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| The USD University Libraries will present Deadly Medicine: Creating the Master Race, a traveling exhibition produced by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. |
| >>Schedule of events, lectures, and more about the exhibit. |
Research is a circular, iterative process. This means that at times you may have to retrace your steps, ask different questions, or consult additional sources. Ideally, you will create a plan for yourself, outlining the questions you want to answer in your paper and/or during your research. There are different tools to help you at various stages of your research. Some of them are online and some are in print. This guide will aid you in understanding these tools.
The chart below lists the tools available to you, and provides links to pages describing them within this guide.
| Reference Sources | Go to these for definitions and shorter explanations. When first beginning a research project, it's always a good idea to get background material on your topic. This can give you some context for the topic you are studying and help you narrow your research question. Reference sources also give you some ideas of where to start searching for materials, since most have bibliographies. Dictionaries and encyclopedias can be found for broad areas of study and for very specific subjects, so it's best to start big and work your way smaller as you narrow your focus |
| Books |
A book can provide detailed background and historical information. Once you've narrowed your research question, you'll want books about the topic. Most of our books and other materials are listed in the online library catalog. Keep in mind that there may not be an entire book about your topic. You may need to look for more general books about the subject you are studying and then check the table of contents or the index to see if there is any information more specifc to your topic. |
| Articles |
Articles from journals and magazines include recent research in a field. |
| Primary Sources |
Search for materials produced by victims, perpetrators, or witnesses. This page includes links to databases with a variety of materials: documents, reports, recorded interviews, photos, videos, and more. |
| Web Sites | The internet can provide a wealth of information; these portal websites are reliable, good places to look for information - they include links to many other resources. |