Category: Post 2: Sources of Scientific Information

Blog Post 2: Sources of Scientific Information

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The information source evaluated is available through Thompson Rivers University Article Database:

Lehosmaa, K., Jyvasjarvi, J., Ilmonen, J., Rossi, P., M., Paasivirta, L., Muotka, T. 2018. Groundwater contamination and land drainage induce divergent responses in boreal spring ecosystems. Science of the Total Environment 639. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.05.126

 

This information source is academic peer-reviewed research material.

 

The information source is academic material, including authors that are part of departments specialising in the areas of knowledge the paper is focused upon. The research paper aims to observe the effects of groundwater contamination on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, including authors part of the Department of Ecology and Genetics at University of Oulu, Finnish Environment Institute, and Water Resources and Environmental Engineering Research Group at University of Oulu.

 

 

The paper includes in-text citations and a bibliography, allowing for information stated in the paper from other sources to be verified.

 

 

This source is peer-reviewed academic material, including an acknowledgement of two anonymous referees, in addition to providing the date the article was submitted, revised, and accepted on the article’s first page.

 

                   

 

This source contains results from a field study conducted by the authors, containing “Methods” and “Results” sections that contain details of their research. Hence, the information source is academic peer-reviewed research material.

 

      

 

 

Blog 2: Sources of Scientific Information

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The source of scientific information I chose is from the Thompson Rivers University Library. It is an academic paper that has extensive reference section, as well as in-text citations. It does not have three separate dates for when it was received, accepted and published, but I did make sure I was searching for peer-reviewed papers only. I chose this article because it is somewhat related to my study in a way that mallard ducks and artificial ponds/wetlands are involved, as well as habitat preferences for the mallard ducks

Krapu GL, Greenwood RJ, Dwyer CP, Kraft KM, Cowardin LM. Wetland Use, Settling Patterns, and Recruitment in Mallards. 1997 [accessed 2018 Jun 25];61(3):736. www.jstor.org/stable/3802180.

Sources of Scientific Information

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This blog post evaluates the following source:

Santos CC, Coelho R (2018) Migrations and habitat use of the smooth hammerhead shark (Sphyrna zygaena) in the Atlantic Ocean. PLoS ONE 13(6): e0198664. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0198664

 

This article is academic peer-reviewed research material.

 

Catarina C. Santos is employed by the Portuguese Institute for the Ocean and Atmosphere, I.P., a government research institution in Portugal. Rui Coelho works at the University of Algarve’s Center of Marine Sciences in Faro, Portugal. They would therefore be considered experts in their field.
https://www.ipma.pt/en/oipma/
https://www.ccmar.ualg.pt/en/page/general-information

The article contains in-text citations throughout and a bibliography containing the relevant reference material.

 

The journal, PLOS ONE, is a non-profit publisher that sets high standards for the quality of material they accept. Every article they publish has been anonymously peer-reviewed by at least two external reviewers. (The details of their review process can be found at http://journals.plos.org/plosone/s/editorial-and-peer-review-process)

Santos and Coelho outline their procedure for tagging the sharks and measuring the depth of fishing gear used during this study as well as their methods of analyzing the data. The article discusses the results of the authors’ own research.

Blog post 2: Sources of Scientific Information

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Hi Class and Professor Elliot,

I tried to choose a paper that was related to my field research interests and study area. The paper I chose to evaluate, “Riparian vegetation communities of the American Pacific Northwest are tied to multi-scale environmental filters,” was published online on August 25, 2014 in the Journal River Research and Applications.  The authors, who are specialists in their field, provide a report indicating the results of a field study based on the comparison and correlation of riparian vegetation to different environmental filters such as elevation, precipitation, and temperature (Hough-snee, Roper, Wheaton, & Lokteff, 2014). The authors ask a specific question, formulate and test a hypothesis, and provide methods and results.

Based on what I learned in the scientific information tutorial, this source is classified as academic, peer-reviewed research material. It is clear the paper is academic as it was written by experts in their field (e.g. hydrology, ecology, forestry) as noted in the subscript under the authors names. In addition, it has in-text citations referenced throughout the entire document and concludes with an extensive list of references. Finally, the paper includes a clear methods and result sections, including data analysis.

This paper is classified as peer-reviewed because it was reviewed by at least one referee in the field. I could tell this was the case by reading the paper and it noted it was received, revised, and accepted prior to it being published in the journal. I also use the library search engine from Royal Roads University and ensure to check the box for ‘peer-reviewed’ articles.

Image of Scientific Information (Hough-snee, Roper, Wheaton, & Lokteff, 2014).

Thanks,

Brittany Lange

Bibliography

Hough-snee, N., Roper, B. B., Wheaton, J. M., & Lokteff, R. L. (2014, August 25). Riparian vegetation communities of the American Pacific Northwest are tied to multi-scale environmental factors. River Research and Application, 31, 1151-1165.

 

Blog 2 – Sources of Scientific Information

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The source of scientific information that I chose for this assignment is an article from Nature (cited below). This is an academic paper because it has in-text citations and a references section. The website for Nature states that articles are peer-reviewed (https://www.nature.com/authors/policies/peer_review.html). Also, the article has different dates for when it was received, accepted and published.

Soliveres, S., van der Plas, F., Manning, P., Prati, D., Gossner, M., Renner, S., Alt, F., Arndt, H., Baumgartner, V., Binkenstein, J., et al. (2016). Biodiversity at multiple trophic levels is needed for ecosystem multifunctionality. Nature [Internet]. [cited 2018 May 31]; 536: 456-459. Available from: http://www.nature.com.ezproxy.tru.ca/articles/nature19092

Sources of Scientific Information

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My chosen source is very relevant to the area which I have chosen to observe/study (see Blog Post 1). It is entitled “Environmental History of a Garry Oak/Douglas-Fir Woodland on Waldron Island, Washington” (Dunwiddie et al., 2011), and viewable at http://www.bioone.org/doi/full/10.3955/046.085.0205. This represents peer-reviewed research, as it is published in a peer-reviewed journal (Northwest Science), and the authors present original research, including their study site, methods used, results, and a through discussion of their findings.

Blog Post 2: Sources of Scientific Information

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I have chosen The Journal of Applied Ecology as my source of ecological information. Its home page can be found by following the link below:

 

https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/13652664

 

I chose this journal because it covers a wide variety of subjects that I will be able to utilize when searching for literature for my final project. The Journal of Applied Ecology is an academic, peer-reviewed, review and research journal, so it will be an ideal place to gather trustworthy information. Below is a link to an article exploring habitat preferences, using Spizella breweri, the brewer’s sparrow, as an example;

 

https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1365-2664.2007.01352.x

 

Reference:

Chalfoun, A. and Martin, T. 2007. Assessments of habitat preferences and quality depend on spatial scale and metrics of fitness. Journal of Applied Ecology 44(5): 983-992.

Blog Post 2: Sources of Scientific Information

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The source of ecological information I have chosen is the following citation:  Muñoz, P. T., Torres, F. P., & Megías, A. G. (2014). Effects of roads on insects: A review. Biodiversity and Conservation, 24(3), 659-682. This paper is an academic, peer-reviewed review. The authors are affiliated with the University of Grenada in Spain, the paper includes in text citations and a bibliography of the citations used so it can be considered academic material. The authors acknowledge the feedback received from the three anonymous reviewers so the article was peer reviewed. The title of the paper describes it as a review and the paper does not include any method or results sections.

Sources of Scientific Information (Post #2)

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The source I have chosen is an online pdf about the use of aquatic macrophyte Azolla pinnata as a biosorbent to remediate ecosystems damaged by the waste products produced by the oil and petroleum refining industry. The link can be found here:

http://www.ijaprr.com/download/1440396380.pdf

This document meets all criteria for academic peer reviewed research material. It was written by an expert in her field: Dr. Punita S. Parikh is an associate professor at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. She has 25 years experience researching plant ecology, pollution ecology, and climate change. To be published in this journal, a document requires review by referees. More information on this process at this organisation can be found below:

www.ijaprr.com/

This study uses its own data. Numerous in-text citations can be found, and all relevant sections, including methods, results, references, and data tables from experiments, are present. As such, this document is an academic peer reviewed research paper.

Blog Post 2: Sources of Scientific Information

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The source of information is from http://www.jstor.org/stable/3798312?origin=crossref

This is an academic peer-reviewed journal article. It is a research article.

The article discusses research methods and uses its own data. It is published into a journal. The guidelines for this journal talk about the peer-review process in detail here:

http://www.nacwg.org/JWMguidelines2011.pdf

A reference to this source:

Martz, G. F. 1967. Effects of Nesting Cover Removal on Breeding Puddle Ducks. The Journal of Wildlife Management 31:236.