Oh, hello there! I'm your librarian. Contact me.
Please contact me via email at agallin@trinity.edu or visit me virtually over Zoom during my office hours Wednesdays and Thursdays 3-5pm.
Welcome to the Congress
Time to do research! Are you psyched?
Welcome to the research guide for PLSI 3305: Legislatures in the United States. This guide will primarily help you find appropriate sources for your case assignment paper, due October 1. Please don't hesistate to contact me if (when?) you have further questions or need assistance. You can most easily reach me via email: agallin@trinity.edu.
Information Sources Activity
You and your classmates will be divided into pairs/small groups to help complete this LibGuide.
Each group will be assigned a resource. Together with your colleagues, you must dive in and figure out what you can about the resource, including:
- What is this resource? (e.g., a newspaper? a magazine? a database? a blog? something else?)
- Who publishes this resource?
- What specific types of information can you find in this resource that might be helpful in completing your case study?
- Where in this resource should your classmates look? What steps do you need to navigate there?
- What is one of the best things about this resource?
- What is one of the trickiest things about this resource?
AS A PAIR/GROUP, POST ONE COMMENT on the bottom of this box answering all these questions and any additional information about the resource.
In the "Your Name" field, enter ALL GROUP MEMBERS' NAMES. You do not need to enter an email address.
In the "Subject" field, enter the RESOURCE TITLE. For example, enter "FDsys" as the subject.
In the "Comment" field, enter your group's answers to the questions about the resource.
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THOMAS (Library of Congress)HINT:
Be sure to navigate through some of the options in the lefthand menu. Your group might find it helpful to do some searches or if you don't have a bill in mind, randomly select one to browse and search. You want to get in deep here, as far as you can go, but use your time wisely, too! -
FDsys (Federal Digital System)HINT:
You can start by SEARCHING a known item or by BROWSING. Find "Browse Gov't Publications" on lefthand side. Or skip to a specific collection on the righthand side. Your group may find it helpful to search a specific bill or choose one randomly for this activity. There is a LOT here, so use your time wisely... -
The HillHINT:
Be able to explain what you CAN and CANNOT find in this resource. Oh, and take a particular look in lefthand menu under tabs such as "Business & Lobbying" as well as some of the blogs -- which are helpful for your paper? -
OpenSecrets.orgHINT:
Be sure to explore the various tabs under "Politicians & Elections" and "Influence & Lobbying" to find relevant information... Try hard to find what might be UNIQUE about this source - stuff you might have a hard time finding in other places.