Biology in General
Table of Contents
Scope
This site focuses on the online sources used in Biology in general. It includes seven major areas: Reference tools, Books, Databases/indexes, Journals, Websites, Governmental information, and Organizations.
Search Strategies
If you're looking for a particular organism (living thing), try looking under both their common name and their scientific name (aka species name or latin name).
Species name:
an organism's species name consists of two parts: the genus name and the specific epithet.
E.g. Humans:
genus name: homo
specific epithet: sapiens
species name: Homo sapiens
In print, species names are always, without exception, in italics. In handwriting, species names should be underlined. The first letter of the species name is always a capital, and the rest are always in lower-case.
Broader terms
Organisms all belong to a biology-specific taxonomy. This is known as the phylogenetic tree. An older version was called the Linnaean taxonomy. Just as in the LC Subject Headings, there are broader and narrower terms within the Phylogenetic tree, which you can use to search as well.
Once you have determined the species name of the organism, you can also search by Genus. The genus is the closest broader term of the species name, and can be searched as a separate entity.
For instance:
Felis silvestris = house cat
Felis (the genus) includes all small cats including:
Felis bieti (Chinese desert cat)
Felis chaus (jungle cat) and more.
The specific epithet is never used without the genus name, therefore, searching for the specific epithet alone is inadvisable. Instead, search for even broader terms:
Some of the more useful broader terms are (from broadest to narrowest)
Kingdom: e.g. Animalia
Phylum: e.g. Chordata
Subphylum: e.g. Vertebrata
Class: e.g. Mammalia
Order: e.g. Artiodactyla
Family: e.g. Bovidae
Genus: e.g. Bos
Species: e.g. Bos taurus (domesticated cattle)
Tools
Tools for finding scientific names and broader terms online:
Integrated Taxonomic Information System
look under "Taxonomic Hierarchy"
NCBI Taxonomy
look under "Lineage"
Online Reference Sources
Encyclopedias
of life sciences ELS
Spanning the entire spectrum of the life sciences
More than 3,900 specially commissioned and peer-reviewed articles
Aimed at researchers, students and teachers
AccessScience
(online version of McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology)
Describes over 4800 North American plants and animals
Provides an extensive collection of science reference materials
Encyclopedia of evolution
A comprehensive guide to the essentials of evolutionary biology
370 entries by leading experts survey essential concepts and theories
Presents methods, models and findings, and discusses both the history of the field and current controversies
Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS)
An integrated compendium of 16 encyclopedias
Covers a wide variety of topics in the life sciences
Encyclopedia of Bioscience
Contains over 5000 authoritative reviews in the fields of biology and medicine
Over 500 scientists have contributed to this large group effort
The encyclopedia of molecular biology
Focusses on the fundamentals of molecular biology
Encompasses virtually all aspects of the expression of genetic information
Very useful point of reference for both newcomers and established professionals in molecular biology
Online Field Guides (free online)
Covers nature in North America
Searches more than 5,500 plant and animal species
Dictionaries
Life Science Dictionary
Contains 8300 definitions in biology, botany and cell biology
Biological Dictionaries
A comprehensive directory of biological dictionaries
Contains biological terms and terminology associated with genetics, biochemistry, biotechnology, botany, chemistry, ecology, pharmacology, toxicology and medicine
Dictionary of Plant Sciences
A very comprehensive and up-to-date dictionary of plant sciences
Contains over 5500 clear and concise entries
A searchable database with high quality images
Dictionary of Ecology
A clear and accessible dictionary of ecological terms
Offers wide-ranging coverage of ecology and the environmental sciences
Medical Dictionary
Covers terminology related to cellular, molecular and plant biology
Kimball's Biology Pages
An excellent introductory biology text
Contains a glossary of biological terms, many of which are accompanied by illustrated discussions
Serves as a hypertext dictionary specializing in cellular and molecular biology
Adapted from the print version by Dr. John W. Kimball, retired from Harvard University
BioTech's Life Science Dictionary
Contains definitions for over 8300 terms
Covers genetics, biochemistry, biotechnology, botany, chemistry, ecology, limnology, pharmacology, toxicology and more
SciCentral
Features a selection of research news sources for health sciences and medical research
Maintained by professional scientists whose mission is to identify and centralize access to valuable scientific resources online
A gateway to literally thousands of online science resources grouped by specific science areas
yourDictionary
A comprehensive authoritative dictionary, thesaurus, glossary and foreign language portal
Contains links to many specialized biological dictionaries
Index to Organism Names
The most comprehensive organism names database
Contains all the animal, plant, and virus names and data found within the Thomson BIOSIS literature databases,including Zoological Record®, BIOSIS Previews® and Biological Abstracts®
Bacteria names will be added soon
Biology-online Editable WIki dictionary
Based on a WiKi system, which enables everyone to add and update the content
Biodic
An index of biological images at the microscopic level
From the Free University of Brussels
Databases/Indexes
BIOSIS Previews (1969 - Present): available at: SFU, UBC, UVic
A Life Sciences journal reference database
Covers many fields in biology
Contains content from meetings, reviews, books, and monographs
Updated weekly
Web of Science (1990 - Present): available at: RRU, SFU, TRU, TWU, UFV, UBC, UNBC, UVic, VIU
Sometimes listed as Science Citation Index and Social Sciences Citation Index
Provides access to three multidisciplinary databases of indexed bibliographical information
Searches for specific articles by subject, author, journal, and/or author address
Includes each article's cited reference list
Biological & Agricultural Index Plus: BCIT, CAM, CAP, CNC, COTR, KPU, LC, NIC, NLC, NWCC, OC, RRU, SC, SFU, TRU, TWU, UBC, UFV, UNBC, UVic, VIU, YC
References over 200 English language journals in agriculture and biology
SciFinder Scholar (1907 - current): available at: SFU, TWU, UBC (no off-campus access), UNBC, UVic
Contains more than 14 million documents from over 8000 journals
Includes journals, patents, book reviews, meeting abstracts, dissertations, conference proceedings and technical reports
Covers biology, environmental topics, biochemistry, physiology, pharmacology, toxicology, and more
MEDLINE (1950 to Present with Daily Update)
- Ovid interface: available at: BCIT, CAM, CNC, DC, JIBC, KPU, LC, NIC, NWCC, RRU, SC, SFU, TWU, UFV, UBC, UNBC, UVic, VCC, VIU
- EBSCO interface: available at: BCIT, CAM, CAP, CNC, COTR, DC, JIBC, KPU, LC, NIC, NLC, NWCC, OC, RRU, SC, SFU, TRU, TWU, UFV, UBC, UNBC, UVic, VCC, VIU
- FirstSearch OCLC interface: available at: OC, UNBC, UVic
A comprehensive database indexing journals
Contains a variety of health-related fields, including medicine, nursing, psychology, and dentistry
PubMed (1966-current) Daily Updates unrestricted access
An international bibliographical database
Over 4500 biomedical journals
Covers the fields of medicine, nursing, dentistry, veterinary medicine, the health care system and the preclinical sciences
Academic Search Complete: available at: BCIT, UBC
Academic Search Premier: available at: CAM, CAP, DC, ECUAD, JIBC, KPU, NLC, OC, RRU, TRU, TWU, UFV, UNBC, UVic, VCC
A scholarly, multi-disciplinary, full text database
Designed specifically for academic institutions
Academic Search Elite: available at: CNC, COTR, LC, NIC, NWCC, SC, SFU, VIU, YC
A scholarly, multi-disciplinary, full text database
Designed specifically for academic institutions
General Science Index (Daily Updates): BCIT, CAM, CAP, CNC, COTR, ECUAD, KPU, LC, NIC, NLC, NWCC, OC, RRU, SC, SFU, TRU, TWU, UBC, UFV, UNBC, UVic, VIU, YC
High quality indexing of nearly 300 periodicals
Provides the full text of articles from nearly 100 periodicals
Many in-depth abstracts included
Applied Science & Technology Index: BCIT, CAM, CAP, CNC, COTR, ECUAD, KPU, LC, NIC, NLC, NWCC, OC, RRU, SC, SFU, TRU, TWU, UBC, UFV, UNBC, UVic, VIU, YC
Journals
BioScience
Journal of Experimental Biology (free)
Nature
Science
Ecology
New Scientist
American naturalist (AN)
Journal of biological education
Quarterly review of biology
Journal of wildlife management
e-Books
Biology (2003,free)
Biological Risk Engineering Handbook: Infection Control and Decontamination
Biology of the Southern Ocean
Biomarkers of Environmentally Associated Disease: Technologies, Concepts, and Perspectives
Developmental Biology
Ecosystems and Human Health: Toxicology and Environmental Hazards
e-books at UBC life science library
Other Online Catalogues
WorldCat
BC ELN
BC ELN stands for British Columbia electronic library network
A partnership between the Province of British Columbia and its post-secondary libraries
Currently serves 30 post-secondary libraries
Subject Guides
Capilano College Library Subject Guide: Biology
College of the Rockies Library Researching Biology
Douglas College Library Biology Subject Guide
Kwantlen University College Library Biology Subject Guide
Langara College Library Biology Subject Guide
Northern Lights College Library Biology Subject Guide (pdf)
Okanagan College Library Biology Research Guide (with links to course guides)
SFU Library Biological Sciences Information Resources
Thompson River University Library Biology Research Guide
Trinity Western University Library Which Index or Database Should I Use? Biology
UBC Library Life Sciences Subject Guide
UBC Library Subject Resources for Biology
UBC Library Subject Resources for Botany
UBC Library Subject Resources for Zoology
UCFV Library Biology Guide to Research
UVic Library Biology Research Guide
UVic Library Plant Sciences Research Guide
UVic Library Zoology Research Guide
VCC Library Biology Subject Guide
VCC Library Biology 1100 Course Guide
Websites & Portals
Biology Browser
A web directory of internet resources for biology
Provides a glossary, references, taxonomic information, and more
Frontiers in Bioscience
An internet forum for scientific communication
A multi-disciplinary journal for the biosciences
All articles are peer-reviewed and indexed in BIOSIS
Offers free online viewing of many journal articles
INTUTE (BIOME)
A collection of gateways in the life sciences aimed at students and researchers
Provides access to evaluated, quality internet resources in the health and life sciences
The WWW Virtual Library Biosciences
A online catalog covering a variety of bioscientific areas
Supplies links on veterinary medicine, biotechnology, and genetics
100 Top Wildlife Sites
Covers links to the 100 best sites on wildlife and wildlife conservation as selected by the World Environmental Organization
Biology Browser
A web directory for internet resources in biology
An excellent starting point for any biological search
Provides a glossary, references, taxonomic information, and more
Scirus
A science-specific search engine for journal & open web resources
SciCentral's Biology
A well-organized site, with "gateways" to sub-disciplines
Contains databases, research reports, educational materials, conferences, funding, and more
Biology Gateway
A directory of online biological & life sciences resources
The Darwin Digital Library of Evolution
Makes the full literature of evolution available online within a historically and topically coherent structure
Google Scholar
A citation-finding search engine which searches across the internet for research sources
Includes full text links
Harvard University Biology links
UBC Life Sciences Libraries (LSL)
Government
British Columbia
B.C. Conservation Data Centre
B.C. Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries
B.C. Ministry of Forests
B.C. Ministry of Health Services
Canada
Green Lane Databases
Canadian Museum of Nature
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
Canadian Forest Service
Environment Canada
Species at Risk
Fisheries and Oceans Canada
Health Canada
Parks Canada
Other
International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN)
IUCN Redlist of Threatened Species
National Biological Information Infrastructure (NBII)
U.S. National Biological Information Infrastructure
U.S.Environmental Protection Agency
U.S. Dept. of the Interior
Associations
Society for Conservation Biology (SCB)
An international professional organization
Linnean Society of London
A living forum for Biology
American Institute of Biological Sciences (AIBS)
Founded for the advancement of research, education, professional relations and the public
Canadian Federation of Biological Societies (CFBS)
A research consortium representing Canadian biological and biomedical professional associations
Contains programs, presentation guidelines, abstract submission forms, and registration information
Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB)
Integrates many fields of specialization in the broad field of biology
Publishes the journal American Zoologist
Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB)
A coalition of independent member societies
Serves the interests of biomedical and life scientists, particularly those related to public policy issues
USGS Biological Resources
An multi-disciplinary science organization
Focuses on biology, geography, geology, geospatial information, and water
Society for the Study of Amphibians and Reptiles( SSAR)
The largest international herpetological society
Established to advance research, conservation, and education
Presents a diverse program of publications, meetings, and more
AAAS- American Academy of Arts and Sciences
An organization dedicated to scholarship and the advancement of learning
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