VWC: Library: WISE

Terms	Definitions
abstract	A short summary of an article, book or other source.
almanac	A collection of miscellaneous facts and statistics on many subjects. (examples: The World Almanac (a print almanac) or InfoPlease Almanac, an online almanac)
bibliographic record	Complete description of a book, document, publication or other library item; should include title, publisher, publication date and other information about the item.
bibliography	A list of source materials such as books or articles that are used in preparation of a research paper or are related in some way, for example, about a particular subject.
call number	A group of letters and numbers given to each item in the library. Call numbers are used to locate items on the shelves.
citation	The information about a specific resource that identifies the title of the work, the author, date of publication and other information.
database	A collection of information that can be accessed and searched through the internet.
domain	The part of a URL address that designates the file's affiliation. For example, the .edu in http://www.vwc.edu signifies that Virginia Wesleyan College is an educational institution.
holdings	Th list of books, journals and other items owned by a library.
index	An alphabetized list of names, places and subjects treated in a work, such as the index in the back of a book or a periodical index.
journal	A periodical published by an institution or professional society in which researchers report the results of their work to their peer community. Usually journal refers to scholarly publications as opposed to magazines that are considered popular publications.
keyword	A significant or descriptive word used as a search term; keywords are usually those in the title, abstract or other field.
library catalog	A list of materials owned by a library, including books, magazines and journals, audio-visual materials and other materials. A catalog is usually searchable by author, title and subject headings and in most libraries is online.
online database	A list of articles in journals, magazines, newspapers, books and other sources that are available through the internet. [provide link to library webpage of databases]
periodical	A publication issued at regular intervals, such as magazines, journals or newspapers. Also called serials.
plagiarism	“The unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as one’s own” [definition from the Random House Unabridged Dictionary Ref PE1625 .R3 1993]
primary sources	Original sources of information and material that has not been interpreted by anyone other than its creator. Common types of primary sources are diaries, letters, autobiographies, interviews, speeches, conference literature, stories, patents, poetry, photographs, drama, sheet music, and visual art.
secondary sources	These sources analyze and interpret primary sources, drawing upon them to explain events of the past or explore the meaning of works of art. Secondary sources are often produced well after the events or primary sources they comment upon, and their authors tend to be modern scholars or commentators rather than eyewitnesses of what they write about. Typical secondary sources include scholarly books, articles in journals, reviews, and textbooks.
serial	Same as periodicals. A publication issued at regular intervals, such as magazines, journals or newspapers.
style manual	A publication which specifies details of a writing style required by a particular publishing house or professional organization, including such matters as punctuation, capitalization, and rules for citing references. Citing sources helps to ensure academic integrity and allows readers to locate sources in a bibliography or Works Cited page.
URL	Uniform Resource Locator; an address that specifies the location of a file on the Internet (e.g. http://www.vwc.edu).