Primary vs. Secondary Research
In addition to distinguishing between popular and scholarly articles, you need to be able to understand if the scholarly articles you are reading are reporting primary research or secondary research.
Primary research articles report original research and results. You will see the data and work that the authors produced. A primary source is an article that reports this. Other primary sources can include documents such as diaries and scrapbooks, photographs, and eyewitness accounts.
Secondary research often summarizes the work of many primary research studies. In the sciences, a common example of this is a review article. Review articles report and analyze the results of primary research articles, but don't report any new information.
Reading the Scientific Literature
Reading a scientific paper isn't like reading a book. Hint: Don't try to read it straight through from beginning to end!
Here are some tips to help you become skilled:
How to Read a Scientific Paper - Infographic from Elsevier
How to Read a Scientific Article by Mary Purugganan, Ph.D. and Jan Hewitt, Ph.D., Cain Project in Engineering and Professional Communication at Rice University
How to Read a Scientific Paper - Minimally modified from John W. Little and Roy Parker at the University of Arizona (which is no longer retrievable). This version is from a Biology course from by taught by Professor Devoto Fall 2011 at Wesleyan University.
How to read and understand a scientific paper: a guide for non-scientists
Need Help?
Resources for Student Research & Getting Grants
Resources you might find helpful:
Citing Limerick
Here is your class citing limerick!
Start:
There were some students from USU
Who knew just what to do
When they did cite
They did it just right ...
Last lines:
And it turned out that their desired grade became true
Cocka doodle doo
Bippidy boppity boo
And their grades were coo'
Nice work!
