Research Entry 7.1: The Catalog (2/25)

1. What was discussed in class today?

In class on Friday, we discussed call numbers on books, their significance, and how to search for books utilizing the catalog. To be honest, this is something that I've never gone over. Even when I was a child, I don't remember any of my teachers going over something like this. It's a very good thing to know. I will now navigate the labyrinth of cardboard, paper, and information with my newfound skill.

2. Describe the differences between "words" and "subject headings."

Words can be found anywhere in a text whereas subject headings are categories that can be searched through. Although subject headings contain words, the subject headings pertain to a certain subject. For example, searching for "football" as a subject heading will turn up articles relevant to the subject of football.

3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each of these search strategies?

An advantage about searching for words is that a wide variety of information can be found quickly. For example, if I type "baby development" in the search bar for words intending to find articles about it, the search will return a multitude of articles. However, the phrase "baby development" is used for animals and insects as well. Also, the words may be split apart in the article and have nothing to do with baby development. And, where the disadvantage to words is shown, the advantage of searching for subject headings is revealed. In order to find articles pertinent to "baby development," I'd type that in the search bar for subject headings. The articles that'll come up will all have something to do with baby development.