Engineering 100 Section 810

This guide will direct you to some Library resources that will be useful to you in the literature search portion of your project for Engineering 100.  Use the tabs above to find pages on:

• Find Background Information.  The Background Information page has links to engineering encyclopedias, handbooks, and reference collections that you can use to find good overviews of almost any topic related to engineering.  These resources typically include both short introductions to the topics of your research and bibliographies suggesting further reading on the topics.
• Find Journal Articles.  The Engineering Literature Databases page has links to index and abstract databases that will allow you to find journal articles on engineering topics.  This page also links to more information about tools for citation management. 
• Leisure Reading in the Sciences.  As beginning engineers, you might be looking for brief reports on new discoveries. This page shares some links to web resources that you can browse to learn what's new in the sciences. 
• Plagiarism and Academic Integrity.  The Academic Integrity page will provide some guidance on what plagiarism is and how to avoid it.

The "Useful Library Services" box on this page will point you toward other research guides and library tools that may be helpful in your research.

Some Tips on Library Searches

• A well-planned and executed literature search takes time, but it will also save time.  Engineers can build off of others' successes and failures by reviewing publications and learning something about solutions to problems that have already been tried before beginning experimentation in the lab.
• Engineering research is not a simple Google search.  Google cannot give you access to materials behind paywalls.  The Library makes these materials available to you through subscriptions to resources such as the Engineering Index.
• Ask for help early in your process.  A good search strategy is more efficient than a poor one, and will help you avoid spending time looking in the wrong place or looking at material that is too challenging to interpret.
• Ask the subject librarians for help!  Librarians can help you to find the right resources for your research, help you construct search strategies, and help you locate the materials that you have selected from your search results.  We are here to help you!

The U-M Library has a lot to offer!  Check out some of these useful services that you may not have known about.