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Rickman Library Orientation

Learn about the resources and services provided by Rickman Library

Circulation Terms

Course Reserves - instructors may place certain materials on reserve for the entire class to access.  Reserve materials must be requested at the Information Desk and have special loan restrictions.

Hold - A library user may place a hold on a book charged out to another person; this ensures that the person placing the hold will be next in line to receive the book when the book is returned.

Information Desk - the main service desk of the library where you can check out and return materials and ask for assistance from a library staff member.

Interlibrary Loan Service -  when our library does not have access to an article you need, it can be requested through interlibrary loan.  Books may be requested if they are not available through PASCAL Delivers.  

PASCAL Delivers Service - the statewide delivery system for requesting books from any participating academic library in South Carolina.

Stacks - the book stacks are on the second floor and house our physical collection.

Research Terms

Abstract - a paragraph that summarizes the content of an article

Bibliography - a list of sources used when writing a paper, article, etc. 

Boolean Operators - Words such as AND, OR, and NOT that are used to combine search terms to broaden or narrow the results of a keyword search.

Citation - Information which fully identifies a publication: a complete citation usually includes author, title, name of journal (if the citation is to an article) or publisher and place of publication (if to a book), and date. Often pages, volume numbers, and other information will be included in a citation.

Database - an online search application that allows you to find periodical articles.  Some databases are general or multidisciplinary, covering a wide variety of subject areas.  Other databases are subject-specific.

Peer-review - a scholarly article that was evaluated by a panel of experts in the field when submitted for publication in a journal.

Plagiarism - Plagiarism is when you present someone else's ideas or words as your own in your research papers, presentations, etc. To avoid plagiarism, you must always give credit to an idea, thought, or words that are not your own by citing the original source of that information.