Google Scholar can be a helpful tool for discovering scholarly resources, but what happens when they’re behind a paywall? No need to worry; you can link your library account to Google Scholar and gain access to anything available through the UNT Libraries. Check out our Library Hacks video below to learn how:
Do you have an idea for a video you would like to see? Feel free to share it in the comments! As always, if you have any questions or need help with your research, contact Ask Us.
Written by: Madan Mohan
Did you know that government documents are a great resource that can be used for your research? The Government Publishing Office (GPO), generally known as GovPubs, has a plethora of information that produces, distributes, and provides free access to documents from the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the federal government. UNT is one of the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) institutions that hold documents published by GPO, which are free for public access. FDLP is a national library consortium that archives, catalogs, and stores information for public use. GPO uses a separate system to organize these documents called the Superintendent of Documents Classification system, generally referred to as the SuDoc. Like the Library of Congress, GovPubs covers a wide range of topics such as legal research, health, government and politics, financial assistance, agriculture, science & technology, education, and much more. These documents can be accessed in various formats including print, electronic, monographs, serials, maps, CDs, DVDs, microfilm & and microfiche. In the present-day, government documents are mostly published digitally and are archived through several resources like FDLP.
Where can we find government documents? There are a few ways that we can access or request Government Documents for free. Metalib is a search engine that looks for articles, reports, and citations in various federal government databases. This website has an A-to-Z list of 72 resources available that cover a wide range of subjects. Another useful resource that is important for finding government documents is the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP); this website could help the user find government information, including the various formats available for public use. Furthermore, UNT holds access to electronic resources and information that are archived through multiple databases and can be searched by subject under “Government Information.” Access to these documents and databases are readily available for UNT students. Moreover, the public can gain free access to different monographs, serials, articles, etc., through Interlibrary Loan.
Our UNT LibGuides have a list of comprehensive directories and guides that link to government resources that patrons can access to research at https://guides.library.unt.edu/government-information. UNT library Government Agencies: U.S. Federal guide has a list of the legislative branch, executive branch, judicial branch, and independent agencies links. Another useful resource that’s free for public use is The United States Government Manual. This website holds the Federal Government’s official handbook by National Archives, which stores all electronic editions digitally, and is readily available for viewing and downloading as pdf at Govinfo.gov (United States Government Manual).
Small judge gavel photo by Sora Shimazaki licensed under Pexels
UNT also has a Citations & Style Guide for legal and government documents that give specific information on citing legal documents.
Please leave a comment letting us know about your experience with these resources.
Feel free to contact Ask Us if you need help with your research, or contact our Government Information experts Bobby Griffith and Robbie Sittel.
The Scholar Speak team has created several brief “Library Hacks” videos. You can learn a helpful skill in just two minutes, like searching for articles by title, using Boolean operators, or linking Google Scholar to your library account.
Check out our video on Boolean operators here:
All our Library Hacks videos can be found on Microsoft Stream. You will need to log in with your UNT email and password.
What topics would you like to see videos on?
Please feel free to leave a comment letting us know, and as always, contact Ask Us with your research and library questions.
Written By: Madison Brents
Welcome back for the Spring semester!
While everything feels different this semester, one thing has stayed the same: the beginning of the semester search for cheap textbooks. While the library does not purchase textbooks, we have ways of helping students find textbooks online while respecting copyright. Although not always guaranteed, we have managed to help some students find books for their classes in these six places.
This semester will be busy enough, don’t do it alone. Questions about how to do academic research, library hours, or services? Want to know how to get a laptop? Ask Us! We are happy to help by chat, text, email, phone, and in-person.
Written by: Anima Bajracharya
Whether you are writing a thesis, dissertation, or research paper, it is crucial to access prior literature and research findings. Academic research databases make it easy to locate the literature you are looking for, and UNT Libraries is an excellent start for your research. UNT Libraries have great subscription-based databases and other online resources that are fully accessible to all current UNT students, faculty and staff members from virtually anywhere in the world. Subscription-based databases consist of published journals, reports, newspapers, magazines, documents, books, image collections, and many more. Libraries subscribe to and provide these resources for their patrons.
Due to the pandemic sticking around, many students, faculty, and staff members are trying to access electronic resources from off-campus for their research assignments. When working on your research off-campus you might encounter an article or other resources that are of your research interest, but when you try to access it, the resource is behind a paywall. If you are faculty, staff or a currently enrolled student, then you will be asked to log in using your EUID and EUID password to access most of the subscription-based electronic databases. But if you need many electronic resources from the UNT libraries databases for your research assignments, then UNT has various proxy access tools that may help access those materials from off-campus.
When I need to access electronic resources, one method that I find convenient is connecting through UNT’s Virtual Private Network (VPN). UNT’s VPN is very beneficial and reliable if you need to access electronic resources that are only available on the UNT Network. You can simply download and install the AnyConnect VPN client on your personal device and log in using your EUID and EUID password. You can find information on the installation of AnyConnect VPN: https://it.unt.edu/installing-vpn-client. It is easy to use, and once you are connected to VPN, you can access the library’s electronic resources just like you would using UNT library computers. Some other options for Proxy access tools that UNT provides are Bookmarklet, EZProxy redirect extension (Chrome), and link builder. You may find more information on these library proxy tools: https://library.unt.edu/proxy-tools/.
You may also find more information about on and off-campus access to Electronic Resources: https://library.unt.edu/services/on-off-campus-access/.
While accessing the electronic resources from off-campus, if you encounter any troubleshooting issues you can always contact Ask Us or leave a comment below.
Written by: Frances Chung
As most of us are well-aware, fake news and unsupported claims are common throughout the internet and our social media feeds. Many fake news websites have been identified and consistently debunked, as listed on Wikipedia, but still, attract regular readers. At the same time, social media platforms are experimenting with methods for creating “friction,” so users take more time to consider a story before sharing (Bond, 2020). For example, Twitter labels misleading or disputed claims and in extreme cases, hides them behind warnings and requires users to add their own comments before sharing or replying.
So what does media and information literacy (MIL) have to do with fake news? According to UNESCO (2017), MIL “empowers citizens to understand the functions of media and other information providers, to critically evaluate their content, and to make informed decisions.” Therefore, an information literate person can better assess how credible a piece of information is and recognize its emotional appeals. As access to information increases, more schools and libraries are offering MIL education. Through the UNT Libraries, students have access to this Information Literacy Tutorial, which also covers how to get started with a research project.
When you come across a questionable piece of news, there are simple ways to determine if it is fake, from researching the source and author to looking further into the article and its sources. Satire is commonly published alongside real news or based on actual events, so if something seems unreal, it could be a joke. If you are unsure, ask experts such as librarians to help you find background information or suggest research strategies. Additionally, many websites specialize in fact-checking by cross-referencing sources and then rating statements on how true they are. Some popular ones are:
Don’t forget about Wikipedia, which has up-to-date information on publishers and authors.
The UNT Libraries are here to help you find credible resources and analyze information. Resources on library.unt.edu have been evaluated by librarians, so your search results will not include fake news or satire. Furthermore, databases such as Nexis Uni allow you to search and compare multiple news sources at once. For more tips on evaluating sources, check out the libraries’ Media Literacy guide or contact Ask Us for research help!
References
Bond, S. (2020, November 12). Twitter keeps some measures it says slowed election misinformation. NPR. https://www.npr.org/2020/11/12/934280798/twitter-says-steps-to-curb-election-misinformation-worked
UNESCO. (2017). MIL as Composite Concept. http://www.unesco.org/new/en/communication-and-information/media-development/media-literacy/mil-as-composite-concept/
A man sitting on a bench reading newspaper by Roman Kraft licensed under Unsplash
Photo of bulb by AbsolutVision, licensed under Unsplash
Woman Sits on Floor Facing Gold MacBook by Christina Morillo licensed under Pexels
Banned Books Week by Banned & Challenged Books licensed under ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom
