Different forms of research literature meet differing needs. A general chemistry textbook provides a wealth of information, but it will not help with characterization of this year’s flu strains. To learn more about these kinds of resources, watch this tutorial (right click to open it in a new tab) on types of science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) literature (or see link below for transcript) from NCSU Libraries (created by W&M graduate and former W&M science librarian, Kristy Borda). (NOTE: W&M doesn’t have access to all of the databases mentioned but we do have IEEExplore, Scifinder-n, and Scopus instead of Web of Science.)
NOTE: When you’re starting your research, looking at the recent secondary and tertiary literature can help you before diving into the primary article literature!
