MVCC Libraries: Library Glossary: Library Glossary

A-Z list of terms

Abstract: A brief summary of an article. Typically found in academic journal articles.
Academic (or Scholarly) Journals: These articles are written for scholars, researchers, or students. Articles in these journals always include a list of references, typically include author credentials or affiliations, and nearly always undergo peer review. Examples of these journals are the American Journal of Political Science, The New England Journal of Medicine, and Child Development. Compare to popular journals/magazines.
Annotated Bibliography: A list of citations with descriptions and a brief summary or critical statement about each.
Appendix: Section of a book, usually at the end, containing supplementary materials such as tables or maps.
Article: A contribution written for publication in a journal, magazine, or newspaper.
Autobiography: A work written by a person about their own life.
Bibliography: A list of resources about a particular subject, including books, articles and cds. In a Research paper, a bibliography lists all of the materials that have been used or consulted to prepare the paper, regardless of whether or not the sources have actually been cited in the paper. Compare to Works Cited.
Biography: A work written by a person or persons about someone else's life.
Call Number: A call number is a combination of letters and numbers assigned to each book in the library's collection. Items are arranged on the shelves by call number, so it is the "address" of the materials in the library. A book's call number can be found in the item’s record within the library’s main online search.
Circulation Desk: Located in the front of the Library, this department is responsible for maintaining the book stacks (including reshelving), checking out books and audiovisual materials to patrons, and maintaining patron records.
Citation: Provides the complete information to give credit to a source used. For books, the information includes author, title, publisher and date of publication. For articles, the information includes author, title of the article, title of the periodical, volume, pages, and date. A citation is one entry in a bibliography or list of works cited. See also, in-text citation.
Copyright: The legal right to control the production, use, and sale of copies of a literary, musical, or artistic work.
Database: In libraries, collections of sources related to a particular subject, arranged electronically for easy searching.
Due Date: The date by which borrowed materials should be returned.
Full Text: Full text articles in databases have the entire article included for you to read. Articles that are not full text only show an abstract or the citation for the article.
Holds: Placing a "Hold" on an item in the Library allows a patron to request an item that is either on the shelf or currently checked out to someone else. The item will be set aside for the patron when it is available to pick up from the circulation desk. Holds may be placed on materials located at either campus library.
In-text citation: a brief citation within a work, at the point where information from the cited source was used.
Index: a list of names, subjects, etc., with references to the places where they occur, typically found at the end of a book. Stand-alone indexes can be used to find citations to specific journal articles by subject. The Library databases are electronic indexes which often link directly to the full text of the article.
Information Literacy: Knowing how to locate, evaluate and use information. The library's goal is to increase everyone's information literacy.
Interlibrary Loan (ILL): A system whereby libraries share their materials with each other at the request of patrons. When a requested item arrives, you will be notified by email.
Journals: The word "journal" is sometimes used to mean magazine, although it usually refers to scholarly journals, while the term magazine is most often applied to popular titles. Print journals and magazines are arranged alphabetically by title (not by call number, like books) in the bound and current periodicals sections of the Library. However, most of the journals the library provides access to are available electronically through databases.
Keyword: Aa significant or memorable word or term in the title, abstract, or text of a document. Use keywords and combinations of keywords to search library databases for sources.
Library: a collection of resources in a variety of formats that is (1) organized by librarians who (2) provide convenient access and (3) offer targeted services (4) with the mission of educating, informing, and/or entertaining (5) and the goal of stimulating individual learning and advancing society as a whole (adapted from definition by George Eberhart).
Open Access: A database, website, or online software application the contents of which are free for use, and often with fewer copyright barriers.
Peer-Review : This term refers to a journal containing articles that have been reviewed for accuracy by people who are experts in that field (the author's peers). These are considered scholarly articles and are usually published in academic journals.
Periodical: Materials published at regular intervals and intended to be continued indefinitely. Examples are magazines, journals, and newsletters.
Plagiarism: using someone else’s words or ideas without giving them credit. At MVCC and other colleges in the United States, plagiarism is considered to be a form of theft, and has serious consequences, like failing an assignment or course, or even being expelled from the college. Common examples of plagiarism include using information word-for-word from another source without using quotation marks or citing the source or using ideas from another source in your own words without citing the source.
Popular Journals/Magazines: These are articles written for the general public, usually only reviewed by an editor, rarely includes references, and they have flashy covers and pictures. Examples: Time, Newsweek, People, and Sports Illustrated. Compare to scholarly journals.
Primary Sources : They provide first-hand testimony or direct evidence concerning a topic under investigation. These sources are created by witnesses or recorders who experienced the events. Often these sources are created at the time when the events are occurring.
Reference Desk: Located to the right of the Circulation Desk and staffed by professional librarians, where you can get help with using the library and receive answers to your questions.
Reference Collection: A selection of library materials used by reference librarians to help people find information or do research. Types of materials in the reference collection include dictionaries, encyclopedias, and almanacs. These materials DO NOT leave the library and are located on the right side of the library.
Reserves: Course materials like textbooks and videos placed at the Library Circulation Desk by MVCC instructors, generally for use only in the library.
Secondary Sources: Books or articles that explain or analyze primary sources. An example would be a criticism of a literary work.
Source: a specific item from which research information is obtained. Common sources include books, journal articles, and websites.
Stacks: Rows of shelves where library books are stored. When the term “stacks” is displayed in the library catalog, it refers to items in the stacks to the left of the circulation desk.
Subject: The major ideas of each source, usually assigned by a librarian from a predefined list of subjects. These are the terms you would use if you were doing a "subject" search in the library main search or an individual database.
Table of contents: a list of sections or chapters within a book, usually found at the beginning of the book.
Thesis: The main idea or argument of a paper. What the author is trying to say regarding the topic. This is usually found in the first paragraph.
Topic: The main subject of a work; what the work is “about.”
URL (Uniform Resource Locator): Represents a unique location or "address" of a resource located on the Internet; similar to a call number for library materials.
Works Cited: A list of items that have actually been cited in a Research paper. Also called, References.