Why use article databases?

The article databases contain the type of resources your biology professors want you to read and cite in your lab reports and research papers.

Article databases contain:

vetted, credible information sources,
scholarly (aka peer-reviewed) articles*, and
free access, while you are an EIU student.

*For more information about scholarly articles and peer review, see the information lower on this page.

Elements of a scholarly article

How do you know if you've found a scholarly article? Make sure it contains the sections as listed in the below table.

Note that you will cite your articles in the introduction and discussion of your lab report.

Looking for more articles related to one you have already found? Check the Literature Cited (also called References) section of the article. Remember to Ask a Librarian if you need help finding an article.

Understanding peer review

Image courtesy of the University of California Museum of Paleontology - Understanding Science - www.understandingscience.org. Used with permission.