Librarian for Biology

Kara Whatley
New York University Bobst Library
Coles Science Center, 9th floor
70 Washington Square So.
New York, NY 10012
Phone: (212) 998-2624
E-mail: kara.whatley@nyu.edu

NYU Links

• New books in Biology, Botany, Zoology, Physiology, and Anatomy
• Interlibrary Loan
• Expedited Document Delivery Service
• Services for NYU Faculty
• Collection Development Policy for the Biological Sciences
• NYU Department of Biology
• NYU Center for Neural Sciences

Related Subject Guides

• Chemistry
• Health Sciences
• Nutrition
• Physics

Internet Links

• Biology (Galaxy.com)
• Biology Links (Harvard University Department of Molecular Biology)
• FlyBase (Indiana University)
• Information Resources for Biology: Molecular, Cellular, Developmental Biology (University of California, Santa Barbara)
• Google Biology
• Information Resources for Biology: Botany, Ecology, Evolution, Marine Biology, Zoology (University of California, Santa Barbara)
• MolBiol.Net Bioinformatics Portal
• OhioLINK Subject Guide: Biology (Ohio University)
• Resources of Scholarly Societies (University of Waterloo)
• Science, Technology, and Medicine: Biology (University of Massachusetts, Boston)
• WWW Virtual Library: Model Organism
• Yahoo! Science: Biology
• Google Neurobiology
• Neurosciences on the Internet

Dictionaries and Encyclopedias

These resources can help you get an overview of a topic; define terms, theories, and persons in the field; and provide you with further readings on each subject. Using a reference resource in your research is especially useful at the beginning of a project, when it can help you focus your activities.

• Dictionary of biology, edited by Bill Indge. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1999.
  Bobst REF9 QH302.5 .I53 1999
• A Dictionary of Biology. New York: Oxford University Press, 2004.
  Bobst QH302.5 .D5 2000 or online access.
• Dictionary of biology: English, German, French, Spanish, edited by Gunther Haensch and Gisela Haberkamp de Anton. New York: Elsevier Scientific Pub. Co., 1981.
  Bobst QH302.5 .H33 1981
• A Dictionary of Scientists. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. online access
• Encyclopedia of bioethics, edited by Stephen G. Post. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 2004. online access
• Encyclopedia of evolution, edited by Mark Pagel. New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
  Bobst REF9 QH360.2. O83 2002
• Encyclopedia of genetics, edited by Sydney Brenner and Jeffrey H. Miller. San Diego: Academic, 2002.
  Bobst REF9 QH427 .E53 2002 or online access
• Encyclopedia of Life Sciences. New York: Grove Dictionaries, Inc., 2001. online access
• Encyclopedia of molecular biology and molecular medicine. New York: John Wiley, 2002. online access
• Grzimek's animal life encyclopedia edited by Michael Hutchins, Dennis A. Thoney, and Melissa C. McDade. Detroit: Gale, 2004.
  online access
• The Oxford companion to the Body, edited by Colin Blakemore and Sheila Jennett. New York: Oxford University Press, 2001.
  Bobst REF9 QM7 .096 2001 or online access.
• Oxford Reference Online. Includes: A Dictionary of Biology, A Dictionary of Scientists, and The Oxford Companion to the Body.
  online access

Databases

Journal literature is central to the scholarly work of biology. The following tools allow you to search for and use articles from within the hundreds of scholarly journals in biological sciences. To access these resources, click on the "articles via databases" link on the library homepage, and then look in the alphabetical list of databases by title. http://library.nyu.edu/collections/find_articles_title.html

• Biological Abstracts (1969-present)
  World's largest index for the life sciences. Includes citations and abstracts from the bioscientific literature in 6000 journals, proceedings, reports, books and book chapters in biology, clinical and experimental medicine, biochemistry, instrumentation, and methods. (Print counterpart: Biological Abstracts, 1926-2000, Bobst REF9 Index QH301 .B45)
• Biological and Agricultural Index (1983-present)
  Indexes the key international English-language periodicals in the biological and agricultural sciences, and includes extensive coverage of biochemistry, environmental science, ecology, microbiology and nutrition. Can also be searched as part of WilsonOmni.
• Biomax human genome database
  Manually annotated human genome database, with comprehensive DNA and protein information.
• LexisNexis Environmental Universe
  Indexes the abstracts of thousands of journal articles and conference papers, including federal and state codes, regulations, case law and agency decisions, waste site data and hazardous materials information. (Print counterpart: Environment Abstracts, 1974-1988, Bobst REF9 Index Z5862 .E59)
• Medline via PubMed or Ovid (1966-present)
  Produced by the National Library of Medicine, Medline can be used to find information on diagnosis, etiology, therapy, and prevention of diseases and disorders; on research in basic science fields relating to medicine (including anatomy, physiology, biochemistry, genetics, microbiology, pharmacology, etc.); and on biomedical technology and its applications.
• Proteome BioKnowledge library
  The Proteome suite of the six protein databases (YPD, HumanPSD, WormPD, GPCR-PD, MycoPath PD and PombePD) is the most comprehensive available and includes information about proteins in mammals, yeasts, nematodes, and fungi.
• Web of Science (aka Science Citation Index) (1900-present)
  Web of Science covers more than 5,700 major journals across 164 scientific disciplines including biology and medicine, among others. The index features searching by person, place, or topic, as well as cited reference searching. All citation indexes (science, social sciences, and humanities) may be searched simultaneously online. (Print counterpart: Science Citation Index, 1964-1997, Bobst REF9 Index Z7401 .S365)
• WilsonOmni (1994-present)
  Includes periodicals in the fields of biology, botany, earth science, environment and conservation, food and nutrition, genetics, medicine and health, microbiology, physiology and zoology. WilsonOmni also includes a variety of different subjects and kinds of resources, but lets you limit to "peer-reviewed" journals. (Print counterpart: General Science Index, 1978-present, Bobst REF9 Index Z7403 .G27n)

Writing Guides

• The Chicago Manual of Style. 14th ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993.
  Bobst REF1, REF6, or REF9 Z253 .U69 1993
• Hailman, Jack P. Planning, proposing, and presenting science effectively: a guide for graduate students and researchers in the behavioral sciences and biology. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1997.
  Bobst QH315 .H25 1997
• Knisely, Karin. A student handbook for writing in biology. 2nd ed. Sunderland: Sinauer Associates, 2005.
  Bobst QH304 .K59 2005
• Li, X. Electronic Styles : a Handbook for Citing Electronic Information. 2nd ed. Medford, N.J.: Information Today, 1996.
  Bobst REF9 PN171 .F56 L5 1996
• McMillan, Vicky. Writing papers in the biological sciences. 3rd ed. Boston : Bedford/St. Martin's, 2001.
  Bobst QH304 .M36 2001
• Pechenik, Jan A. A short guide to writing about biology. 5th ed. New York: Longman, 2004.
  Bobst QH304 .P43 2004
• Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association. 5th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2001.
  Bobst REF9 or REF6 BF76.7 .P83 2001
  Electronic reference information from upcoming 5th edition: http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html
• Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. 6th ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.
  Bobst REF1 or REF6 LB2369 .T8 1996

Reviews

Review materials are a good way to familiarize yourself with trends and key ideas in current biology. These are usually annual or monthly cumulations of articles or citations to articles that give you a brief summary of research and findings.

• Biological Reviews. London: Cambridge University Press. 1998 to date. Scholarly articles review significant developments in theory and research.
  Bobst QH301 .C17 (1998 to 2003) or online access.
• Quarterly Review of Biology. Baltimore: Williams & Wilkens. 1926 to date. Authoritative articles, theoretical papers, comprehensive book reviews, and timely assessments of the life sciences.
  Bobst QH301 .Q3 (2000 to date, earlier available Offsite) or online access.
• Trends in Ecology and Evolution. Amsterdam: Elsevier Science Publishers B.V. 1986 to date. Summaries, opinion and discussion of current research in ecology and evolutionary biology, from molecular to global.
  Bobst QH366 .A1 T772 (1998 to date)
  or online access.
• Annual Review of Genetics Palo Alto: Annual Reviews, Inc. 1967 to date. Yearly reviews of research literature in genetics.
  Bobst QH431 .A1 A54 (1990 to date, earlier available Offsite) or online access.
• Annual Review of Cell and Developmental Biology. Palo Alto: Annual Reviews Inc. 1995 to date. Yearly reviews of research literature in the fields of cellular and developmental biology.
  Bobst QH573 .A56 (1995 to 2003) or online access.
• Annual Review of Biochemistry Palo Alto: Stanford University Press. 1932 to date. Yearly reviews of research literature in biochemistry.
  Bobst QP501 .A64 (1990 to date, earlier available Offsite) or online access.
• Annual Review of Microbiology Stanford: Annual Reviews, Inc. 1947 to date. Yearly reviews of research literature in microbiology.
  Bobst QR1 .A5 (1990 to date, earlier available Offsite) or online access.
• Critical Reviews in Environmental Science and Technology. Boca Raton: CRC Press. 1993 to date. Critical reviews of current knowledge in environmental science and technology.
  Bobst RC565 .A1 C7 (1993 to date) or online access.