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Introduction to the Library

Google Search Tips

Google Better!

1. Google Site Search: search by the type of website

  • add site:.edu to any google search to limit results to university websites. Example: Are teenagers who play video games more violent? site:.edu
  • add site:.gov to limit the results to government websites. Example: Is the constitution still relevant today? site:.gov
  • add site:website name to search a specific website. Example: immigration site:nytimes.com

2. Google Scholar Search: search scholarly works 

  • If you like an article and want to find more like it, click the "related articles" or "cited by" links to find more (see image below).
  • If you need to know if the article is peer-reviewed, copy and paste the title into the library search and look for the notice that it is peer-reviewed. Or google this: is [name of journal] peer-reviewed (remember, even if a journal uses peer-review, not all items in the journal are articles).

3. Elicit AI Search: search for your topic

  • Ask Elicit a question, it will find academic journal articles and give summaries of their abstracts.
  • It searches a limited number of articles from Semantic Scholar's publishing partners. 

 

Google Scholar Search:

google search results showing the "cited by" and "related articles" links

AI Search Tips

 

  1. Use the right AI for the right task: "Generative AI" and "AI Research tools" do very different things.
  2. Writing prompts for AI OR Google: 
    • AI tools and Google do not require you to use keywords, you can use "natural language," i.e. you can ask your research question.
    • But you do need to learn how to write a better question/prompt for the AI tool you are using.

 

Generative AI Tools AI Research Tools
"Write" content by predicting mathematically what words would come next in a pattern. They DO NOT search the internet for answers.  Find and summarize articles and information. They search in a limited set of articles. 

Examples: 

  • ChatGPT
  • Gemini (Google)
  • Jasper AI
  • Copilot (Microsoft)
  • Perplexity

Examples:

  • Elicit
  • Perplexity
  • Consensus
  • Semantic Scholar
  • ChatPDF
Interesting TikTok Generative AI Explanation  

Ithaka S+R has created a Generative AI Product Tracker which lists tools by their primary purposes and includes pricing information, as well as updates on the tools' features and limitations.

 

 

Lynn Statement on AI use:

You may use AI agents (such as ChatGPT, Jasper, Perplexity, etc.) to help brainstorm and develop your position. However, AI agents are not a reliable source of factual information, nor can they express your position. That is why copying and pasting AI agent output into your work is discouraged and only allowed with correct in-text citations. If an AI agent is used, students will be help accountable for the veracity of any information presented as factual; "the AI agent told me this was true" is not a defense. Citing AI agents: You do not NEED to use AI. However, if you're using text generated by a AI agent, be transparent about it.