Brooks Library Research Guides: Resource Management

Regulations.gov
"Allows for browsing and searching of proposed and final federal regulations, submitted comments regarding proposed regulations, supporting agency documentation, and reports related to regulations" (Library of Congress, 2013,http://www.loc.gov/law/find/databases.php#regu).

Washington State Geologic Information Portal
This page includes access to a range of interactive maps, including coal mines, geothermal resources, subsurface geology, and others. The right hand menu of the portal includes links to Geoscience Data (including GIS data), Publications of the Division of Geology and Earth Resources, and more. The publications page has a wealth of data and information. They have  "about 140 publications online. Our newsletter, TsuInfo Alert, is available electronically on this website; back issues of our journal, Washington Geology, and our newsletter, DGER News, are also available on this website. Our reports and maps are held in libraries nationwide."

Annual Review of Anthropology

The Annual Reviews cover many subject areas and are intended to be "comprehensive, timely collections of critical reviews written by leading scientists." Like a good subject encyclopedia, they provide a brief introduction or overview of a topic by a scholar in the field followed by a bounty of references to significant literature. Some articles add internet resources as well. Brooks Library provides access to the Annual Review of Anthropology in print and online versions. Some topic areas addressed include " archaeology, biological anthropology, linguistics and communicative practices, regional studies and international anthropology, and sociocultural anthropology." In the front the print volume offers a list of related articles from other Annual Review of... series. To see all available print volumes of the Annual Review of Anthropology, go to the catalog record. Scroll down and click on the "View additional copies..." button.

note: 01/01/1972 to 01/31/2007

How to find theses in the Brooks Library

Scroll down to the notes section for instructions including how to narrow your search from the complete set of over 4,300 Central Washington University (or State College) theses. This record can also be located by going to the library home page and using the term "theses" (no quotes) in the search box in about the middle of the page. The library catalog is a web resource; the theses are in print in the library.

Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene

Starts publication in July 2013.

Elementa is a collaboration of  BioOne, Dartmouth, the Georgia Institute of Technology, the University of Colorado Boulder, the University of Michigan, and the University of Washington. This new, open access publication aims to publish articles that are timely, technically sound, and peer-reviewed  with a focus on "interactions between human and natural systems and behaviors."

Its six initial "knowledge domains" are Atmospheric Science, Earth & Environmental Science, Ecology, Ocean Science, Sustainable Engineering, and Sustainability.

GeoScienceWorld
"A comprehensive internet resource for research and communications in the geosciences, built on a core database aggregation of peer-reviewed journals indexed, [and] linked..." Electronic access to over 40 journals from 27 publishers. We may not have access to all of the articles through GSW. If you want one of those, try searching the journal title in our catalog. If we don't have it, you may be able to request it through interlibrary loan. Download to a citation manager such as Zoho. Also available in a mobile-optimized layout!

Scirus
While Scirus refers to itself as "the most comprehensive science-specific search engine on the Internet," its scope has increased over time such that it is often worth using for research in other subject areas. Two strengths are the wealth of theses and dissertations and the menu of limiting filters offered on the left side of all results pages. To locate theses and dissertations, apply one of the following limiters at a time. Most of them will be found in NDLTD (Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations), which is international in scope. Some will be found by limiting to "Digital Archives," or, if offered in the menu, university repositories. The left menu also allows limiting by file type or journal source, and offers search terms to add to narrow your search. This is a free commercial search engine, but some of the documents are not free. Some of those with a charge may be available to you free through the resources offered by CWU's Library. 

Social Science Research Network
"The SSRN eLibrary consists of two parts: an Abstract Database containing abstracts on over 480,900 scholarly working papers and forthcoming papers and an Electronic Paper Collection... in Adobe Acrobat pdf format." Broader than its name implies, accounting, anthropology & archaeology, economics, cognitive, and legal are a few of the topic areas covered.

AnthroSource

Indexing of anthropological material developed by the American Anthropological Association. Please ask the Reference Help Desk, 1st Floor Brooks Library or (509) 963-1021 for aid in searching this index or searching for citations found in the index.

eHRAF World Cultures
eHRAF World Cultures – the digital version of the Human Relations Area Files – is a cross-cultural database that contains more than 350,000 pages of descriptive information on cultures, diversity and ethnic groups of the world.  The annually-growing eHRAF database is unique in that the information is organized by cultures and ethnic groups and the full-text sources are subject-indexed at the paragraph level.  The diversity of information includes full-text books, journal articles, and dissertations.

This database supports CWU curricula across a variety of disciplines -- anthropology, social studies, history, sociology, geography, language, multicultural studies, political science, human development, arts, and medicine - if you are in one of these programs this database will be your friend!

Please ask the Reference Help Desk, 1st Floor Brooks Library or (509) 963-1021 for aid in searching this resource, and / or try the tutorial materials available from the homepage of eHRAF (look under "Using HRAF" on the left) or at this link.

JSTOR
Our subscription to JSTOR (short for 'Journal Storage') contains every issue of over 600 core scholarly journals in the arts, humanities, the social sciences, as well as the natural and applied sciences. These journals have been digitized back to the first issue published (in some cases that is the 1600s). JSTOR also contains citations (bibliographic records) for more than 1,500 leading academic journals, as well as select monographs and other materials valuable for academic work. (This is why "Include only content I can access" should not be checked, even if you are in a hurry. Articles not available in JSTOR are often available in our other databases or through Interlibrary Loan.) Library Journal (11/15/2011) notes that "everything in it is safely scholarly...it's not stuffed full of third- and fourth-tier journals." Many of the foundation journal articles in geology, geography, anthropology, archaeology, and urban planning and design will be found here in full text.

LexisNexis Academic
Extensive array of full-text news (newspapers, wire services, transcripts and newsletters), business literature, industry and company information, legal, biographical, and reference resources. Includes a "Subject Area" search for Accounting, Environmental Studies, Health & Medical Care, and Government & Politics. For search strategies, you may wish to view the Lexis Nexis YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/user/LexisNexisAcademic. Look for "Case in Brief" for a "Time-saving, comprehensive research tool. Includes expanded summary, extensive research and analysis, and links to LexisNexis® content and available court documents." It is not available for all cases. See page 4 of "Researching Case Law via LexisNexis" from CSU Stanislaus for an illustration of where to look for the link. http://library.csustan.edu/guides/subjects/criminaljustice/CaseLawviaLexis.pdf

Indian Claims Commission Decisions
The decisions of the ICC from volume 1 through volume 43, with an index, are available to search or browse. Established in 1946, it operated through 1978 settling claims by American Indian groups against the United States Government. The index also provides some introductory material useful for understanding the commission and the index.

Lura's Geospace Publication Pages of State Geological Surveys
An invaluable list of links to publications pages of State Surveys! Access varies among the states, but many of these provide access to full text bulletins, reports, maps, and more, often in PDF format. Frequently many or all publications are free in electronic format. The date range covered also varies by state. Generally, if the document is not available electronically, information will be provided regarding purchase, or you can check the CWU catalog and Summit. Washington State Publications of the Division of Geology and Earth Resources is, of course, among the very best: Washington documents go back to at least 1891 and as recent as 2012. There is a very handy complete descriptive list for the Washington State publications. Lura also provides links to geologic fieldtrip guidebooks.

National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Legacy Series
"NMFS legacy publication series dating back to the 1940s are now available in electronic format as PDFs." Special Scientific Reports (Nos. 30, 36 - 40, and others relate to the Columbia River and Tribuatries.), Test Kitchen Series (fish cookery), Circulars, Pamphlets, and more. Water quality, fisheries including salmon, and other topics. National coverage, with at least a few international. For broader coverage, see their Scientific Publications Office.

National Park Service History e-Library
Documents relating to the history of the National Parks, either historical documents and publications on the history of the parks. Documents range from at least 1902 to 2012. Because this is a portal to a variety of sources, formats and steps to access vary. For example, "Our National Parks" (1918) is available in PDF if you first click on the "i" in the upper right for "About This Book." The search does not seem to function at the time of this writing, so use the browsing functions near the bottom of the page to find documents by park or document type. Within document type (such as "Publications"), look for further subdivisions at the bottom of the page. The Anthropology and Archaeology  and Scientific Monographs series may be of particular interest. TheIRMA Portal icludes geospacial datasets, letters, published and unpublished reports, conference proceedings, books and chapters, maps, and journal articles. Some can be downloaded by clicking on the title in the results and finding the download link in the record. Some have downloads restricted and many seem to have broken links, but the access to unpublished literature and datasets make it of value. IRMA can download the list of results in an Excel sheet or into Endnote.

National Sea Grant Library
The digital library and archives of NOAA's National Sea Grant program. Over 22,000 documents on topics"including oceanography, marine education, aquaculture, fisheries, aquatic nuisance species, coastal hazards, seafood safety, limnology, coastal zone management, marine recreation, and law." The searchable publications database provides links to the full-text documents where available, and citations otherwise. Also browse or use the advanced search to limit by date, topic area, program (e.g. Washington Sea Grant), region (e.g. Pacific), or other parameters.

National Service Center for Environmental Publications
Over 40,000 EPA documents are indexed, although not all are available digitally. Documents included date from the 1940s to the present. A 1942 document, for example, describes pollution in the Ohio River basin. The quick tips are likely to be useful for a more effective search and offer suggestions for obtaining print-only documents. Tip: try visiting ourGovernment Publications Department! For all documents that were originally print, the system only searches the descriptive information(metadata). For documents that were "born digital" the search is full-text.

NTIS National Technical Reports Library
The National Technical Information System provides these thematic newsletters monthly highlighting government publications relevant to the topic of the month. Wide ranging subjects with some technical aspect. Past newsletter topics have included civil engineering, homeland security, energy, food safety, environmental topics, world trade, Medicare fraud, driving safety, and cybersecurity, just to name a few. Interested in a list of publications on the Deepwater Horizon oil spill? See the November 2011 issue. Can those invasive constrictors that are such a problem in Florida come here? Check out the issue on invasive species, February 2013. The NTIS charges for most of the listed publications if you just click on the link in the newsletter. However, copy and paste the publication title into your favorite search engine (in quote marks, to search as a phrase, is usually most effective), and voilà! Most of the time a free copy is available. Can't bear to miss an issue of this newsletter? Sign up for free email delivery.

Science.gov

Your portal to U.S. Government scientific and technical information and data "searches over 55 databases and over 2100 selected websites from 13 federal agencies." Now also available as Science.gov Mobile!

State Legislative Website Directory
The National Conference of State Legislatures brings you this handy database for locating state statutes, bills, and other information. Limit by state or states, content type, or both.

United States Fish Commission Reports
1871-1940 and 1947-1979. PDF format. See the website for the various names and other changes at the agency. If you don't have a year or number in mind, check the National Marine Fisheries Service Indexes for help locating them by author or subject.

USDA Web Soil Survey
The Web Soil Survey lets you define your area of interest and generates a report for you including "description of the soils and miscellaneous areas and their location on the landscape and tables that show soil properties and limitations affecting various uses….the steepness, length, and shape of the slopes; the general pattern of drainage; the kinds of crops and native plants; and the kinds of bedrock" and more! The contents of the report are customized by you. Includes maps, legends, definitions, and map unit descriptions. A link to your professional looking, customized report is emailed to you for access. Especially if you are having difficulties, see their Tips and Shortcuts or the Known Problems and Workarounds. If you follow their directions carefully, it can make all the difference. And there's a link to the NRCS Geospatial Data Gateway!

Washington State Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation
There are some useful links from the top of the page, such as Preservation Laws, in the menu under Learn & Research. However, the site map at the bottom of most pages is the key to going where you can find what you're after. There is a link there to the Archaeology section - with compliance information and forms, and more - and one directly to Preservation Laws, and ones to Architect Biographies, the Human Remains Program, and all manner of useful and interesting information and documents. Historic properties' information and locations can be found using the WISAARD database, but the public interface will not provide information about archaeological sites in an effort to protect them.

GIS Data at the Washington Department of Ecology

From the Web Site: "Our spatial datasets are available in ArcInfo export format (zipped E00) or shapefiles, metadata files are in FGDC format, and our view files are in GIF format. All of our coverages/shapefiles are in Washington State Plane, South Zone, NAD 83 HARN, units feet, unless otherwise noted."

GIS Data for Water Resources from the USGS

USGS spatial data related to water resources.

Journal of Northwest Anthropology Style Guide

National Park Service Archaeology Program Standards and Guidelines

NEPA Desk Guide: GSA, PBS
The U.S. General Services Administration's Public Buildings Service created this guide to "help GSA staff, contractors, and other GSA associates carry out the requirements of NEPA in accordance with the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) regulations (40 CFR 1500-1508) and GSA Order ADM 1095.1F (Environmental Consideration in Decisionmaking)." Also see the GSA's NEPA page.

NEPA Handbook, Bureau of Land Management
The BLM National Environmental Policy Act Handbook (H-1790-1) "provide(s) instructions for complying with the CEQ NEPA regulations." It includes scoping the EIS, conducting the analysis and preparing the Draft EIS, issuing the Draft EIS, analyzing comments and preparation of the Final EIS, issuing the Final EIS, and reaching and recording the decision. 1.79 MB.

NEPA Handbooks, Council on Environmental Quality
This page links to the NEPA and NHPA: Handbook for Integrating NEPA and Section 106 Reviews which "is designed to clarify potential areas of confusion and duplication that have long existed in administering these two separate statutes," among other goals. It also links to A draft handbook for integrating California's Environmental Quality Act with NEPA, which serves as a model for such integration for other states.  Several other NEPA guides are also available here including Considering Cumulative Effects Under the National Environmental Policy Act. Also visit CEQ's NEPA homepage.

NEPA Reference Handbook, Fish and Wildlife Service
"The purpose of the NEPA Reference Handbook...is to
provide Fish and Wildlife Service personnel with full texts of various NEPA authorities, selected NEPA-related authorities, and NEPA-related checklists. The Handbook includes documents cited in Service NEPA guidance and Departmental procedures and memoranda. The Handbook is an accompanying document to the Service NEPA guidelines." This and other relevant documents are linked from the FWS National Environmental Policy Act page.

NPS- 28: Cultural Resource Management Guideline
"Authority for cultural resource management activities derives from a variety of laws, outlined in Appendix B, including the 1916 NPS organic act. Also fundamental are the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and Guidelines for Archeology and Historic Preservation. The NPS Management Policies states basic principles governing the management of cultural resources in the national park system, consistent with law and the Secretary's Standards. This guideline, ...elaborates on these policies and standards and offers guidance in applying them..."

Society for American Archaeology Publication Style Guide

Smithsonian Contributions and Studies
An amazing array of proceedings, studies, and reports of many branches of sciences published by one of the United States premier scientific institutions, the Smithsonian. "All of the back issues and currently published series are available here in their entirety as pdfs and plain text files." Browse the series or the proceedings and publications, or search full text or by fields including title and author. Of particular value for REM or anthropology are the Smithsonian Contributions to Anthropology which from 1965 to the present.

Society for American Archaeology list of Societies and Associations
U.S. national and state organizations, as well as some Canadian.

Envirofacts
The Environmental Protection Agency's portal for retrieval of environmental data and other information.

Statistics Resources and Big Data on the Internet

USGS--Historical Statistics for Mineral and Material Commodities in the United States
On-line compilation of historical U.S. statistics on mineral and material commodities.

Citation Maker

"You can use this tool to create a Works Cited list of research sources following the MLA and APA standard citation formats." This can be a great time saver, but remember, any automated citation generator (as well as any non-automated one, in particular a person) can make a mistake. You need to recognize and correct those errors. This tool is provided free by the Oregon School Library Information System.

Columbia Basin Research
From the University of Washington School of Aquatic and Fisheries Science, this resource offers data, status, forecasts, tools and models, pulications and more focused on the Columbia Basin fish and fisheries, water, and related topics.

EasyBib
A free commercial service (complete with popup advertisements) which will generate citations for you in MLA, Chicago/Turabian, or APA. Similar to Knight Cite. As with all citation generators, check it manually to make sure it is correct.

Great Open Source Map Tools for Web Developers
This 2012 InfoWorld article briefly describes abilities, strengths, and weaknesses of a variety of tools and resources which it bills as "giv[ing] developers excellent alternatives to Google Maps." OSGeo OpenStreetMap and TileMill are featured.

Knight Cite
Choose your citation style (MLA, Chicago, or APA) and your resource type in the left menu, fill in the blanks and - voilà - a recommended complete citation! As with all citation generators, check it manually to make sure it is correct.

Library of Congress "Virtual Alcove" for Indians of North America

The Library of Congress' Main Reading Room has created this "virtual alcove" a short but useful "collection of websites selected and annotated by Humanities and Social Sciences Division subject specialists."  All are partly or entirely freely available. Sections include Site Directories, History, Literature and Culture, News and Current Events, Government and Law, Libraries, Museums and Archives, and Tribes and Nations.

Online Writing Center (OWL), Purdue
Formatting and Style Guides for most of the major citation style. Shorter and generally more easily understood than the full citation manuals, though less complete. They cover most, but not all, of the citation situations that you will encounter. Also includes guidance on plagiarism, writing résumés and business letters, punctuation and grammar, and other writing topics.

University of Washington Citations and Writing Guide
From the "Citation Guides" link you will find links to handy little two page summaries (for MLA, CSE, Chicago, and APA) of the most commonly encountered citation situations. Print them out double-sided and tuck them in your notebook or wherever is convenient so you can have them at the ready for any citation emergency... or non-emergency.
note: Quick handouts for MLA, APA, Chicago and CSE styles; links to more detailed formatting guidelines.

FindLaw
A comprehensive collection of legal information available over the Internet, organized by topic. Searchable.

Guide to Law Online
A guide to locating information regarding international, U.S. federal, state, and territorial, and foreign nations' law, "[A]n annotated compendium of Internet links...[to] sources of interest to legal researchers. Although the Guide is selective, inclusion of a site by no means constitutes endorsement by either the Law Library of Congress or its Office of Collection, Outreach, and Services...emphasis wherever possible has been on sites offering the full texts of laws, regulations, and court decisions, along with commentary from lawyers writing primarily for other lawyers." (LOC, 2012, http://www.loc.gov/law/help/guide/about-guide.php).

Legal Information Institute
From the Cornell University School of Law. The LII is known internationally as a leading "law-not-com" provider of public legal information. Offers all opinions of the United States Supreme Court handed down since 1992, together with over 600 earlier decisions selected for their historic importance, over a decade of opinions of the New York Court of Appeals, and the full United States Code. We also publish important secondary sources: libraries in two important areas (legal ethics and social security) and a series of "topical" pages that serve as concise explanatory guides and Internet resource listings for roughly 100 areas of law.

Washington State University Research Exchange
Washington State University's digital repository holds both recent and digitized legacy research materials. Of particular interest to resource management studies is the Department of Anthropology section. This includes Rice's The Windust Phase in Lower Snake River Region Prehistory, Schalk's Cultural Resource Investigations for the Lyons Ferry Fish Hatchery Project (1983), Croes' faunal report from Ozette, Nelson's Sunset Creek Site...,and many more important investigations and reports.

What I've Learned about Defenses
One blogger's guide to your thesis defense, from Inside Higher Education.