Geography 492:
Library Research in Geography

Final Project: Annotated Bibliography

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Proposal Due: Monday October 26, 150-200 word topic statement
Final Due Date: Wednesday December 9
Citation Style: Author-Date format (Chicago Manual of Style, Turabian)
Required Elements
Student Pages: See especially E. Arfin, F. Dent, and R. Hamilton for final project examples.

You will need to complete an annotated bibliography on the topic of your specialty within Geography. Each week we will be exploring research tools and skills that will contribute to this final project. By completing the weekly activities and assignments, you will be able to compile this bibliography over the course of the quarter, rather than in a final mad rush.

This final project should not be a random list of materials sharing common keywords, but rather a deliberately selected collection of materials related to a well defined topic. It may help to think of this as the literature review portion of a major paper which has a thesis and an argument. You will need to state your topic in a 150-200 word proposal due Monday October 26. Each item's annotation should include a critical review of the item and its relation to your topic. To write annotations, you will need to read the material you include in your bibliography.

For those of you enrolled in Geography 397, please discuss the topic and progress of your bibliography with your faculty mentor; selecting and narrowing your topic, discussing specific articles, seeking suggestions of related lines of inquiry, on any of these areas your faculty mentor/advisor should be able to give you excellent guidance. Topics that are appropriate include major papers for another geography course or thinking ahead to your final capstone project. Final project bibliographies will be "turned in" as a web page (with your study plan, if you are enrolled in Geography 397).

You will need to use the Author-Date citation style. This style is described in:

Chicago Manual of Style, 14th edition (p.637)

Kate H. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations.

Xia Li and Nancy Crane. (1996) Electronic Styles: A Handbook for Citing Electronic Information.

Xia Li and Nancy Crane. (1996) Bibliographic Formats for Citing Electronic Information. [Online] Available: http://www.uvm.edu/~ncrane/estyles/

Clark, Suzanne M. (1992) Cartographic citations : a style guide. Available in the Map Section GA108.7 .C55 1992

Uncle Sam - Brief guide to citing govenment publications, from University of Memphis library

Required elements:

1-2 page review of the literature included in the bibliography. The bibliography must include the following:

Minimum NumberType of Source Comments
2BooksYou will need to read the introductory and concluding material and skim sections of the book to get a sense of the author's argument and how well the author supports his/her claims. You will be required to locate book reviews in scholarly journals as well as biographical information about the author (see assignment of October 14, due October 21). These will provide some context for understanding the importance and impact of the book.
2Articles in popular magazines We will discuss and work with criteria to distinguish popular and scholarly publications throughout this course.
3Articles in scholarly journals Annotations must indicate the author's argument and how well supported.
1Government publication Select a publication from the level of government appropriate to your topic (local, state, federal, international intergovernmental organizations)
1Statistical Source Statistics can be used to illustrate an argument. Locate a statistical publication which supports the argument of the bibliography.
1Cartographic information Maps can illustrate topics in addition to locations. Include a map that supports the argument of the bibliography.
2Internet-based information Web sites, discussion groups, ftp sites - any are acceptable, diversity is encouraged as appropriate.

updated 9/23/98

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