Defining Terms
Boolean operators are the words that we use when connecting two or more keywords in database searches. They include:
AND: Use AND between keywords when you want your results to include ALL keywords (e.g., "Kale AND "swiss chard" AND spinach)
OR: Use OR between keywords when you want your results to include ANY of the keywords (e.g., "blueberry OR raspberry OR blackberry")
NOT: Use NOT to exclude keyword(s) from your search (e.g., Kale NOT "swiss chard")
" " : Use quotations around a phrase of two or more words (e.g., "swiss chard")
* : Use the asterix to find all alternative endings of a root word, including its singular and plural endings (e.g. raspberr* will return raspberries, raspberry and raspberried)
Top Databases
Here are the top, chiefly scholarly, databases in this subject area.
- CAB AbstractsCAB Abstracts covers the significant research and development literature in the fields of agricultural engineering, applied economics and sociology, animal production, animal health, animal nutrition, aquaculture, biofuels, biosafety and bioterrorism, biotechnology, breeding, chemistry, climate change, crop science and grasslands, ecotourism, entomology, environmental science, food science and technology, forestry, genetics (molecular genetics, cytogenetics, population genetics, genomics), helminthology, horticultural science, human nutrition, invasive species, leisure and tourism (recreation), medicinal plants and pharmacology, microbiology, mycology, natural resources, land/water management, nematology, organic and sustainable agriculture, parasitology, plant pathology, plant protection, postharvest, protozoology, soil science, veterinary medicine, virology, waste management.
- Food Science and Technology AbstractsProvides access to abstracts of the world's food science, food technology, and food-related human nutrition literature. Coverage is 1969 to date and includes journals, patents, books, conference proceedings, reports, theses, standards and legislation.
- Environment IndexFormerly known as Environmental issues & policy index, Environmental Policy Index, and Environmental Knowledgebase Online. The Environment Index provides researchers with abstracts and indexing for over 1,000 titles covering environmental policy and studies. Updated monthly, with ongoing coverage for over 500 of those titles, the database contains citations for articles published since 1973. The database offers deep coverage of applicable areas of agriculture, ecosystem ecology, energy, environmental law, geography, marine and freshwater resources, public policy, social impacts, urban planning, and more. Additionally, an Environment Thesaurus and publication index are available for more precise, advanced searching.
Boolean operators
Finding Full Text
There are several ways to access the full text of the article:
- Use the Get it! Cornell links wherever you see them!
- If you have citations for specific articles: check the Library Catalog to see if we subscribe to the journals that contain the articles. Do a Journal Title search (or a Journal Title Abbreviation search if you're not sure of the full title). The Catalog will show whether or not we have access to the electronic version and/or the print version.
- If we don't have it, we can get it for you in a few days! Request articles via Interlibrary Loan.
If you are unable to locate the full text of an article, librarians are here to help you - so please contact us with any questions!