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Researching the Western World
British Broadcasting Corporation's: A History of the World in 100 Objects.
# 56: Vale of York Hoard
The five sections on this page can help you with the object/artifact assignment for this course.
1. Find an object/artifact
3. Build a concept map, kick start your research
The three steps below provide one approach to beginning your object identification assignment. Our object: the astrolabe, featured in the BBC's A History of the World in 100 Objects.
Hebrew astrolabe. Image: British Museum
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Step 1: Review background information on the The Hebrew Astrolable (opens in a new window)Via the BBC's A History of the World in 100 Objects
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Step 2: Create a concept map with the astrolabe as the focus (opens in a new window)This concept map shows the astrolabe as the centre of a brainstorming exercise. The map illustrates how you can begin with one object, connect it to others and branch out from those with more related ideas. It makes it possible to track details and see relationships as you learn about the object's background.
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Step 3: Build a research pathway (opens in a new window)This approach helps you move from the concept map to an outline to guide your research process. First choose part of your concept map as a focus for your assignment. Then start a worksheet that you can easily edit to a) refine an outline, b) brainstorm topics/research questions, c) keep a list of research "to-dos."
4. Find secondary sources
What are secondary sources?
They are published books and journal articles written by scholars. These works include the analysis of primary sources (such as a artifacts or documents that are from the time period being studied).
Use Omni, the library catalogue and specialized databases to locate secondary sources.
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Omni, the Library catalogueTime period: all
Books and articles available through the library system. -
Academic OneFileTime period: all
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ATLA Religion DatabaseTime period: all
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Historical AbstractsTime period: 1450 - present.
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History of Science, Technology, and MedicineTime period: all
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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)
5. Cite your sources
For History 110, you will need to format your citations using Chicago's Notes and Bibliography style. The links below can help you do this.