Instruction and practice in the use of the on-line catalog, reference books, periodical indexes, government documents, and other library materials. Development of student independence and initiative in using the library as a source of information. 1 lecture.

Sources of information pertaining to biology and agriculture and closely related disciplines. Use of abstracts and indexes for journal articles, reviews, proceedings, dissertations, and government documents. Bibliographic database searching. Search strategy, reference books introduced, bibliographic techniques. 1 lecture. Prerequisite: Junior standing or consent of instructor.

Sources of information and search strategies in major subject fields. Reference materials, bibliographic aids, indexing and abstracting tools, and Internet sources. Evaluation of sources. Class Schedule will list major subject area covered. Total credit limited to 4 units. 1-4 lectures. Prerequisite: Junior standing or consent of instructor.

Instruction and practice in use of computerized information retrieval systems including CD/ROM, local and Internet sources, and vendor services. Emphasis on efficient searching skills utilizing controlled and/or keyword searching, limiters, Boolean logic, truncation, proximity operators, field searching, etc. 1 lecture.