Research Guide to Narratives of Technology

Here are some links to help you explore the growing number of Web sites related to narratives of technology:

• Chronology of Technology in Fiction by Daniel Chandler; includes thematic notes and bibliography (www.aber.ac.uk/media/Documents/SF/sf.html)
• Index to Science Fiction Anthologies and Collections, Combined Edition by William G. Contento (users.ev1.net/~homeville/isfac/0start.htm)
• Internet Speculative Fiction Database (www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/index.cgi)
• The Locus Index to Science Fiction (1984-1998) by Charles N. Brown and William G. Contento (www.locusmag.com/index/0start.html)
• Science Fiction in Genreflecting by Diana Tixier Herald (www.genreflecting.com/Science.html)
• Science Fiction in the Google Directory (www.google.com/Top/Arts/Literature/Genres/Science_Fiction">
• SF Timeline (www.magicdragon.com/UltimateSF/timeline.html)
• "Computers in Fiction" an essay by H. Bruce Franklin (newark.rutgers.edu/~hbf/compulit.htm)
• List of Fictional Robots and Androids courtesy of Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_fictional_robots)
• Isaac Asimov in Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isaac_asimov)
• Ray Bradbury in Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ray_Bradbury)
• Arthur C. Clarke in Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthur_C_Clarke)
• Michael Crichton in Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Crichton)

For tips on citation format, please see Diana Hacker's Humanities: Documenting Sources page at www.dianahacker.com/resdoc/humanities/english.html or MLA Style via Yahoo!

Reference books are shelved by Library of Congress call number in the Reference Area on the first floor of the Ruth Haas Library. They may not be checked out, but photocopiers are available for student use on the first and third floors of the Haas Library.

CONSULS catalog workstations are located in the Reference Area on the first floor, and on each of the other floors of the Haas Library. You may logon to CONSULS via the WCSU Libraries Homepage at library.wcsu.edu/web or directly at www.consuls.org. For more detailed instructions on searching, please see the yellow CONSULS flyer on the display rack on the first floor.

Please Note: CONSULS ignores upper and lower case, and you may omit punctuation, except the hyphen which must be replaced by a space.

TO FIND WORKS WITH A SPECIFIC TITLE:

Select Title at the CONSULS Main Menu, then type as much of the title as you remember in correct word order. In CONSULS, you may omit "a," "an," or "the" at the beginning of a title.

Example: i sing the body electric (press RETURN or ENTER)

Or just: i sing the body electric

If your TITLE search does not retrieve an entry for a separately published edition of the work, click on Words Search to re-execute the search as a Keywords search (example: the veldt and press RETURN), then scan the CONTENTS field of each entry for the title of the work you need.

TO FIND WORKS WRITTEN BY A SPECIFIC AUTHOR:

Select Author at the CONSULS Main Menu, then type the writer's name last-name-first. Correct spelling is important.

Example: clarke arthur c (press RETURN or ENTER)

Or just: clarke art (press RETURN)

To limit search results to items owned by WCSU, click on Limit/Sort, then select WCSU under "Where Item Is Located."

TO FIND WORKS WRITTEN ABOUT A SPECIFIC WRITER:

Select Subject at the CONSULS Main Menu, then type the writer's name last-name-first. Correct spelling is important. To limit results to items owned by WCSU, click Limit/Sort and then select WCSU under "Where Item Is Located."

Example: asimov isaac (press RETURN or ENTER)

Or just: asimov i (press RETURN)

CONSULS will retrieve a list of Library of Congress subject headings that begin with the words you typed:

Asimov Isaac 1920 (main heading is subdivided)

Asimov Isaac 1920--Bibliography

Asimov Isaac 1920--Biography

Asimov Isaac 1920--Criticism and interpretation

TO FIND INFORMATION ABOUT A SPECIFIC TOPIC BY SUBJECT HEADING:

Select Subject at the CONSULS Main Menu, then type the Library of Congress subject heading which best describes your topic. Correct spelling and word order are important. The complete list of Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) is published in a set of big red books available in the Reference Area on the first floor of the Haas Library.

Type: literature and technology--united states (press RETURN or ENTER)

Or just: literature and technology (press RETURN)

The following Library of Congress subject headings are pertinent to narratives of technology:

Androids in literature

Artificial intelligence--Fiction

Automobiles--Fiction

Biological warfare--Fiction

Birth control in literature

Cloning in literature

Computers--Fiction

Computers in literature

Conscious automata in literature

Cybernetics in literature

Cyborgs in literature

Dystopias in literature

Electronic mail messages--Fiction

Future in literature

Genetic engineering--Fiction

Global warming--Fiction

Human cloning in literature

Human-computer interaction--Fiction

Internet--Fiction

Interplanetary voyages--Fiction

Interstellar communication--Fiction

Literature and science

Literature and technology

Mass media and literature

Medicine in literature

Nuclear warfare--Fiction

Nuclear Weapons--Fiction

Postmodernism (Literature)

Robots in literature

Science and state--Fiction

Science fiction (Many subdivisions)

Space flight--Fiction

Space ships--Fiction

Space vehicles--Fiction

Submarines (Ships)--Fiction

Technology in literature

Technology in motion pictures

Time travel--Fiction

Utopias in literature

Virtual reality in literature

TO FIND INFORMATION ABOUT A SPECIFIC TOPIC BY KEYWORD(S):

Select Keyword(s) at the CONSULS Main Menu, then type the words which best describe your topic, in any order.

PLEASE NOTE: In CONSULS, you must type the Boolean AND between keywords--if the AND is omitted, CONSULS will search your input as a phrase.

Example: (fiction or novel* or short story) and (robot* or android* or automat*) press RETURN

Narrower: science fiction and (robot* or android* or automat*) press RETURN

Use the * (asterisk) as a truncation symbol to retrieve variant forms of a word root. Use the Boolean OR to expand your search by including synonyms and related terms. When using two different Boolean commands in the same search statement ("and" and "or" in the preceding examples) you must include parentheses to indicate which command is to be performed first.

TO REQUEST MATERIALS FROM THE OTHER CSU LIBRARIES:

If the item you need is owned by one of the other CSU Libraries (CCSU, SCSU, or ECSU) but not by WCSU, or if the WCSU copy is checked out, you may order the item electronically via Inter-Campus Loan. Select Request at the full record display in CONSULS, then type your student ID# and your library PIN code. Be sure to specify pickup location (Haas or Young Library) before clicking on the gray bar to initiate your request. If you need assistance with your library PIN, please contact the librarian at the Reference Desk at (203) 837-9110.

There is a limit of ten (10) Inter-Campus Loan requests per person. Videos are available via Inter-Campus Loan. Please allow 4-5 days for delivery to the Haas Circulation Desk. Items borrowed via Inter-Campus Loan may be renewed for an additional borrowing period if no one else has placed a HOLD on the item.

Computerized Databases

Academic Search Premier in EBSCOhost

Coverage: 1990 - present (earlier for many publications)

Location: Under Articles/Databases at the WCSU Libraries Homepage.

Scope: Indexes approximately 8,000 newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals in most fields, with 4,000 available in full-text.

JSTOR

Coverage: Issue number one to within 1-3 years of present

Location: Under Articles/Databases on the WCSU Libraries Homepage.

Scope: Full-text of over 400 core scholarly journals in more than 25 disciplines, including language and literature (complete backfiles).

MLA International Bibliography

Coverage: 1963 - present

Location: Under Articles/Databases at the WCSU Libraries Homepage.

Scope: Indexes books, book articles, journal articles, and Ph.D. dissertations in literature, language, linguistics, and folklore. No abstracts; some linked full-text. Also available in print in the Haas reference area.

WorldCat via OCLC FirstSearch

Location: Select OCLC FirstSearch under Articles/Databases at the WCSU Libraries Homepage.

Scope: Indexes 60+ million books, manuscripts, theses, and non-print materials. If the item is not owned by WCSU, you may use Interlibrary Loan.

Printed Indexes

Humanities Index

Coverage: 1974 - present

Location: Index shelves in the Haas reference area (near the atrium).

Scope: Indexes articles by author and subject from 250+ English-language scholarly journals in the humanities, including language and literature. The most recently published articles are listed in paperback supplements.

To find out if WCSU subscribes to a specific periodical:

1. Select Journal Title at the CONSULS main menu, then type the name of the periodical (example: american literature) and press RETURN. If a title list appears on the screen, select the desired title, then look inside the box to find WCSU holdings. Be sure to scroll down the page to see if WCSU owns backfiles on microfilm or microfiche.

2. Or, use the printed WCSU Serials List, available in multiple copies in the Reference Area on the first floor, and on the third floor of the Haas Library, which lists all the newspapers, magazines, and journals owned by WCSU in alphabetical order by title. If WCSU subscribes to the periodical you need, you will find it on the third floor. Print volumes are shelved alphabetically by periodical title. Microfilm and microfiche backfiles are arranged alphabetically by title in the metal filing cabinets. Reader/printer machines are available on the third floor for viewing and making copies of microforms.

3. To find out if a given periodical is available in full-text in an online database, you may use the A-to-Z Journal Title Locator at library.wcsu.edu/web/resources/journals or under "Resources" on the WCSU Libraries Homepage (library.wcsu.edu/web).

If the CSU Libraries do not own the book you need, or if WCSU does not subscribe to the periodical you need, you may request delivery of the item via Interlibrary Loan using the online ILLiad system available at: library.wcsu.edu/web/services/ill.

There is a limit of 5 Interlibrary Loan requests per person per day. Videos are not available via Interlibrary Loan. Under most circumstances, Interlibrary Loan is a free service, but please allow at least ten working days for delivery. You will be notified as soon as the material arrives. Faster document delivery service is available for a reasonable fee. Please see the librarian at the Reference Desk or call the Interlibrary Loan Desk at (203) 837-9114 for more information.

The Reference Desk on the first floor of the Haas Library is staffed by a professional librarian who is trained to assist in your research, or you may contact Joan Reitz, Instruction Librarian, at 837-8308 or reitzj@wcsu.edu. My office is located in Room 402 on the fourth floor of the Haas Library (near the glass elevator).