films) or subject (for example, psychology or music). Here at SBU, we have many different types of databases. Some of our databases are for streaming video or audio, some are for art images, and some are for literature. Some databases are free and open to the public ("open access"), and other databases require a subscription. For your WRT 102 class, you might be especially interested in using our subscription databases that provide access to peer-reviewed journal articles or newspaper articles. The below tutorials will help you understand the basics of how to use some of our most popular databases to find what you need for your research paper. To see a larger list of recommended databases without accompanying video tutorials, click on the "Find Articles" tab.

Academic Search Complete

A large multidisciplinary EBSCO database that many WRT 102 students use to find high quality sources for their research papers. 

Content of Academic Search Complete includes:

• More than 6300 active full-text journals and magazines
• More than 5700 active full-text peer-reviewed journals
• Multiple disciplines in the arts and sciences

​***Note, Academic Search Complete is one of over 60 EBSCO databases that University Libraries subscribes to. The other EBSCO databases look very similar, but index different content. For example, Business Source Complete has content on business-related topics, and ERIC has content on education-related topics. You can explore all the EBSCO databases by clicking on "Choose Databases" above the EBSCO search box.***

VIDEO: How to search and filter results in Academic Search Complete (vendor provided video)

SLIDE: Where is the journal title, volume, issue, and page number information in an EBSCO record??

JSTOR

An immense multidisciplinary collection of articles, books, and primary sources. 

Content of JSTOR includes:

• more than 12 million academic journal articles, books, and primary sources in 75 disciplines
  • more than 2600 academic journals from 1200 publishers and 57 countries
  • more than 85,000 ebooks
  • primary sources to support research and teaching in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences

VIDEO: A guide to using JSTOR (vendor provided video)

SLIDE: Where is the journal title, volume, issue, and page number information in a JSTOR record??

U.S. Major Dailies

Access to five major national newspapers from the United States: New York Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, and the Wall Street Journal. The content including today's news is available by 8am each day and indexes content in each publication going back to the 1980s.

Nexis Uni

An immense collection of over 15,000 news, legal, and business sources. You will not find any peer-reviewed journal articles in Nexis Uni, but it can help you find newspaper articles from thousands of different newspapers.

Here are some tutorials to help you use Nexis Uni:

VIDEO: How to search and filter in Nexis Uni (vendor provided video)

VIDEO: How to use the citation tool in Nexis Uni (vendor provided video)

VIDEO: How to search within specific sources and create Permalinks in Nexis Uni (vendor provided video)

Gale's Opposing Viewpoints

An online resource that cover's today's hottest social issues, from capital punishment to immigration to marijuana. The cross-curricular resource supports science, social studies, current events, and other subject areas. Offers content organized by information type and contains a mix of information from different views and perspectives.

VIDEOS: See all Opposing Viewpoints video tutorials here (vendor provided videos)