Research guides: CO 480 Research: Find papers

Databases: general and math

While the catalogue can be used to find articles, we also have access to a few databases which can be helpful when searching for information on mathematicians and their work.

JSTOR
Provides access to back issues of journals in the humanities, social sciences, and physical sciences, many of which date from the 1800s.
Coverage: varies (excludes current 3 to 5 years)
MathSciNet
Articles in mathematics, computer science, statistics, and econometrics, as well as applications to science and engineering.
Coverage: 1940 - present
Produced by the American Mathematical Society, MathSciNet provides reviews, with abstracts, to the world's literature in mathematics and related areas. MathSciNet is compiled from the print equivalents, Mathematical Reviews and Current Mathematical Publications. Reviews are classified according to the Mathematics Subject Classification.
zbMATH Open
zbMATH Open (formerly known as Zentralblatt MATH) indexes research in pure
and applied mathematics.
From the European Mathematical Society (EMS), the Heidelberg Academy of
Sciences and Humanities, and FIZ Karlsruhe, zbMATH Open contains around 4.2
million bibliographic entries with reviews or abstracts drawn from more than
3,000 journals and book series, and some 190,000 books. Coverage starts in
the 18th century, is complete from 1868 to the present day, due to the
integration of the "Jahrbuch über die Fortschritte der Mathematik" database.
zbMATH Open has been available as an open access database since January 2021.
Scopus
Peer-reviewed literature from scientific journals, books and conference proceedings, covering the fields of science, technology, medicine, social sciences, and arts and humanities.
Coverage: 1966 - present
Web of Science
Articles and citations in the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities.
Coverage: Varies
Web of Science is comprised of several databases. The Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI) covers journals in the medical, physical and natural sciences, and engineering fields. The entire database extends back to 1899. The Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI) covers journals in the social sciences. The entire database extends back to 1898. The Arts & Humanities Citation Index (AHCI) covers journals in the arts and humanities. It also selectively covers relevant items from science and technical journals. The entire database extends back to 1975.

Databases: history

America History and Life
Identifies articles, book reviews, and dissertations on American and Canadian history and culture from prehistoric times to the present.
Coverage: mid 1950s - present
Note: A limited number of users may access this database simultaneously; if you are unable to connect, please try later.
Bibliography of British and Irish History
Indexes historical scholarship relating to the British Isles, the British Empire, and the Commonwealth. Time periods range from 55 BC.
Coverage: 1901 - present
Bibliography of Indigenous Peoples in North America
Indexes books, articles, and government documents about Indigenous peoples of North America, covering the 1500s to the present.
Coverage: 1500s - present
Black Studies Center
Contains historical and current material and analysis relating to African-Americans, Africans, and the wider African Diaspora.
Coverage: 1800s - present
Included are: *Schomburg Studies on the Black Experience in-depth essays examine interdisciplinary topics on the African experience throughout the Americas.

*International Index to Black Periodicals (IIBP) current and retrospective bibliographic citations and abstracts from scholarly journals and newsletters from the United States, Africa and the Caribbean, and full-text coverage of core Black Studies periodicals.

*The Chicago Defender the full text backfile, from 1910 to 1975, of the influential black newspaper The Chicago Defender.

*ProQuest Dissertations for Black Studies dissertations and Masters' theses examining a wide variety of topics and subject areas relating to Black Studies. Included are dissertations written between 1970 and 2004 at over 100 universities and colleges across the United States.

*Black Literature Index fiction, poetry and literary reviews published in 110 black periodicals and newspapers between 1827-1940.
GenderWatch
Find research on a wide range of gender issues relating to women, men, two spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, intersex, and asexual (2SLGBTQ+). Topics include sexuality, religion, societal roles, feminism, masculinity, eating disorders, healthcare, and the workplace.
Coverage: 1970 - present
Historical Abstracts
Articles, books, and dissertations on world history from 1450 to the present (excluding the United States and Canada).
Coverage: 1955 - present
Note: A limited number of users may access this database simultaneously; if you are unable to connect, please try later.
History of Science Technology and Medicine
Journal articles, conference proceedings, books, book reviews, and dissertations in the history of science, technology, and medicine and related historical fields.
Coverage: 1975 - present
Indigenous Collection (Informit)
Multidisciplinary topics relating to Indigenous peoples from around the world. Includes journals, books, reports, and conference proceedings.
Coverage: 1920s - present
ITER
Indexes articles, books, reviews, catalogues, and conference proceedings about the Middle Ages and Renaissance (400-1700).
Coverage: 1945 - present
Iter, meaning 'a journey' or 'a path' in Latin, is a non-profit research project with partners in Toronto (the headquarters), New York City, and Tempe, Arizona. The goal of Iter is to increase access to all published materials pertaining to the Middle Ages and Renaissance (400-1700) through the creation of online bibliographic databases. Iter has been made available through the Ontario Scholars Portal collection of databases. The Journals database is an electronic bibliography of interdisciplinary journal literature pertaining to the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Citations for articles, bibliographies, catalogues, abstracts and discographies are included. To date, the full runs of 518 scholarly journal titles, published since 1853, have been indexed. Journals and essay collections indexed Subject access to selected materials pertaining to the Renaissance (1300-1700), published since 1990, is available via Library of Congress Subject Headings
LGBTQ+ Source
Find magazines, journals, books and news sources, and also coverage for grey literature such as case studies and speeches.
Coverage: Varies

Searching the databases

Finding biographical details
Finding mathematicians' work

Remember, the mathematician you select must be born after 1550 (the example mathematician used in this guide, Omar Khayyam, does not meet this criteria).

To find material on the mathematician, search for their name in the keyword, topic, or title field. For example: Search interface of Web of Science

Use the filters on the left hand side of the results page to help narrow down your results.

Document type and category filters on the results page of Web of Science.

Like in the catalogue, you can search for your mathematician in the author field of a database to find their work. MathSciNet also has a specific author page which will list their publications and co-authors.

Research guides by subject

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