What databases are there besides SciFinder?
Of course SciFinder is must for chemistry research. There are other databases and indexes that are helpful and should not be skipped if you're working toward a comprehensive search, particularly if the area of your research is transdisciplinary, crosses over into other disciplines.
This page covers strategies you can use to identify other Indexes and Databases to search.
Chemistry and Biochemistry Article Databases
Chemistry Article Indexes and Databases - Best Bets
New developments and current research often appear first as conference papers and/or journals articles. You can find these in Article Indexes and Databases. You will also find product reviews, descriptions of methodology, or information on innovations in or applications of particular processes, systems and devices.
Each database has a different scope - it will cover different subjects and therefore will contain descriptions to articles in different journals.
- SciFinder This link opens in a new windowA must for finding chemistry articles and information; Search by topic, chemical, or reaction. You need to "register" before using this database. By American Chemical Society (ACS)
- ACS Publications This link opens in a new windowAmerican Chemical Society journals. Covers chemistry, physics, engineering, biology, and allied health professions.
- ChemSpider - Royal Society of ChemistryFind chemical structures, properties and associated information. Search by systematic name, synonym, trade name, registry number, SMILES, InChl or CSI
Biochemistry Article Indexes and Databases - Best Bets
- PubMed This link opens in a new windowBiomedical and life sciences literature from MEDLINE, life science journals, and online books. By the U.S. National Library of Medicine
- MEDLINE This link opens in a new windowAuthoritative information covering biomedical topics, with an emphasis on clinical medicine; includes optometry, dentistry, nursing, veterinary medicine, pre-clinical sciences and more. By the National Library of Medicine
General Science Databases
If you're not finding what you need in discipline related or specialized database, try one of these multidisciplinary science databases:
- Web of Science Core Collection This link opens in a new windowThis multi-disciplinary index covering the sciences, engineering, social sciences, arts and humanities. A key feature of this index is the cited reference search, which searches for the articles that have cited a particular author’s work, or a specific article.
To limit to Reviews: On one of the lines of paired boxes, choose "Document Type" from the drop-down menu on the right. This brings up selections in the box to the left; select "Review". - Scopus This link opens in a new window
Index of peer-reviewed literature, scientific journals, books and conference proceedings covering the fields of science, technology, medicine, social sciences, and arts and humanities.
- ScienceDirect This link opens in a new windowScienceDirect publications cover a wide range of subjects in engineering, physical sciences, life sciences, health sciences, social sciences, and humanities. Not all content is full text.
- Science.govProvides access to a large range of science-related web pages and databases from United States government agencies (the full list is at: http://www.science.gov/searchdbs.html).
Find Other Databases to Search
From the Library's Main page (boisestate.edu/library):
Click the Articles and Databases Panel
From the Databases page you can Search for Databases or Browse your choices using the Database Alphabet bar.
Search for databases by one or more of the following:
- Typing words into the Database Title / Keyword box
- Selecting a Subject using the dropdown arrow
- Identify the Type of resource you need using the dropdown arrow.
Includes types such as journals, maps, data and statistics, newspapers, dissertations and theses, e-books, images, primary resources, and more
Click the Search button. Database options will appear below the search box
Click on the name of the database you want to launch it
Click the Clear Filters link if you want to clear your search and start over. This link will only appear after you click the Search button.
Browse Database Titles using the alphabet bar
Having trouble accessing a particular database? Use the Report a Problem button prominently located under the Search button on the Database Search page
Who Cited this Article?
Many databases will show you who cited a particular article. Depending on the database you search, these citations might be from articles, technical reports, dissertations, or other types of documents. Here are some options in broad general databases that might help.
- Web of Science Core Collection This link opens in a new window
Search scholarly journals, books, and proceedings in the sciences, social sciences, and arts and humanities and navigate the full citation network. Search across all author and author affiliations, track citation activity with Citation Alerts, and see citation activity and trends with Citation Report.
- Google Scholar This link opens in a new window
Search scholarly literature across a wide variety of disciplines and sources: articles, theses, books, abstracts and court opinions, from academic publishers, professional societies, online repositories, universities, and other websites. Visit the Electronic Resources LibGuide-Google Scholar page to learn more about adding Find it at Boise State! library links to your Google Scholar search.
Why are the Number of Citations Different?
You may find that the numbers of articles that cited an original article are different in each database you search. Databases that have a "cited by" feature are retrieving the information from the content within their own database or a range of databases by that vendor, so their sources of information will differ.
Google Scholar will usually have more articles listed under their "cited by" because the database searches across the Internet
Using Google's Advanced Search
Google Scholar Advanced Search can help you structure your search around the keywords you generated for your topic, and give you ideas of how to focus your search. To get to the Advanced Search feature:
1. Go to Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.com) and click the menu bars on the top left
2. Choose Advanced Search
The structure of Google Scholar's Advanced Search template allows you to easily structure your search around your keywords, return articles authored by a particular person, published in a specific journal, or published between specified dates.
