Course resource help for Geography

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Resources

Databases

Databases can help you to search for useful journal articles and other publications in your subject area.

You can use LibrarySearch to find journal articles, but a database can give you additional, useful results. Databases also allow you to be really specific about what you want.

Some of the databases listed below provide abstracts (summaries), while others are full text (this means they contain complete articles). The databases below are available to all Oxford Brookes students and staff, both on and off campus.

If you're not sure which words to put in the search box, this video about choosing search words can help you.

If you want any help with using databases you can get in touch with us.

Springer Nature Link

Full text access to over 2200 journals covering physical and environmental sciences as well as medical, health and life sciences. It is particularly useful if you are looking for articles on environmental science, climate change, coastal geography or earth systems.

Web of Science

This database helps you access a wide range of key journals for all aspects of geography. This database is particularly useful for physical and environmental geography.

Science Direct

Contains around 2500 full text journals published by Elsevier, mainly in science, technology and medicine. Full text coverage for most journals in the collection is available from 2002 to present.

Academic Search Complete

A large multidisciplinary database, containing lots of full text articles. This database is particularly useful for human geography.

Sage Journals

This database contains journals published by Sage, covering a wide range of subjects within the social sciences, humanities and life sciences.

JSTOR

This database provides an archive of full-text articles from a wide range of academic journals. JSTOR does not give access to issues which are less than 3-5 years old but is very useful for older journal articles

IBSS - International Bibliography of the Social Sciences

IBSS covers a wide range of social science disciplines, and is useful for social or human geography research.

Sociological Abstracts

Sociological Abstracts covers a broad range of subjects including aspects of human and social geography. It contains journal information with abstracts so if a result looks useful you'll need to find the full-text of the article elsewhere.

Journals and journal articles

Academic journals are a crucial part of geography research. Journals publish articles written by experienced specialists and provide an insight into current thinking, debate and research. They may cover a specific topic in depth, e.g. a case study.

This guide from the Open University (PDF) explains clearly what a journal is, and how they differ from books. A useful thing to remember is that new issues are regularly published, and that all the issues from one year are known as a volume.

One reason journal articles are so highly valued is peer review. Find out more about peer review and how it works.

To find useful journal articles you can:

If you want to browse through a particular journal to see what's been published recently, you will find BrowZine a useful tool. You can use it within your browser or download the free app.

If you come across an article online, you may not be able to read the full article. However, the library might already provide access to this journal. To avoid having to double-check in LibrarySearch each time, you can install a free browser extension called LibKey Nomad. This will then give you fast one-click access to content provided by the library - wherever you start from.

Sometimes an article can be retracted, for example if its findings are disputed or if there were problems with the methodology. You can learn more about retraction here.

Books and ebooks

LibrarySearch lets you search for books, ebooks and more. You can search for a specific book by its title or search for a topic or theme.

Welcome to LibrarySearch: This short video will help you get started with LibrarySearch.

The following two guides show you how to find books and ebooks on LibrarySearch:

You can use LibrarySearch to see what books the library has, and where they are shelved. You can also download a library map (PDF).

See a list of new geography books and ebooks in the library.

Module reading lists

Your module reading lists are the quickest way to find what you need to read for your modules.

Search for the module number or name on our reading list page. You will also find the reading list in the 'key resources' section of any module on Moodle.

This video will explain how to find and use your module reading list and why they are so useful.

You may not need to read everything on your reading list. Start with the resources labelled ‘essential’. You can then explore the ‘recommended’ or 'optional' resources, if you wish.

If you're unclear what reading to prioritise, ask your module leader. To keep track of your progress, you can use the reading intentions options down the right hand side of the reading list and mark items as 'to read' 'have read' etc.

Newspapers and news sources

To learn more about how to find different types of news resources (from the UK and beyond), have a look at our news sources page.

Statistics

Find reliable and up-to-date statistics from the UK and beyond.

Visual images and photographs

Two good sources of visual images and photographs are:

JSTOR - This database contains over a million images from collections world-wide. Covers the arts, architecture, humanities and sciences. Includes over 92,000 Magnum photographs and many other photographic collections.
Bridgeman Education - This is a digital image library covering visual culture of all civilisations and historical periods from pre- historic to the present day.

There are a wide range of specialist collections and image libraries freely available online. If you are researching an individual city or region, look to see if there is a nearby museum, library or local history organisation that make have collected photographs and images.

Find out more how to reference photographs in your assignments.

Need help? Contact your librarian

Please get in touch if you have any queries about:

finding information and resources for assignments
finding online resources
referencing your sources

Library Help

library@brookes.ac.uk

If you can’t find what you need on this page, or if you have any questions, just get in touch.

Find out how to contact us

Book an appointment with a member of the Library team

Referencing

Citing your sources (also called referencing) is an essential part of your academic work and is explained fully on our library referencing webpage.

The Library also has a printed guide to citing your references using the Harvard (Author-Date) system, available as a Word file or PDF.

Cite Them Right Online shows you how to reference a wide range of sources (books, journal articles, websites) using exactly the same Harvard style used at Brookes.
Endnote is a tool for storing and organising your references, and it will also work with Word or Pages to create a fully formatted bibliography from your reference library.

Research and explore human geography

Start with your module reading list

Look for your reading list in each module on Moodle or search for the module code or name on the library’s reading list page.

This will show you some books, ebooks and journal articles recommended by the module leader. These resources are a great place to start.

Your module leader may have labelled some items 'essential', 'recommended' or 'optional'. These labels can help you decide which reading to prioritise.

Learn how to make the most of your reading lists by watching this helpful video.

Use the reading list to help you find more resources

If the reading list led you to a useful journal article, are there links to related journal articles down the side? What else is published in that issue of the journal?
If you’ve read something by an interesting author, put their name into LibrarySearch to see what else they’ve written.
If the reading list points you to a book on the library shelves, have a look at the books on either side too. Books on similar topics are shelved together.
If you read something useful, look at the bibliography or reference list at the end of that source. Is there anything useful there that you’d like to read?

Discover journal articles

Academic journals are key sources for your geography studies. They publish articles written by specialists in the field and provide an insight into current thinking, debate and research. They can also cover a specific topic in depth, e.g. a case study.

One reason journal articles are so highly valued is peer review. Find out more about peer review and how it works.

You can quickly find journal articles on LibrarySearch. (Try putting a topic or the title of an article in the search box. Don't paste in a whole reference.) LibrarySearch defaults to showing all types of materials. If you just want to see journal articles, use the tick boxes down the left of your results and select article/chapter.

Other useful places to look for human geography journal articles include:

Note that JSTOR is particularly good for old content, but may not have the most recent 3-5 years of content. Wiley and Taylor & Francis are better for newer content

Understand how to use Google to research a topic

You may also find some high-quality information using Google or Google Scholar, but you need to be more alert and cautious, as not everything you find will be academically rigorous or reliable.

When you do the Digital Capabilities course on Moodle, you’ll learn about the CRAAP test. This is a great checklist of questions you can ask about something you’ve found.

We recommend installing the free LibKey Nomad browser extension.

This will alert you when you have access to the full text of something via Oxford Brookes library.

See the latest research and stay up-to-date

BrowZine is a really useful for tool for seeing what current geography research looks like.

Many areas of human geography change rapidly, so it’s important to stay up-to-date. If you have discovered a journal that contains articles you’ve found useful, then add it to your BrowZine bookshelf. You can then flick through all your saved journals in one place. You can also get emails when new issues of your favourite journals are published.

Discover our newspaper collections

Newspapers give you contemporary reaction to issues and events at a national or local level.

Many newspapers can be read for free online but, through the library, you have access to a much wider range of sources that you can search in a systematic way.

Find out more about using newspapers.

Explore photographs and other visual resources

You may want to explore collections of photographs, drawings or other visual sources. Two useful sources of photographs and images are Bridgeman Education and Artstor.

Learn more about finding and using visual materials in your work

Research and explore physical geography

Start with your module reading list

Look for your reading list in each module on Moodle or search for the module code or name on the library’s reading list page.

This will show you some journal articles, reports, books etc recommended by the module leader. These resources are a great place to start, when working on that module's assessments.

Your module leader may have labelled some items 'essential', 'recommended' or 'optional'. These labels can help you decide which reading to prioritise.

Learn how to make the most of your reading lists by watching this helpful video.

Use Web of Science to discover journal articles

Web of Science is an excellent source of high-quality research papers in physical geography and scientific journals.

This video will show you how to use Web of Science to research geography topics.

Explore journal articles on Science Direct

ScienceDirect contains tens of thousands of journal articles, and a smaller number of ebook chapters.

The simplest option is to try searching for a couple of words in the keywords box at the top of the ScienceDirect homepage.

Just like on LibrarySearch, you'll see filters down the left hand side of your search results. You can use these to narrow your results down, for example by date.

When you open an article on ScienceDirect, it will suggest some other similar articles down the right hand side.

Understand how to use Google to research a topic

You may also find some high-quality information using Google or Google Scholar, but you need to be more alert and cautious, as not everything you find will be academically rigorous or reliable.

When you do the Digital Capabilities course on Moodle, you’ll learn about the CRAAP test. This is a great checklist of questions you can ask about something you’ve found.

You may find part of a journal article via a Google search, but then you're asked to pay to read the rest. This is frustrating, particularly if you already have access to the article via the library. Have a look at the information below about LibKey Nomad. LibKey Nomad will show you if you have library access to thing you're trying to read.

Install LibKey Nomad

We recommend installing the free LibKey Nomad browser extension.

This will alert you when you have access to the full text of something via Oxford Brookes library. So you can make use of the resources that the library has paid for, without even needing to go near the library website or LibrarySearch.

Use BrowZine to stay up-to-date with research developments

Many areas of physical geography change rapidly, so it’s important to stay up-to-date. If you have come across a journal that publishes articles you’ve found useful, then add it to your BrowZine bookshelf. You can then flick through all your saved journals in one place. You can also get emails when new issues of your favourite journals are published.

Explore the data on Digimap, or make your own maps

If your research is based on the UK, there’s a wide range of maps on Digimap, showing geological data, marine data, land use and much more. You can use these maps as a research tool, or use them as a base to plot your own data.

Learn more about Digimap

How to use the library for your geography dissertation

Choose and refine your research topic

You may have a broad idea of your dissertation topic, but still need to narrow it down. Your options include:

Doing a preliminary search on LibrarySearch or a database to see how much has already been written about your topic. That can help you decide if your topic is either too broad or too narrow.
Flicking through recent issues of geography journals on BrowZine to see the most recent developments and updates in your field.

Understand research skills and geography methodologies

There is a useful reading list of books and ebooks on geography research skills and methods.

Also, you can explore this broader list of useful books, ebooks on dissertation research (not geography specific).

The skills you learnt in GEOG5003 will help you with your dissertation, so you may wish to refer back to this module and its materials.

Decide where and how to search for existing research

Where you search for literature depends on what your topic is. For some general ideas, see:

Also, spend time thinking about the vocabulary of your topic. What words could you put in a search box? And what happens if you change those words?

There is a useful video on choosing words to put in a search box, which can help you with this.

Meet with your specialist librarian

Every subject at Oxford Brookes is supported by a specialist Academic Librarian.

You may wish to contact the Academic Librarian to get support with your dissertation research.

Simply email library@brookes.ac.uk, mentioning in your email that you're a Geography dissertation student.

Keep track of what you've read

There are lots of ways to do this, so find the way that works best for you. By keeping track of what you've read you can

Easily find it again if you need to revisit it
Accurately reference it in your dissertation

One option is to use EndNote. EndNote not only lets you quickly store details of what you've read, but can also help you produce accurate references to these sources.

Find past dissertations

It can be useful to look at past dissertations to see how they're structured.

If you are enrolled on a geography dissertation on Moodle, then you may be able to see sample dissertations on there.

There are a number of older printed dissertations in Gibbs 1.03. You can't take these away with you but you can take them through into the neighbouring student study space and consult them there.

Read things that we don't have in Oxford Brookes Library

Oxford Brookes library is brilliant! But we don't have everything. When you are researching your dissertation, you may want to read books or journal articles that we don't have at Oxford Brookes.

Our Go further, get more page explains all the ways you can access resources beyond Oxford Brookes.

Take care of yourself and your friends

Dissertations can feel overwhelming, particularly alongside other assessments and commitments.

How to use Digimap

What is Digimap?

Digimap is an online service which provides access to digital maps and data, from the Ordnance Survey, for England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Also provides access to global maps and data via Global Digimap.

Further details on all of the above Digimap datasets can be found here.

Registration and access

All Oxford Brookes staff and students are entitled to use the service, free of charge, for academic purposes.

Once connected, first-time users are required to register and agree to the data licence for each Collection before access.

Using Digimap at home or from a workplace

Your registration allows you to access all Digimap services from your home computer within Great Britain, providing you delete any data once your course/project has finished. Digimap is designed to be used over a university network, so services may be slower, and cannot be guaranteed when accessing via a modem.

Please note: although you are allowed to access Digimap from a place of work eg. local council, you may not use the data for the purposes of your employment, and the data may not be issued to or used by anyone who is not an Educational User (unless your workplace also subscribes to Digimap).

Using Digimap on a mobile device

Digimap 'Roam' services may be accessed on a mobile device, however 'Download' services are not available due to the large file sizes often involved.

Further help and training

Extensive help is available at the Digimap Resource Centre.

For further help and advice email library@brookes.ac.uk

Course resource help for Geography

Quick access

Use the library for dissertation research

Start with LibrarySearch

Use your module reading lists

Improve your human geography skills

Learn how to research physical geography

Understand how to use AI responsibly

Resources

Databases

Springer Nature Link

Web of Science

Science Direct

Academic Search Complete

Sage Journals

JSTOR

IBSS - International Bibliography of the Social Sciences

Sociological Abstracts

Journals and journal articles

Books and ebooks

Module reading lists

Newspapers and news sources

Statistics

Visual images and photographs

Need help? Contact your librarian

Library Help

Referencing

Research and explore human geography

Start with your module reading list

Use the reading list to help you find more resources

Discover journal articles

Understand how to use Google to research a topic

See the latest research and stay up-to-date

Discover our newspaper collections

Explore photographs and other visual resources

Research and explore physical geography

Start with your module reading list

Use Web of Science to discover journal articles

Explore journal articles on Science Direct

Understand how to use Google to research a topic

Install LibKey Nomad

Use BrowZine to stay up-to-date with research developments

Explore the data on Digimap, or make your own maps

How to use the library for your geography dissertation

Choose and refine your research topic

Understand research skills and geography methodologies

Decide where and how to search for existing research

Meet with your specialist librarian

Keep track of what you've read

Find past dissertations

Read things that we don't have in Oxford Brookes Library

Take care of yourself and your friends

How to use Digimap

What is Digimap?

Registration and access

Using Digimap at home or from a workplace

Using Digimap on a mobile device

Further help and training

Looking for more ideas and inspiration?