The resources listed below will help you find background information on the United Nations, NATO, and the League of Arab States. These selections provide access to current news coverage, peer reviewed articles, and information about individual countries and regions.
One of the most trusted sources for scholarly books and historical journal backfiles. Beginning in 2023, JSTOR also includes Artstor images of art and primary source artifacts.
The Military Balance+ Database is produced by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, with information about the military capabilities and defense economics of over 170 countries worldwide, including analysis and data sets.
Search federal and state court cases, statutes, and codes as well as European Union laws and regulations. Secondary sources include the American Law Reports and the American Jurisprudence encyclopedia, law reviews, journals, and newspapers.
The library provides individual digital subscriptions to several of the newspapers listed below: The New York Times, The Financial Times, The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Nikkei Asia, and The Globe and Mail. Consider signing up for one or several of these resources. Sign-up instructions for digital subscriptions are provided below.
Also, check our wide selection of news platforms, including Foreign Policy, Foreign Affairs, and The Economist.
Our largest general news source. Worldwide newspapers, magazines, and wire services in full text (does not include images or page scans). Information is current and some backfiles also go back to the 1980s. Email notification alerts available.
The Atlantic covers a broad range of topics including politics, society, the arts, and culture. The site includes content from 1857 to the present and includes audio, video and podcast extras.
The Globe and Mail, founded in 1844, is a daily newspaper published in Toronto and one of the most prestigious and influential newspapers in Canada. Account creation with an @northeastern.edu email address is required.
PressReader provides online access to today's newspapers from over 100 countries around the world in over 60 languages in a full-color, full-page format. Back issue availability varies by title. PressReader can also be accessed via email registration. Go directly to the home page, click 'Sign In,' then 'Library or Group,' then select Northeastern University from the dropdown menu to create your account.
Please e-mail Roxanne Palmatier, library contact for Political Science and International Affairs.
A summary of a research article that appears at the beginning of the document. Reading the abstract may help you decide if you want to read the full article.
A note, comment, or explanation. Can be added to citations to create annotated bibliographies.
A geographic information system (GIS) software developed by Esri. ArcGIS enables you to analyze, visualize, and interpret spatial data for better decision-making.
Written content on a narrow subject and published in a periodical or website. In some contexts, academics may use article as a shortened form of journal article.
A detailed list of resources cited in an article, book, or other publication. Also called a List of References.
A group of libraries in New England that work together to share resources with students, faculty, and staff of member libraries. Northeastern University is a member of this group. Requesting a consortium library card is free to Northeastern students.
A free library available to people who work, live or attend school in Massachusetts. Boston Public Library's collection includes physical and digital access to books, journals, and films.
A label of letters and/or numbers that tell you where the resource can be found in the library. Call numbers are displayed on print books and physical resources and correspond with a topic or subject area.
A list of all the items in a library's physical collection. Modern catalogs are searchable databases. Catalogs include information about the item's:
Also called a catalogue, OPAC. Historically a card catalog.
Software that can help you collect, organize, and cite sources. The library provides training on five specific citation managers: BibTeX, EndNote, Mendeley, RefWorks, and Zotero. Also called citation management software, citation management tool or reference manager.
Physical materials assigned by an instructor and held at the library. These materials are generally restricted to in-building use for a limited period. At faculty discretion, some materials may be checked out overnight or for a few days.
A searchable collection of similar items. Library databases include resources for research. Examples include: a newspaper database, such as Access World News, or a humanities scholarly journal database, such as JSTOR.
A searchable online storage space for video files, images, and documents. Specialized digital repositories collect materials related to a theme or institution.
Northeastern University Library manages the Digital Repository Service (DRS). The DRS collects digital material related to Northeastern University's history and academic work.
The conversion of print or analog material to a digital format. Examples of digitization include:
A paper written to fulfill requirements for a degree containing original research on a narrow topic. Also called a thesis.
A unique number assigned to some digital content. DOIs do not change even if the online location or ownership of the resource changes.
A digital version of a thesis or dissertation produced by a master's or Ph.D. student. Most theses and dissertations written by Northeastern University students are ETDs. Interested researchers can find Northeastern ETDs in the Digital Repository Service. Theses and dissertations written before 2007 are only available in print format in the Northeastern University Archives.
A broad category of research in which existing research is reviewed to clarify what is known. Evidence synthesis uses explicit and reproducible methods. Common types of evidence synthesis include systematic reviews, scoping reviews, integrative reviews, and umbrella reviews.
A computer-based means of storing, analyzing, and displaying geographic data. Researchers use Geographic Information Systems to create maps and charts.
A way of examining and interpreting data about geographic locations, or spatial data. Geospatial analysis examines spatial data to gain insights and identify patterns or trends. Also called geospacial analysis.
A government document shared to inform and start discussion about proposed policy.
Research or reports circulated outside of a traditional publication process. Types of grey literature include:
Also called gray literature.
The system Northeastern’s library uses for interlibrary loan requests. The first time you request materials, you’ll need to set up your account.
A library service that allows you to request resources your library does not have. At Northeastern University, this service is free. Materials are delivered electronically when possible.
A unique number used to identify books. Many databases and search engines allow you to search for a book using an ISBN.
An ongoing publication focused on current developments in a field. Journal issues are released on a regular schedule.
A unit of Northeastern’s library with responsibility for services or systems. Some departments are referred to by their acronyms:
A search setting that removes search results based on source attributes. Limiters vary by database but often include publication date, material type, and language. Also called: filter or facet.
Notes, comments, annotations, sketches, added to the margins of a text. These can be typed or hand-written. Marginalia can include headers, footnotes, and sidenotes. In some cases, marginalia are written by the author of a text, but is often notes made by a reader.
Information associated with a resource, usually organized in a specific way. The word metadata means "data about data".
Metadata varies but often includes title, creator, and format. Descriptive metadata makes it possible to find and identify resources in a collection. When the metadata in a collection is standardized, the predefined structure is called a metadata schema.
Research or data available for free. Open access resources are sometimes labeled with an unlocked padlock symbol. These resources often have permissive licenses that support re-use and sharing.
What is Open Access?
Words used to connect multiple search terms to bring back targeted results. Operators can be used to reduce or expand the number of search results. Operators include:
Also called: Boolean Operator.
Well-regarded review process used by some academic journals. Relevant experts review articles for quality and originality before publication. Articles reviewed using this process are called peer reviewed articles. Less often, these articles are called refereed articles.
A newspaper, magazine or journal that is published on a regular schedule.
A free and open-source Geographic Information System (GIS) application. This tool set enables you to capture, analyze, visualize, and share geographic data. QGIS is a Mac-friendly alternative to ArcGIS.
Data defined by a grid of equally sized cells, akin to pixels.
To transfer information from one format to another. Example: Scanning a paper newspaper to create an online or PDF version. Reformatting includes digitization.
A webpage or pages created by librarians to guide your research in a field or course. Research guides include links to resources, tutorials, and other information.
The removal of a published article from a journal. A journal’s editors or editorial board can decide to retract an article when it has serious errors. Errors that can result in retraction include:
A book or article written by academic researchers and published by an academic press or journal. Scholarly sources contain original research and commentary.
Common filetype (.shp) for points, lines, or polygons. This filetype is widely used in Geographic Information Systems, specifically ArcGIS. Various free shapefiles are available online.
A library database that searches a broad range of resources. Material in Scholar OneSearch includes:
Scholar OneSearch also includes information about material held at Northeastern’s libraries. Researchers can use ScholarOne Search to organize their research and manage borrowed items. To best serve Northeastern University's widespread community, ScholarOne Search has different views:
Appropriate views for each global campus are included on their Global Campus Portal.
Information tied to specific geographic locations or positions on the Earth's surface. Also known as “geospatial data”, GeoData, or spacial data.
Library staff who have expertise in an academic subject. A subject librarian can offer advice on:
Subject librarians are available to work with individuals and small groups. They create guides and tutorials and teach workshops.
A source focused on sharing news and information of interest to an industry. Trade publications are often published by industry associations. Periodicals related to an industry are called trade journals.
An unrepeated string of numbers and letters used to recognize and differentiate material. Also called an identification number. Examples include American citizen's’ social security numbers or published books' ISBNs. A persistent identifier (PID) is a long-lasting type of unique identifier. Persistent identifiers allow you to locate a resource with a URL. Examples include electronic articles' Digital Object Identifiers (DOI) and digital materials' handles.
The precise address for a webpage. URL stands for the words uniform resource locator.
A spatial model using coordinates for representing points, lines, and polygons.
A concise, researched report about a complex issue. Readers should gain enough understanding to solve a related problem or make a choice.
An article or conference proposal draft shared to invite feedback.