BIO476H5: Molecular Basis of Disease

Primary Sources:

• original research
• usually first appearance of results
• research conducted by authors of paper

Examples: 

• Scientific journal articles reporting experimental research results 
• Proceedings of meetings, conferences and symposia
• Technical reports 
• Dissertations or theses
• Patents
• Newspaper articles
• Data sets, such as census statistics 
• Listservs, newsgroups, and email

Secondary Sources:

• describe, interpret, analyse, evaluate, comment on, and discuss primary sources

Examples:

• Review articles
• Systematic reviews
• Literature reviews
• Meta-analysis
• Magazine articles
• Dissertations or theses (may also be primary)
• Books (may also be primary)
• Newspaper articles (may also be primary

Tertiary Sources:

• compile, analyse and condense secondary sources into a convenient, easy-to-read form
• tend to be factual

Examples: 

• Dictionaries
• Encyclopedias 
• Handbooks
• Textbooks 
• Course specific webpages