HOW TO READ A PRIMARY RESEARCH ARTICLE
Click on this image (or click HERE) for a high-quality interactive and brief tutorial describing efficient strategies for reading through scientific research on your topics - usually takes about 10-15 minutes and may save you lots of time!
Now that you have an idea of what you are searching for - it's time to dig deeper and get more specific - into primary research and review articles. In order to do this, and to be assured that we're investigating credible, authoritative and relevant scholarly research, we will turn to subject-specific electronic databases and academic scientific journals.
Biological Sciences Databases at WSU Libraries (links science-specific databases available to you through WSU)
SmartSearch Advanced Search - this multi-disciplinary discovery tool searches through many databases at once
REMEMBER!
*For a brief tutorial on reading primary research articles effectively - click on the Reading Scientific Research box on this guide page
A key element of developing research is following references and citations found in resources that are useful to you. Another is examining articles surrounding an article or review you've found particularly informative. Academic journals often run themed issues, or specialize in particular aspects of their field or discipline. Browsing issues or searching for related articles will often help you find alternate perspectives, arguments and affiliated research to the topic you are developing. WSU Libraries provides access to thousands of scholarly scientific journals (both physically and electronically) that you can look through and search for here:
Electronic Journals by Subject
Login with your myWSU ID and password to request a copy of an article or book. WSU Libraries participates in RapidILL, so articles are emailed within 24 hours (and often come as soon as 1-2 hours after they're requested). Books are shipped within 24 hours of the request and are sent to Ablah Library for you to pick up. It's free!